Jeff Ellis (recording engineer)

Jeff Ellis (born 16 July 1984) is an American recording engineer and mix engineer.^[1] His most notable work was featured on both of Frank Ocean's critically acclaimed albums: Channel Orange,^[2] and Blonde.^[3]

Jeff Ellis
Birth name	Jeffrey Charles Ellis
Born	(1984-07-16) July 16, 1984 (age 40) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
Origin	Scottsdale, Arizona
Genres	Pop, contemporary R&B, electropop, pop-rap, rock
Occupation(s)	Recording engineer, mix engineer
Years active	2008–present

Career

In 2009, after changing careers from finance to music, Ellis garnered an internship at EastWest Studios, formerly United/Western Recorders, where artists such as Frank Sinatra and The Beach Boys once recorded. When his internship ended, Ellis was asked to join the staff as an assistant musical engineer.^[4]

In 2012, Ellis became the engineer for recording artist Frank Ocean when he arrived at EastWest Studios to record a track for his debut album, Channel Orange. Ellis developed a working relationship with Ocean and was offered the opportunity to freelance full-time on the remainder of the project.^[4] Channel Orange was a critical success, earning Ellis a 2013 Grammy for Best Urban Contemporary Album, as well as a nomination for Album of the Year.^[5] The album also includes the Record Of The Year-nominated track "Thinkin Bout You" a song that Ellis mixed.^[6]

Ellis continued to work with Frank Ocean from 2012 to 2016 on his follow up album Blonde.^[3] Ellis has also worked with such notable artists such as Akon, Skylar Grey, Nick Jonas, Pernille Rosendahl and Kate Nash, whose album Made of Bricks hit #1 on the UK album chart in 2007.^[4]

Awards and nominations

Year	Organization	Award	Work	Result
2013	55th Grammy Awards[7]
		Record of the Year[8]	"Thinkin Bout You"	Nominated
		Album of the Year[8]	Channel Orange	Nominated
		Best Urban Contemporary Album[8]		Won

Notable credits

Year	Artist	Album	Details
2024	JPEGMafia	I Lay Down My Life for You	Mixer (with JPEGMafia)[9]
2023	JPEGMafia and Danny Brown	Scaring the Hoes	Mixer (with JPEGMafia)
2018	Kali Uchis	Isolation	Mixer
		"After the Storm"	Mixer
	The Neighbourhood	The Neighbourhood	Mixer, Track 10 "Reflections"
2017	Jesse Rutherford	&	Mixer, Master Engineer
2016	Frank Ocean	Blonde	Engineer[3]
	Nick Jonas	Last Year Was Complicated	Mixer[10]
	SWMRS	Drive North	Mixer[11]
	Pernille Rosendahl	Dark Bird	Mixer[12]
2013	Earl Sweatshirt	Doris	Engineer[13]
	Kate Nash	Girl Talk	Engineer, Vocals (Background)[14]
	Skylar Grey	Don't Look Down	Vocal Engineer[15]
2012	Frank Ocean	Channel Orange	Engineer, Mixer[14]
	Odd Future	The OF Tape Vol. 2	Engineer, Mixer[14]
	Shoshana Bean	O'Farrel Street	Mixer[16]

References

1. The Recording Academy. "Grammy Nominees 2012". The Recording Academy. Archived from the original on 7 December 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
2. Himmelman, Jeff (7 February 2013). "Frank Ocean Can Fly". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
3. Pitchfork (21 August 2016). "Frank Ocean's Blond: 6 Things to Know". Pitchfork.
4. Baker, Craig. "Making Music with Grammy-winning audio engineer Jeff Ellis". The Money Side of Life. Archived from the original on 16 July 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
5. C.R.A.S, The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences. "Grad Spotlight: Jeff Ellis". The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on 17 July 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
6. Clinch, Danny. "Grammys 2013: Full nominations list of the 55th Annual Grammy Awards". New York Daily News. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
7. "Grammys 2013: Complete list of nominees". Los Angeles Times. December 5, 2012. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
8. The Recording Academy. "55th Grammy Nominees and Winners". The Recording Academy. Archived from the original on 7 December 2014. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
9. "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
10. Discogs. "Nick Jonas* - Last Year Was Complicated". Discogs.
11. RollingStone (27 May 2016). "Meet SWMRS: Punk's Progressive, Pop-Friendly Saviors". Rolling Stone.
12. Hi-Fi Klubben. "HI-FI SCENEN MED PERNILLE ROSENDAHL".
13. "Earl Sweatshirt - Doris - AllMusic Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
14. AllMusic. "All Music Credits Jeff Ellis". All Music. Retrieved 16 July 2013. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
15. "Skylar Grey - Don't Look Down - AllMusic Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
16. Discog. "Shoshana Bean - Discog Credits". Discog. Retrieved 16 July 2013.