Alongside the Abbey Road team, some of the music industry’s leading names will share career insights from their personal journeys, as well as advice for upcoming talent and a range of live performances and showcases. Participants will be able to attend for free by entering a ballot and the festival will also be livestreamed.

As part of Abbey Road Amplify, Abbey Road Institute is delighted to be hosting an award-winning producer and engineer panel that will be discussing their different routes into the industry.

The panel is comprised of Mix and Mastering Engineer Manon Grandjean, Producer, Engineer and Writer Aamir Yaqub and Engineer and Producer Ricky Damian. Drawing on their different experiences gained through work with the likes of Stormzy, Rihanna, Mark Ronson, Yebba and many more, they’ll be sharing their personal journeys and insights into how to carve a career as a producer, engineer in the music industry today.

Aamir Yaqub is a London based Producer, Grammy Award-winning engineer, and writer specialising in Hip-Hop, R&B, Soul and Pop music. Aamir’s sound bears heavy influence from his iconic idols and contemporary visionaries alike.

Aamir worked extensively at Metropolis Studios, London, where he collaborated with a number of respected Grammy Award-winning artists, producers and engineers. He has worked with high profile acts including Rihanna, David Guetta, Ne-Yo, Sia and Will.I.Am, as well as with major labels and brands.

As an artist, Aamir takes his influences from a variety of genres from Rock and Bollywood to Jazz and credits legends such as Stevie Wonder, Prince, Michael Jackson and Marvin Gaye as his main inspirations. Working in London, Aamir has supported local talent, not only as a producer but as a mentor as well, helping them to invent, brand and shape their musical personas and sound. His career is set to flourish; his innovation as a producer and energy as a songwriter, backed by his technical nous, continues to be recognised by some of the industries most prominent and visionary musicians and professionals.

Manon started her career as a runner at Livingston Studios in North London after moving from France to the UK for an internship. Shortly after she got a freelance assistant position at a vintage boutique studio in South West London called State of the Ark Studios. From 2010 to 2015 she was their trusted house assistant and engineer and has worked with world renowned artists and producers such as Noel Gallagher, Kasabian, Alan Parsons, Ethan Johns, Jim Abbiss…This is also where she met british band London Grammar and went on to engineer their platinum selling album "If you wait “. She joined the engineering team at the well renowned RAK studios from 2013 to 2015, where she carried on developing her tracking skills.

In 2015 she started engineering solely for multi award winning songwriter/producer Fraser T Smith. During their 5 years partnership, Manon has worked on critically acclaimed and chart topping albums such as Stormzy’s “Gang Signs & Prayer” and Dave’s “Psychodrama” not only as an engineer but also as a mixer. Both albums went to number 1 in the UK charts and won Album Of The Year at the Brit Awards in 2018 and 2020.
During that time, she also engineered and mixed a wide range of tracks for artists like Raye, Mabel, Craig David, Nina Nesbitt, Calum Scott, Gavin James, Kano, Not3s, Easy Life, Jorja Smith, Ray Blk, RagnBone Man, Professor Green, Anne Marie, Tom Grennan and many others…

In 2017, Manon received the award for MPG Breakthrough Engineer Of The Year at the prestigious Music Producer Guild awards, and went on to receive the award for MPG Engineer Of The Year in 2018.
Since 2020, Manon is freelance mixing and mastering in her studio at The Qube in Acton, working with a wide range of artists across genres such as AJ Tracey, Fredo, Nao, Faangs, Luz….So far Manon has been involved in 6 UK number 1s

Riccardo Damian is an Italian Grammy Award-winning engineer/mixer/producer based in London. Passionate about music since childhood, he started his journey at the age of 14 in a studio in Treviso, where he had the opportunity to see and start to learn about audio engineering and get familiar with analog gear, tape machines and vintage microphones. Eager to pursue a career in audio, Riccardo moved to London in 2012 to study audio engineering.

During his student years, he worked as an assistant engineer in several studios, including Red Bull Studios. Shortly before his graduation, Riccardo was offered the opportunity to work for Mark Ronson. He started his career path in the position of In-House Audio Engineer for Mark, working around the world with incredible artists such as Adele, Lady Gaga, Lily Allen, Miley Cyrus Dua Lipa and more. In 2016, Riccardo was awarded a Grammy Award in the category “Record of The Year” for his contribution on the song Uptown Funk. After going freelance in 2017 Riccardo has produced, engineered and mixed a variety of projects for artists such as Jorja Smith, Sampha, Sam Smith, Ezra Collective, Yebba, Masterpiece and many more.