Gunna

Used for WUNNA, as featured in this May 28, 2020 Townsend Labs article.

Campbell, California, May 28, 2020. Last Friday, the US rap superstar Gunna released his highly anticipated new album 'WUNNA'. It features an A-list line-up of producers and guests such as Wheezy, Turbo, and Young Thug. A significant portion of the LP's vocals were tracked by Angad 'Bainz' Bains and Flo Ongonga using the Sphere L22. In addition to the microphone's outstanding sound quality, Gunna's album stars Sphere's cutting-edge features that go far beyond modeling.

Creative retreat meets recording studio

The majority of the writing and production effort did not take place in traditional studios, but during a three-week retreat in Jamaica. The entire crew, producers, and engineering team all teamed up in a villa to get creative. At the helm of the recording process were Angad 'Bainz' Bains and Flo Ongonga, two veteran rap tracking engineers who have worked with Young Thug, Future, Travis Scott, and many more. Together, they maintained the highest level of professional recording despite improvised and, at times, challenging circumstances. At the center of their minimalist setup were the Townsend Labs Sphere L22 Modeling Microphone and a Universal Audio Apollo Twin audio interface.

How Sphere's cutting-edge features saved the day

Exceptional sonic performance is a must for demanding rappers like Gunna. Sphere's core models like the LD-800 and LD-251 once again delivered without falter. But the more advanced features like Sphere's proximity and pattern control made the L22 microphone rise above traditional alternatives.

As Ongonga describes: "Gunna gets in the zone with his eyes closed, and he may not always be aware of his distance to the mic. The proximity control allows us to tailor the sound perfectly without having to move the mic or ask him to change his position."

"The crickets in Jamaica can be extremely loud and annoying. Having full control of the polar pattern empowered us to maximize the rejection and still get a perfectly usable recording," adds Bainz.

To facilitate a speedy, low-latency workflow, Bainz and Flo used a Universal Audio Apollo Twin interface as the front-end for the recording. Doing so allowed committing to the Sphere UAD plug-in and additional effects on the way into Pro Tools. In addition to the Sphere's core models, the engineers selected the BP-251A model from the UAD Bill Putnam Mic Collection (sold separately) for some of the songs.

A transformative listening experience Produced by Wheezy, Turbo, Taurus, and Aviator Keyz, 'WUNNA' is a warm-sounding, soothing record that perfectly captures the chill vibe in Jamaica. The Rolling Stone magazine has praised the album for its "superb production" and has concluded that it's a "transportive listening experience" that "brings out the best in Gunna." The Townsend Labs Sphere L22 microphone and its models were right at the front line and can be heard on singles such as 'WUNNA,' 'SKYBOX,' and 'GIMMICK’.

In the video "10 Things Gunna Can't Live Without" by GQ, at 2:22 he talks about his LaCie Rugged Portable Hard Drive:

My next essential will have to be my hard drive. It's very very special, and I'm very very protective of it. I have the Rugged drive with a case over it. And I also have another case that it sits in 'cause I'm just very protective of this. This is like, half of my life. It has all my music on it. I got a backup drive too so I ain't crazy. But I gotta have my drive. It's one of my most essentials.