Travis Powers started as a musician, programming samplers and processing gear, and later becoming sound designer, supervising sound effects editor and/or composer for animated shows including The Simpsons, Futurama, Dilbert, The PJs, The Critic, The Tracey Ullman Show and King of the Hill.
Guitar Center Professional‘s West L.A. location has been Powers’ go-to resource for a long time. There, dedicated personnel such as Ziv Gross (account manager) and Derek Snyder (manager, Strategic Development) have been helping clients pick the right gear for their needs and getting them up and running on it as quickly and transparently as possible.
“Travis has been working with Derek and I for quite a while now; we try to anticipate his needs and get him comfortable with new equipment as easily as possible,” explains Gross, who set Powers up with his new Avid Pro Tools HD system and Genelec 8330 SAM 2.1 monitoring system which will be expanding to full 5.1 in the very near future.
Gross recalls, “When we handled the new Pro Tools HD system for him, we also transferred all of his plugins and sound libraries from the old computer, so that he was up and running without having to wait for the process. It was plug and play within just a few hours. My rep from Genelec and I came over to his studio to set up the new system and tune the monitors to the room.”
Powers agrees: “These guys are always on top of it,” he says. “Recommendations for new equipment, new acoustical treatments, letting me know about upgrades — they always keep me up to date. My work never stops, and neither do they.”
Powers’ close relationship with GC Pro, and the gear and setup they’ve assembled together over the years, has helped with the blossoming of an entirely new career – that of Travis’ daughter Veronica Powers, an up-and-coming performer in her own right. As a singer-songwriter and actress in her teens, Veronica has recently broken out with high-profile live performances and her brand new single and video “You’ve Got Something.”
Travis notes, “I’ve never put any pressure on her at all to enter show business; it was all organic and natural for her, but growing up in a household with a recording studio certainly an influence, I believe. Getting started years ago, we were able to produce music and videos for Veronica in-house, thanks to the gear setup I’ve been lucky to put together – not to mention the guitar we got her from Guitar Center.
Now the opportunities are stacking up, with several producers interested in her moving forward – she co-wrote ‘You’ve Got Something’ with Francci Richard (songwriter for Fergie, Keyshia Cole, Patti LaBelle, JoJo). She is currently writing a song with pop star Pixie Lott, produced Barry Blue, and is managed by vocal coach and talent consultant CeCe Sammy (Pop Idol, S Club Search, The X Factor). I am beyond proud. I guess it’s like a veteran quarterback getting to see their kid grow up into a great football player all their own.”