Deonté Brantley is a Chicago native who has made his name in the music scene—not as a guitarist or pianist—but even so he is widely recognized as a rising figure at the center of Urban Pop music and live touring.
Brantley, who grew up in Calumet Heights and attended Gwendolyn Brooks College Preparatory Academy, is a skilled front of house and monitor and playback engineer, with extensive experience in live sound, production, and touring across the Chicago area, with gigs also in Indiana and throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
A front of house engineer is the sound technician responsible for mixing the live audio that the audience hears during a concert or event.
The monitor engineer manages the sound that artists hear on stage during their live performances, using consoles to create custom mixes.
And finally, a playback engineer manages pre-recorded audio, MIDI, and backing tracks during live performances.
In a nutshell, Brantley’s job is to ensure that when you go to a concert or event, the performing artist or speaker is able to clearly hear the sounds emitted and, in turn, the audience is also able to clearly hear the artist or speaker with no interference.
And he has been working in this profession since 2022, after having honed these skills through his musical education at Columbia College Chicago.
“I cut my teeth primarily at Columbia College Chicago, where I studied music. I spent four years there moving a bunch of student ensembles and guest artists weekly,” he told the Chicago Crusader in an exclusive interview. “There, I was able to experiment with so many tools at my disposal and had a very supportive manager named Steve Hadley, who gave me a shot at pivoting outside of my music career.”
As he traveled around the city as an audience member at various concerts, he finally zeroed in on a career path.
“My interest kind of grew from a frustrating experience with bad audio techs that I would encounter around town. I always wondered why some of them seemed to not care or be good at their jobs,” he said. “I always found audio fascinating, so I took it upon myself to start reading up on what I could and watch videos or even shadow a person, when I could.
“It was a bit difficult because I didn’t know many guys who worked in audio the same way I did with musicians in the city. I did have one friend named Anthony Torres, also an audio wizard himself, who would show me the ropes and answer any questions I had in the early years.”
This interest has led to a full fledged career with Brantley working with major artists, including NONAME, Yung Gravy, Pusha T, Clipse, EARTHGANG, Dru Hill, Malcolm Todd and Nick Carter.
He is the major figure in making Chicago’s diverse music scene happen. Outside of national artists, locally he has contributed to notable venues, concert halls, and clubs such as House of Blues Chicago, The Riviera, Lincoln Hall and Schuba’s Tavern.
He is currently on tour with British singer Elmiene, which involved a May 1 performance at the House of Blues—with other dates throughout the country.
His work also involves live performance plays at theatres. Brantley grew up at Greater Harvest MB Church and used his experience as a singer and drummer for the Goodman Theatre production of “Fannie, The Life and Music of Fannie Lou Hamer” a few years ago.
This gig would seem a piece of cake, given his background at Greater Harvest—compared to his on stage audio work.
He spoke of all the moving parts when providing audio at concerts—starting with the rehearsal process.
“I try my best to plan ahead for any obstacles that could add time and/or points of failure to my set up. During soundcheck, for each show, most issues can be resolved by replacing a cable or making sure things are all powered correctly,” Brantley added. “When I’m working alone, it can be a bit more difficult, but I have the luxury of making my process exactly the way I need to make sure I have a good day. Nothing beats having a good, solid team though.”
As it concerns local venues, Brantley has some favorites. “My favorite venue under a 1,000 capacity is Lincoln Hall, hands down. It sounds like a studio in there. The favorite that’s over 1,000 but under 5,000 would be the Salt Shed. They have great indoor and outdoor space for concerts, and seeing the Skyline is also unmatched.”
And what’s a great venue in which to work? “Any venue with well maintained gear and a nice loading dock for load-ins/load-outs are my favorites. Good house production techs and capable stagehands also make up for a lot of what a good day looks like. When I enter any venue, one of the first things I try to do is introduce myself to all relative staff for production and check in with them so that they have an idea of what’s going on that day for our show,” he said.
Brantley notes that there are artists with whom he would love to work. “I’m a pretty big fan of Justin Timberlake and his camp, as well as Kendrick Lamar, Doja Cat and Billie Eilish.”
He added that he likes all genres of music and has worked with salsa and in the country music arena, too.
However, he added that the energy of the Clipse’s shows is unmatched.
“Some of my favorite moments have been working with them. Especially the added flare and all that comes from their DJ, Yoo Q!. Locally, in Chicago it’s hard to name just a few folks because we’re filled with so much talent. Great bands and singers make mixing a lot easier.”
Brantley has done four runs overseas so far in his career. “I’m still ‘younger’ in the game as far as touring goes, but I started at a higher level than some do for the first few go arounds with this industry.”
He offered “best practices” for overseas travel. “Always pack efficiently, whether it’s overseas or domestic travel. Learn the laws of the country you’re going to. Not every place has the same freedoms we do and vice versa. So it’s best to know what you’re stepping into to protect yourself and the crew.”
He talked about the equipment that he can’t do without. “I pride myself on being able to mix a good show on any mixing console, but the PA system needs to be proper for the space I’m in. I also cannot go to a gig without my MacBook, my talkback microphone, my flash drives, my in-ear monitors, and at least an aux [auxiliary port] to use for music playback.”
There could be a minimum of 12 hours work when Brantley is on tour. And his advice for folks looking to get into this business. “Show up, and show up early. Remember that this job is not just a creative thing but you’re also providing a service for folks.
“Sometimes you have to go the distance and you just have to do your best.”
He added: “The industry here is large, but it’s very small at the same time, and I’ve got more work strictly from word-of-mouth. Word-of-mouth is like cash.”
You can learn more about Brantley at Deontebrantley.net.