Simone Torres is a Diamond-certified, Grammy-nominated, and Latin Grammy–honored engineer, vocal producer, and artist from New York. With credits alongside Cardi B, Dua Lipa, Camila Cabello, Becky G, Normani, and more, she has become one of the most in-demand vocal minds in the industry. In this interview, Simone opens up about her journey, creative approach, and the tools that inspire her work today.

Congrats on the Grammy nomination and being named one of the Latin Recording Academy's Leading Ladies. What's that journey been like for you?

Incredible. That recognition was one of the most meaningful awards I’ve ever received because it wasn’t just recognition of my work, it was from my community and my culture. My Latinidad is such a big part of who I am, and I’ve worked really hard to embrace that, especially as someone who didn't grow up speaking Spanish. To be recognized in that way meant so much to me.

You’ve worked with some incredible artists—Cardi B, Dua Lipa. What keeps these top artists coming back to you?

What helps me stand out in this industry, especially as a vocal producer, engineer, and tuner, is the fact that I’m also a singer and an artist myself. I know how to work the technical side to make the vocals sing and enhance the message and emotion of the song. From the very beginning of my career, that’s what has helped me stand out, and it still does today. I’m also really strong with the detail work. My brain just naturally works that way.

You wear a lot of hats—producer, engineer, artist. How does that shape how you approach vocals?

The work I do on my artist project benefits everything else I do. With my own music, I get to play, try new things, and experiment. That constant learning helps me when I go into the room with other artists. I also know firsthand what helps me when I’m trying to perform something, so I can use that knowledge to better support the artists I work with.

You’ve been trying out a new mix of the VT7 plugin. What made you want to check it out?

A few friends had mentioned it to me, including some people I went to Berklee with, and I thought it was really cool that it’s component-level modeled. Anything tube-related brings me a lot of joy these days, so I was excited to try it out. I’ve been so impressed; it really does exactly what I want it to do.

How has it been working with the VT7 in your day-to-day mixing?

It’s so nice to have a new go-to compressor that supports the emotional performance without detracting from it. I love the color and warmth it brings.

Any specific projects where the VT-7 really came in handy?

It’s already comes in handy on my own unreleased music. For example, I have a song called "Fraud" where I was struggling to get the lead vocal to sit the way I wanted, and the VT7 really helped. I know it’ll continue to be useful on many projects moving forward.

In such a fast-moving industry, how important are tools like this for staying on top of your game?

It’s incredibly important. In such a tech-driven industry, staying on top of what’s new and innovative is key as technology moves so quickly. If we don’t keep up, we risk falling behind. We always should be refining and improving our workflow.

You’re big on building community. How do you think plugins like this affect other mixers and producers?

Having more and more analog gear emulations that sound closer and closer to the real thing is such a gift for when you can’t get your hands on analog gear. These plugins can add something really special to a mix.

What’s got you most excited? What’s coming next in your career?

I’m really excited to finally become fluent in Spanish and to release more music in Spanish. Earlier this year I released my first Spanish project, En el Ojo—a Spanish version of my "The Thick of it" EP—and I actually recorded the whole thing live on Twitch. That experience helped me get more comfortable with releasing Spanish music. Looking ahead, I’ll be spending more time in Spain, working on Spanish fluency, and releasing more music in Spanish—including salsa and bachata. I’ve also been focused a lot on community building. I’ve run two sections of Melodyne 101, and I’m about to release more evergreen courses since up to now everything has been live teaching. I’ll be launching a vocal production course and a “recording yourself better at home” course. I also have a little secret project I’m working on that I’m really excited about—it’s something quite different.

Other than that, more music! I’ve got my second EP, and then album coming up, and I’m just excited to keep creating and putting new work out into the world.

Any advice for people trying to break into vocal production?

Vocal produce as often as you can, literally whoever will let you. Your friends, your parents, random artists. At the beginning, I’d recommend doing it for free, because you need to learn how to communicate the same idea in many different ways. Being able to adjust quickly when someone isn’t understanding you is such an important skill. I also highly recommend that, if you’re not a singer yourself, you let someone vocal produce you. Record yourself singing. That experience—trying to do it yourself—is invaluable. Not enough producers put themselves on the other side of the process, and I think it’s a huge missed opportunity.