By: Jasmine Cuza

Local Inland Empire artist, Regi Levi and big brother Rino are back and better than ever in the music industry. While taking a break from music during the 2020 pandemic the brothers have decided to take a break and venture out onto bigger opportunities.

March 3, 2021, Levi and his brother Rino opened up Bad Genre Studios in the heart of Ontario, CA. The studio is a large building with several different recording studios inside and a break room. Many artists flood the studio doors to record music with hopes of making it big.

The story behind the studio began in 2017 when it started off as an idea. Regi and Rino knew they wanted to own their own studio for local artists. While out at a store Regi saw a vintage Pac-Man machine and when looking at the machine he knew that he wanted to put it in a studio one day.

The studio gives off a cool, chill vibe and is a comfortable place for any amateur artist to record their music. During the first week of opening their studio, they had only 12 people book sessions. As weeks went by, news of their studio broke out and now they are booked almost every week.

Prices for the studio are affordable as well. Regi and Rino knew they wanted to make a studio that every amateur artist can afford.

In an interview Regi states,

“I wanted to open up a studio for the people. When I was starting out in my music career studio prices were high. Our studio is affordable and the prices are fair.”

While booking a session in the studio clients are given the option of recording with an engineer or not; inside the rooms, there is equipment for artists to use. The studio comes with a large soundproof booth and an Apple Desktop computer with music applications to edit and layer music. The room itself gives off a cozy vibe as the wall is covered with LED lights that change colors and are connected to Bluetooth. The walls and roof are painted black, furniture in every room and TVs as well. One thing about the studio rooms is that they do not have windows. Regi elaborates on why studios do not consider windows in a statement he says,

“Most studios do not have windows because it is a distraction for many artists. Many studios do not have clocks either. The point of a studio is for the artist to focus on what they have in front of them and not be distracted by the world outside while they are creating.”

In the future, Regi plans on making more music. He hopes to expand his studio to more locations in the Inland Empire. His mission is to give a platform for creators and artists. He believes that in the future the Inland Empire will make a name for itself in the music industry and become the new home for music.