Artists :: KC Porter

Biography

Renowned American record producer, songwriter, musician and singer KC Porter is best known for his work with Latin artists and helping major U.S. artists crossover to international audiences. His work as a producer, arranger, and composer has helped turn Luis Miguel, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, Ana Gabriel, Ricky Martin and the late Selena into household names. 

Porter has also helped American artists Lara Fabian, Bon Jovi, Janet Jackson, Chaka Khan, 98 Degrees, Brian McKnight, Toni Braxton, and Boyz II Men find international fame and is a founding member of Oneness, a non-profit organization that promotes our common humanity through music, the arts and education.

Born in Southern California, Porter developed a passion for Latin rhythms after he and his family moved to Guatemala when he was just seven years old. There he developed a creative and multi-cultural sensibility that would change the course of his life. When he returned to California to study music in college he quickly landed a gig as staff arranger at Hollywood’s esteemed A&M Studios and soon after began working with some of the biggest names in the business. 

Many songs produced by Porter have received Grammy awards and nominations, including Ricky Martin’s Vuelve and Carlos Santana’s 1999 smash Supernatural, which won a record-breaking nine Grammys, including Album of the Year. He produced four songs on the album: “Primavera,” “El Farol” (both of which he co-wrote), “Migra,” and “Corazón Espinado.” “El Farol” was also honored with a 2000 Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental, and Porter’s production won Record of the Year at the first annual Latin Grammys that year. 

Porter has produced and written songs for Ozomatli’s 2007 release Don’t Mess with the Dragon and the band’s the Grammy-winning Street Signs; and for Ceremony and Shaman, Carlos Santana's multi-platinum follow-ups to Supernatural. He also produced “When You Smile,” the first collaborative effort for Carlos Santana and Patti LaBelle, Chilean rock act La Ley’s Grammy-winning Libertad and collaborations with Carlos Santana and North Algerian superstar Khaled.

Throughout his successful career, Porter has relied on Tascam audio equipment. 

“I grew up with Tascam, from my father’s reel-to-reel TEAC at home, which I literally wore out, my college recording setup, up to some of the mixes we did on Santana’s multi-platinum selling Supernatural which we mixed at my home studio on the DA-45HR. I love the warm buttery sound we got on it, 24bit 48k. The record had been mostly tracked painstakingly on analog and could have been mixed on analog, but the DA-45HR did the job and was perfect,” he said. 

“We’ve been using the DR-1 for any field recording applications for years and now the DR-100 is taking over. For me, it’s all about the sound, and Tascam has always been about that.”