Producer Rick Rubin told Anderson Cooper in 2023 that he knows nothing about music and cannot operate a mixing desk. Finneas, the artist behind Billie Eilish and creator of the Netflix series Beef, finds that statement hard to accept. He points to online videos showing Rubin setting up microphones.
The claim and the reality
During an interview with 60 Minutes, Rubin stated he did not know how to use a mixing desk. Finneas told Billboard he is confused by this assertion. He noted that a simple search for Rick Rubin and Johnny Cash reveals many clips of the producer handling technical gear.
“He swears that he knows nothing at all about music,” Finneas said. “It’s like, just Google Rick Rubin, Johnny Cash. There are many videos of him setting up the mics. He doesn’t ‘know nothing’.”
Finneas believes Rubin is not being literal. He suggests the producer is using a specific strategy rather than stating a hard fact.
“What I assume he means by that, and I respect this, is similar to what I’ve said before: there are a lot of people that know a lot more than I do,” Finneas explained. “I don’t know the most, but I also don’t know ‘nothing’.”
He views the approach as effective because it lowers barriers for others.
“I think it’s an effective strategy. I try to do the same thing, which is, I don’t want to make people feel like it isn’t achievable,” Finneas said. “You don’t want to intimidate somebody out of trying to make something by way of, ‘I have my 10,000 hours, I know so much, you’ll never know as much as I do.’ So I like that.”
Other voices on the subject
Finneas is not the only musician to question Rubin’s claims. Jacob Collier discussed his doubts in a 2024 interview on the Colin and Samir podcast. He stated he does not trust Rubin’s creative philosophies.
Collier said he would welcome a conversation to challenge the producer’s views.
“I’d love to sit with Rick at some point and just talk to him and chew the cud and push him,” Collier said. “[I’d] also welcome to be pushed because all of us need to be examined. Our opinions need to be squeezed and broken and I just think that anyone sitting there and saying ‘This is the wrong way to do it’, like Rick saying art is only pure if it’s made for art’s sake. Absolutely false.”
While figures like Pete Townshend have suggested someone should occasionally slap Rubin, others have praised his work. These supporters include Kesha, System of a Down’s Daron Malakian, and Beabadoobee.
