You do many different things, all of which are centered around creating songs. Tell us what a great song is to you.

I feel a great song is when you are really truly moved by the music and lyrics. A great song also needs to flow like a roller coaster. It needs to have highs and lows and always needs keep the listener excited and wanting more.

Among other things, you're a producer. Many of our readers understand that a producer has a big influence on the music that they're hearing, but they're not sure exactly what a producer does. How would you explain a producer's job (at least as you experience it) to them?

It's true that most people are confused by what a music producer actually "does." In other industries, the producer is in more of a financial or supervisor role, but in music the producer is the creative force.

A music producer is like the director of a movie. It is my job to make sure that everything sounds right and translates properly for the artist, label, or client. For example, if a record label wants a song to sound radio-friendly, then I must create the right sound, hire or play the right instruments, and arrange the song so that it fits that radio format. Sometimes a song might be great, but it's just not in that right commercial format. If it is for a television spot or remix, same thing – I need to listen to what the client wants and create their vision.

Really, a producer creates almost everything you hear when you listen to a song. When I sit down at the mixing board at the beginning of a project, you just have silence and an idea. When I'm done, a musical creation is born – a song, a remix. It's pretty powerful stuff.

You've also done re-mixes for a wide range of artists including Britney Spears, Stevie Wonder and, Dolly Parton. Why do you choose the songs that you choose to remix? Do you listen to a song and hear some unrealized potential in it?

I usually pick songs that I feel I can do an anthemic mix to. I love building my remixes with a lot of drama and excitement. Some songs are great but very mellow. I try to pick the ones that really explode.

And sometimes the songs find me. Like with Britney – she was a completely unknown artist when I did the first mix of several that I did for her over the years. In the beginning, there wasn't any expectation yet, or any public perception of her, so it was exciting to just get creative and see where it would lead.

It is definitely exciting to take a song and hear it in a different way, and remix it in a different direction. It can really bring out an emotion in a song that maybe wasn't even there before.

We want to dig a bit into your process as a producer and songwriter. Let's take your recent hit "I'll Be Your Light" sung by Kristine W.

Did you write it at the keyboard or on guitar and bring it into the studio to record it? Music first? Lyrics first? Tell us about the process of getting the song out in its first stages.

I started "I'll Be Your Light" at the piano first with just a rough melody line and no lyrics. Once the musical structure was there - the chord structure - I started programming parts for the song.

Once you had the singer and the song in the studio, what were some of the first things you did to record it? Did you find a beat? A bass line? How did you create each of the elements we are hearing (bass, drum, synth, etc.)?

Actually, for this particular project, all of the elements of the song and track were finished before Kristine ever came into the studio. We played her a demo of the song, which she fell in love with, and really wanted the song for her album.

She is an amazing artist and an amazing singer, so recording her just brought the song to a new level. I created everything at the time in Digital Performer, but I mixed on Pro Tools.

Usually, I create the beats first and bass line to get the basic foundation of the track going. Then I start working on some bouncy synth lines and lots of layers of instruments. I usually go back after that and start tweaking the drums again and the other instrumental parts until I feel like the groove is exactly right.

It's got a contemporary sound, but in a lot of ways "I'll Be Your Light" is a good old-fashioned well-made song: intro, verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, key change, chorus, and out. It's got a strong hook, a great beat, a ramp up to the chorus, and a build from beginning to end.

Why is it important for a song to have all of these things? Tell us about how you used the resources of your studio to make these things happen.

The one thing that I do differently than a lot of other dance producers is that I like to write and create a solid, well-structured song first. I usually stick to traditional writing formats.

To make the song go from beginning to middle to end with a lot of excitement and tension means I try to use a lot of automation and plug-ins to give life to the song. A mix would be boring if it was just the music or track. It is nice to add lots of flavor and style to the mix – lots of little extras.

The pop remix of "I'll Be Your Light" appears to keep the vocals and the same structure, but the drums and background have changed. Tell us a bit about the remixing process and how a song will change from original to remix.

With a remix, most artists want the song structure to stay the same. They feel pretty strongly about keeping the integrity of the song. Usually the remix is much faster than the original, or the groove is extremely different. A song that might be mid-tempo pop will turn into "4 on the floor" or maybe even breakbeats.

When I am hired for a remix, the A&R person will almost always ask for a particular type of mix. It they want it for the clubs, the song will sound drastically different from the original. For radio, like in the pop mix, the chords are usually the same, but the groove is different and the sounds and production are different as well.

We hear that you've been using iZotope plug-ins for some of your tracks recently. What sorts of projects have you been using our plug-ins for and how have you been using them?

I use iZotope Trash on almost all of my mixes now. It is definitely one of my favorite plug-ins. I am working with Taylor Dayne in the studio on some great new songs. I used iZotope Trash on the bass to make it a little grittier and also on the guitars. I love experimenting with it on vocals as well.

I am developing a wonderful new New York-based singer, Eileen Esposito, and I used it on her vocals. We are working on some heavier dance and electronic-based music, so the plug-in really gives a more aggressive sound to the vocal.

You came up in the New York City club scene during the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. Tell us a little bit about the scene as you experienced it – the clubs, the DJs, the people. What were your first experiences spinning like? How did that scene shape you as an artist?

The NYC club scene was amazing. I actually grew up listening to heavy metal. I did not know much about dance music and the club scene until I was hired to play keyboards for Prime Cut studios years ago.

I met people like Mark Kamins who worked with Madonna. Mark was the resident DJ for Danceteria and some of the other co-workers were DJs at the Limelight. I ended up getting hired to play keyboards with one of the DJ's at the Limelight.

Once I did that, I was addicted to the scene. In those days the people were very cool. People seemed more about having fun and just getting into the music, and less pretentious. I really enjoyed DJing around those clubs. It taught me a lot about what music works and what doesn't, and what people respond to musically. The club scene was a great place to network as well. I met a lot of people and that is how I got my first record deal with Strictly Rhythm when I was 19.

Your mother was on Broadway, your dad was a musician who played with Philip Glass and your grandfather was a professional trombone player. What lessons did your family teach you as a musician and an entertainer that you carry with you today?

One of the biggest lessons that my family taught me was intense discipline. The only way you will ever become good at your craft is to practice, practice, practice.

They always pushed me from a young age to practice piano all the time. They were very strict which I hated as a kid but I am happy they did it because I use those skills I learned every day now.

I am extremely focused and passionate about what I do, and I am able to earn a good living doing it, so those lessons have been valuable.

You've been branching out into film, TV, and commercials. How do you work differently when you're working in these media?

TV and commercials are a whole different ballgame. You are dealing with 30 seconds or sometimes even 7 seconds of music. In a song you have 3 or 4 minutes to build the tension and create your magic. On TV, you might only have those 7 seconds to make something look so cool that people want to run out and buy the product.

I love it. It is a major rush. TV is extremely fast-paced with much tighter deadlines, so I have many templates for different styles of music which allows me to work faster.

We live in an era when the average person can sit down with GarageBand and create his or her own song or a remix with a few clicks of a button. We also live in an era where people can go to school to be a producer or a DJ. Are these things good or bad? What do they mean for the producer's art and the DJ's art?

I think this is both good and bad. In some ways, it is great that anybody can learn to be a producer or a DJ. It is a great career and very exciting. I think everyone should have the opportunity to try it out and learn.

But it still comes down to creativity and skills. You need to hone your skills and your craft to be an expert at what you do. You need to have real live experience working in the music business. That is the true test.

It has hurt the Dance industry in some ways. So many DJs and producers have been starting their own labels because the start-up costs are so low these days. Most of the music coming out has been garbage. This has hurt everyone one from distributors to other producers because it lowers the level of quality and the level of respect for the industry.

Can you tell us about some of your latest projects?

I just finished the new Nick Lachey remix for "What's Left of Me" on Jive Records which has been getting great buzz at dance radio and has already charted.

I also just finished writing and producing two songs for Taylor Dayne that will be a part of her new upcoming release.

A song I wrote with one of my most cherished co-writers, Janice Robinson, is called "Superstar." It is being cut by a hot new group that will be performing at the World Cup in Germany.

I am also creating more music for TV shows like America's Next Top Model and Navy NCIS. There are some other songs in the works for up-and-coming artists on major labels as well, so that's very exciting.

I also want to say "thanks" to Izotope for making such amazing plug-ins. They have been very helpful in my productions and mixes, and I love using them!

To learn more about Jack Elliot, visit www.jackdelliot.com.