Sanicola said he’s accomplished some of his goals – recording a single and having a song on a platinum album – as well as being known by name by all the major record labels, an accomplishment he attributes largely to his brother, Brett, who helps market him. Sanicola even runs his own production company, Thundatraxx. But ultimately, Sanicola said, he’d like to be president of a major record label, so there is still much work ahead of him.

For now, the young producer said he doesn’t mind stepping aside while different artists perform his songs, even if that means most listeners will never know that he wrote them.

“I would rather be respected within my field than in the spotlight,” he said. “The artists get the spotlight because they are the vehicles that ultimately bring what we do as writers to the people. As far as marketing myself as a producer, it’s all word of mouth, credits, and yes … who you know.”