Matthew Koma Makes His Own Luck

Pasadena, CA (June 23, 2026)—Grammy-winning singer, songwriter and producer Matthew Koma leaned heavily on the AEA R88 stereo ribbon microphone while producing the latest album by his wife, Hilary Duff.

Koma, known for collaborations with artists including Zedd, Shania Twain and P!nk, and for his band Winnetka Bowling League, has consistently turned to the AEA R88 as a core part of his recording process, using it to capture a sense of space, depth and natural stereo imaging. When Koma and Duff set out to revisit the sound that defined her early career on her latest album, luck… or something, they drew inspiration from the bright, organic pop productions of the early 2000s reinterpreted through a modern lens. Much of the record’s character, Koma reports, came from the musicians involved, including drummer Griffin Goldsmith.

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“I use it on absolutely everything,” Koma says of the AEA R88. “As a room mic for drums, on acoustics, piano, organ and even background vocals. I love how it captures a room. It gives everything such dimension, air and width.”

Koma pairs mic with AEA’s RPQ3 preamp and EQ, using the combination as a consistent front-end throughout his sessions. “I can’t imagine using the R88 without the RPQ3,” he says. “It has a way of gaining the mic without adding any intrusive noise. And the EQ has a ton of character. I love it on acoustics. That chain is pure magic.”

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That sense of space also informed how Koma approached certain elements throughout the record. “We started re-amping a lot of our drum loops back through a Princeton and used the R88 about 10 feet back from the amp,” he explains. “That kinda became this weird glue we used on every tune to give some air to stuff that felt a little more digital out of the box.”