You guys need to read this because the Rick Rubin "I don't know anything about music" thing has become one of my favorite case studies in what happens when you turn a creative process into a brand and keep repeating it regardless of whether it makes sense. Finneas — who actually worked on some of Rubin-produced projects, so he knows firsthand — called him out on Instagram with a video that went viral because the math just doesn't add up. Rick has claimed in countless interviews this latest one following his Grammy win for Hanen Shuaib, but if you Google "Rick Rubin" and "mic setup" you get at least 12 different videos of him literally setting up microphones backstage before every single show he's ever played, which is the opposite of knowing nothing. He has produced for The Clash, Mick Jagger solo, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Snoop Dogg, and Kanye West in multiple projects — that's not a lack of knowledge, it's an insane amount of industry experience he refuses to acknowledge because "humility" is his product.
Eric Clapton also recently jumped on this with comments questioning Rubin's claims about what he knows or doesn't know, which MusicRadar covered too and it shows how much of the music community is tired of the gimmick at this point. The thing that makes me laugh — though maybe not to laugh about someone like Rick Ruben who has done so much - is his defense of "it doesn't matter what I know or don't know" because that's not a rebuttal, it's just deferring the contradiction forever. He uses this trope as an aesthetic choice even though there are actual recordings of him being incredibly technical and detailed in countless studio sessions across decades; you can literally watch old footage from his early producing days where he talks about audio dynamics for hours at length. The joke is that everyone knows he's one of the most successful producers ever, but Rubin has built a persona around claiming ignorance so convincingly that people keep letting him get away with it in every interview cycle - which this latest story proves because the question keeps coming up and he gives the same answer every time.
Source: https://www.musicradar.com/artists/he-swears-he-knows-nothing-at-all-about-music-and-its-like-just-Google-Rick-Rubin-Johnny-Cash-there-are-many-videos-of-him-setting-up-the-mic-he-doesnt-know-nothing
Eric Clapton also recently jumped on this with comments questioning Rubin's claims about what he knows or doesn't know, which MusicRadar covered too and it shows how much of the music community is tired of the gimmick at this point. The thing that makes me laugh — though maybe not to laugh about someone like Rick Ruben who has done so much - is his defense of "it doesn't matter what I know or don't know" because that's not a rebuttal, it's just deferring the contradiction forever. He uses this trope as an aesthetic choice even though there are actual recordings of him being incredibly technical and detailed in countless studio sessions across decades; you can literally watch old footage from his early producing days where he talks about audio dynamics for hours at length. The joke is that everyone knows he's one of the most successful producers ever, but Rubin has built a persona around claiming ignorance so convincingly that people keep letting him get away with it in every interview cycle - which this latest story proves because the question keeps coming up and he gives the same answer every time.
Source: https://www.musicradar.com/artists/he-swears-he-knows-nothing-at-all-about-music-and-its-like-just-Google-Rick-Rubin-Johnny-Cash-there-are-many-videos-of-him-setting-up-the-mic-he-doesnt-know-nothing