We recently had the chance to connect with Edward Ray and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Edward, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
There is a persistent misunderstanding that commissioned composition is about “taste” or “vibes”.
Clients aren’t just paying for assets, even when they think they are. They are actually paying to remove uncertainty. That uncertainty shows up as rewrites, missed deadlines, blurred direction, undefined ownership and projects that slowly drift off course.
Whilst my title is composer, I am increasingly responsible for the entire audio pipeline, not just notes on a timeline. My role is to stabilise those variables, make decisions early and carry responsibility so directors can focus elsewhere. The budget line says “music”. In practice, my business functions as a risk-mitigation service that happens to involve it.
There is also the common misconception that the work consists of “being engrossed in my passion” all day. On smaller projects that can be true. On larger ones, the work skews toward coordination, decision-making, pipeline management… By the time a cue is required, the timeline is usually already compressed. Navigating those constraints is part of what clients are actually hiring for.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a composer and audio lead working in games, currently leading audio on FIFA Heroes. In practice, that means writing music and sound design whilst also overseeing how audio is planned, structured and implemented across a project. My role sits somewhere between creative direction and technical problem-solving.
What tends to define my work is that I treat audio as infrastructure rather than ornament. I favour early decisions, pipelines that actually hold up under pressure and fewer surprises once a project is already moving fast. That mindset usually suits teams who want momentum without chaos. Not all teams are aware of how badly they actually need that. That’s usually when I get involved.
Outside of client work, I spend an inordinate amount of time writing and building long-form projects about creative work, discipline and authorship. Some of it is practical, some of it is deliberately uncomfortable. It all comes from the same instinct: clarity over mystique, responsibility over “vibes” and doing the work properly even when no one is watching. I’m often told I work too much. I tend to disagree!
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
Early in my career, I felt ignored. At the time, it seemed unfair. It wasn’t. None of us are special.
I watched people far more talented than myself stall. Not because they lacked ability, but because they assumed potential would be recognised without being made legible. I spoke to a composer whose work I greatly admire and discovered that even he struggled to be consistently noticed, despite a résumé far stronger than mine at the time. That forced a recalibration. If someone at his level could be overlooked, the problem clearly was not talent alone.
My first reaction was doubt. That is where many people retreat inward. I did as well, briefly. Then I stepped back and paid attention. I studied how businesses function, how people present themselves, and how work actually moves through the world. The pattern was obvious. Effort by itself carries little weight. Effort without consistency and follow-through is ornamental.
That realisation changed how I operate. I began to prioritise structure over intention, responsibility over expression and finishing over starting. Things became simpler. Not kinder, and certainly not easier, but clearer. That clarity has stayed with me ever since.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Yes, briefly.
There were moments where I considered stopping, usually when the gap between effort and traction felt unjustifiably wide. At the time it was tempting to read that as a verdict on the work itself. It was actually a verdict on how I was operating.
Once that distinction clicked, the question shifted from “should I stop” to “what has to change.” The answer was not more passion or persistence, but more clarity, structure and intention. From that point on, continuing was no longer an act of faith. It became a decision.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes, but it’s edited. The public version of me isn’t a mask but a deliberate compression. It emphasises the parts of me that are useful in the context I work in: clarity, directness and responsibility. Other parts are private because they are irrelevant to the job, not because they are inauthentic. Everyone curates. Most people just do it unconsciously whereas I do it deliberately. That difference often gets misread as performance. The person doing the work and the person presenting it are the same.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Have you ever gotten what you wanted, and found it did not satisfy you?
Yes, often. When I get what I was aiming for, the feeling is usually brief. It’s less satisfaction and more a quiet check of whether the goal made sense in the first place. Sometimes it does. Sometimes it doesn’t. Either way, I don’t sit in it for long.
I’ve realised I’m not very good at stopping. Once something is working, my attention moves to what could be improved or where it breaks under pressure. It’s just how I stay engaged. I don’t think I’m meant to be permanently satisfied. I’m more comfortable when things are moving forward and becoming more precise.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.edward-ray.com
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