Inside the Sound: How Brit Frisco Built a Retro Soul Catalog Remotely
Q: How did Brit Frisco come together? Tell us about your backgrounds and how the duo was formed.
Diona Devincenzi (DD): I was born in San Francisco and grew up playing in bands starting in high school, continuing through college and beyond. I was always drawn to writing original music, and that’s what led me to move to Nashville in the late '90s to dive into the songwriting community. Coming from the Bay Area, I had a wide range of musical influences, but Nashville really helped me sharpen my skills in lyric and melody. About ten years ago, I branched into writing music for film and TV. To meet the demands of that space, I learned engineering and production—skills that gave me creative control and elevated my work.
Paul and I met at a music conference (TAXI) in L.A. a few years ago. Over coffee, we discovered a shared love for retro soul music. We’d both had success in the sync licensing world individually, but this was a creative connection that happened organically. We started talking about the old Stax artists we grew up listening to and agreed to try collaborating. The first album came together quickly—it felt natural and authentic.
Paul Cufflin (PC): My journey started around age fourteen when I began playing guitar and writing songs. After college, I moved to London for a job in advertising but soon aimed to rekindle my music career with old bandmates. When that didn’t pan out, I joined another band called Shine, which eventually dissolved. I moved to Spain with my family and worked in creative roles while still playing bar gigs.
About five years ago, I carved out a niche writing lo-fi, retro-influenced songs and instrumentals for sync licensing. It grew into a full-time career. I met Diona at a Taxi convention in L.A. in 2012 or 2013. We clicked immediately over a shared love for '60s and '70s soul and R&B. After producing a few of her solo tracks in that style, we realized there was a distinct sound when we collaborated. Despite being based in Spain and the U.S., we created our first Brit Frisco album remotely. We signed with Riptide Music, and everything took off from there.
Q: How do you decide what songs belong to Brit Frisco vs. solo or client projects?
DD: For me, it’s about the chemistry in the writing. There’s a distinct magic that happens when our voices and creative instincts align. It’s not just a duet—it’s a blend of two creative minds that challenge each other. If a song feels like it benefits from that kind of dynamic tension, it belongs to Brit Frisco.
PC: Some ideas I know will work best if I handle them solo. But other ideas—especially those that lean into retro soul and R&B—just feel like they were made for Diona and Brit Frisco. It’s partly about genre, but mostly about a gut feeling that the collaboration will elevate the material.
Q: What are your primary roles within Brit Frisco?
DD: I handle top-line writing—lyrics and melody—and sometimes I’ll bring in a fully written song if it feels right for the project. Paul often sends instrumentals and occasionally some melody ideas—humming, or using nonsensical syllables. Then I usually build lyrics and melody from there. We bounce lyrics and arrangement ideas back and forth. I manage the business side since most of our contacts are in the U.S., and Paul leads production and mixing.
PC: I usually take on the heavy lifting in terms of recording because I have a studio stocked with vintage instruments—Hammond organs, Wurlitzers, amps, and analog gear. I enjoy recording more than mixing or mastering, and Diona handles most of the actual songwriting. Our workflow is complementary and efficient.
Q: How do you collaborate remotely across time zones and locations?
DD: We use Logic Pro, Dropbox, WeTransfer, and even Word documents to pass files back and forth. Technology makes remote songwriting collaboration totally doable. We’ve done over 75 songs together now, so we have a natural rhythm. What makes Brit Frisco work is the mutual respect, ease, and shared entrepreneurial spirit. We speak the same production language, which is key.
PC: The remote collaboration process is seamless now. One of us starts a demo, and the other builds on it. I often send full instrumental tracks for Diona to write over. After vocals are recorded, we sometimes bring in live horns from Nashville. There’s a lot of back-and-forth, especially during mixing, but it works because we’re aligned on the sound we’re aiming for. We’ve built a productive system that feels creative and efficient.
Additional Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do musicians collaborate remotely across countries?
Artists like Brit Frisco use DAWs like Logic Pro, cloud storage (Dropbox, WeTransfer), and asynchronous file sharing to co-write and produce music entirely online.
Q: What is retro soul music?
Retro soul is a modern interpretation of 1960s and 70s soul and R&B, using vintage instruments and analog textures to recreate a timeless, groove-forward sound.
Q: How does sync licensing work for independent artists?
Artists submit tracks to music libraries or work directly with music supervisors for placement in film, TV, and commercials. Most of Brit Frisco’s catalog is signed with Riptide Music for sync opportunities.
Q. How do I get my songs into film/t.v. and ads?
First, write songs that would fit into that format. How do you know if they fit? By watching the films, television shows and ads and listening to what’s being synced. Be a student. Take some time to understand the business of sync. (because that’s exactly what it is) , find out what you might have to offer that’s unique and then learn how to approach decision-makers with your music.
We’d love to hear from you.
Have you ever collaborated remotely on music or found unexpected creative chemistry across distance? Share your thoughts or experiences in the comments—we welcome your perspective.