William Lemuel, owner of True Songs Productions, once had a young artist come to the recording studio with nothing more than a melody. In 15 minutes, they came up with a song. “That’s a really nice value for your $80 an hour,” he said. Lemuel rents out his Kingwood recording studio for an hourly rate as well as offers his own services as a producer, bandmate and sounding board as needed. A lifelong musician who has written more than 700 original songs, Lemuel said he hopes to help independent artists gain exposure and work on their music in a welcoming environment. Lemuel opened the studio in a separated garage behind his home in 2012. Over the years, he has invested in the space to ensure he has all the software and equipment essentials on-site, he said. Meanwhile, Lemuel also teaches guitar and bass lessons. While Lemuel said lessons are a smaller part of the business, he aims to offer whatever services are in demand. “I’m going to present all these things, and whatever shows me the most love, I’m going to show it love,” Lemuel said. He brought on a videographer, Nick Boyce, in May. The two work with artists on individual projects, creating anything from music videos to business advertisements. One of the things that sets True Songs Productions apart, Boyce said, is most studios do not provide basic tips to first-time artists to help them navigate making the most of their studio time. While making a living offering studio time to budding artists has been a challenge, Lemuel said the greatest reward for him is hearing artists’ satisfaction as their songs comes together. “Something as simple as [hearing] ‘Man you did a great job. My music has never sounded like this. You really brought it to life,’” he said. “It’s always been music for me.” True Songs Productions 6319 Longflower Lane, Kingwood 713-882-5162 www.truesongsproductions.com Hours: Mon.-Sun. 9 a.m.-midnight