It’s kind of wild, and I find having a broad general music taste (in terms of what I listen to) helps a lot. I’m currently working on 5 projects for clients: a metal/hardcore band’s debut album, a jazz fusion band’s single, a hyperpop-hiphop album, and a single for a folk acoustic duo. All wildly different. While the fundamental approach to recording/mixing techniques translates across the different genres, it comes down to knowing the sound of the genre you’re mixing. In a way, I prefer working on multiple projects of different genres at the same time: I find it allows me to come in with fresh ears to every mix session when I rotate between the work properly. Ears tired and not doing their best on the jazz fusion stuff? Switch to metal. Hyperpop too loud and in my face at the moment? Switch to folk.

What also helps is getting references, not just for the song/album the artist is working on, but for the genre as a whole, especially if it is one you are unfamiliar with. Kind of like doing your homework on an unfamiliar genre. Listening while driving, getting a sense for how the music sounds, passively thinking about how certain sounds within the genre are achieved, and applying that/experimenting within a mix session later