Rick Rubin is a music producer who has worked with the likes of Johnny Cash, Adele, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kanye West, and The Beastie Boys.

After reading Newsweek’s awesome profile, You Listen To This Man Everyday, I think his understanding of what makes great art is spot on.

Everywhere I look, businesses, artists, musicians, athletes, and people are all trying to cut corners for short term success. In Walter Isaacson’s biography of tech guru Steve Jobs, he captured exactly how Steve felt about art. Jobs had a minimalist approach but was obsessed with small details. He would never put a product on the market that wasn’t 100% complete. From the product, to the packaging, to the shipping label, everything had to be perfect. Jobs took it personally. He realized that every time someone bought an Apple product they were buying a piece of himself. He took pride in his art. Rick Rubin feels the same way about his music.

Why was that so important to you?

There’s a tremendous power in using the least amount of information to get a point across.

That brings up some larger questions about the state of the industry. If you had to deliver a diagnosis right now, what would you say is wrong with the record business?

People are willing to get short-term gains at the risk of long-term choices. So, if someone can do something to sell a few more records now at the expense of the artist, even if that artist will sell a lot less later, they’ll make that choice.

Why?

A lot of it has to do with structure, because the structure of the music industry is rooted in a corporate structure. It’s a quarterly business, but art is not a quarterly business. At Columbia, if Beyoncé didn’t deliver a record one year, for whatever reason, that really affected the whole economics of the company. And it’s impossible to build a music company as if you were selling shoes. It’s a different business. It has a different ebb and flow. The highs are higher and the lows are lower. You have to look at it as a longer-term game.

Your taste—your ear—has been spot-on again and again, across genres. What’s the secret?

I never decide if an idea is good or bad until I try it. So much of what gets in the way of things being good is thinking that we know. And the more that we can remove any baggage we’re carrying with us, and just be in the moment, use our ears, and pay attention to what’s happening, and just listen to the inner voice that directs us, the better. But it’s not the voice in your head. It’s a different voice. It’s not intellect. It’s not a brain function. It’s a body function, like running from a tiger.