#howwelisten live: in conversation podcast by byta.com
It’s all about people and its all about network.
I think PR today is more of a content coordinator or content facilitator because content right now is so fragmented across so many different mediums. Our job is really to generate awareness for what our clients are doing.
"When you create the conditions to be able to cultivate the work that you want, then that's what's going to allow you to thrive."
“I run my band like a startup and I run my startup like a band”
“The first tip that I give all artists is to be organized and cohesive. You don't know what someone's entry point is going to be to you and your music”.
"So it's our job to get the best possible deal. So basically, there's no database, how long is a piece of string? Just make sure you're working with someone who knows the industry and who knows what music is worth?"
" I think socioeconomic status and background is one of the key areas where the music industry isn’t diverse enough."
" If you’re passionate you should be able to find the hustle because it’s what you love to do. Most people in the music industry are passionate, so if you’re not then it’ll be hard to get to the hustle. My main piece of advice: Find what you’re passionate about and the hustle will follow."
"If you really, really love an artist, reach out and buy their record, buy their T-shirt, send them money, and appreciate how much blood sweat and tears go into that song that you listen to every day."
"Sometimes I feel like smaller labels are often better because they can help you without you having to do things you don’t want to do. When you sign to a big label, you need to play the game if you want to get the max benefit."
"I'm reaching out to people because of their work ethic and because of their consistency. I believe in their journey and I feel like it's only a matter of time before something huge happens"
"When I first hear a song, it doesn't matter if it was released today, one year ago or 10 years ago. It's new to me, the moment I first hear it, and that's the same for your fans."
“I didn't know anything about the music industry. I didn't know that there were publicists trying to push stuff. I was clueless. So getting emails at the start was really cool, especially when it was from artists that I recognized.”
"A fan a day" is basically anything that you’re doing to grow. Everything that you do should be cognisant of building an audience...
"DO IT TOGETHER- You learn by doing, you navigate the systems and the complicated processes, by jumping right into it with curiosity and humility, learn as you go, and then share what you're learning."
"Radio will never die…"
"The number one thing to never, ever do, would be to set a release date before your music is done."
"The better the song, the more likely it is to get synced and the more people will listen to it."
" … I do not often hear “I love South African music” or “I love Nigerian music”, it’s more of a genre thing. "
"As a manager, you are involved in every aspect of an artist's career so it is an intimate relationship."
This episode's guest is Sarah Hamilton, Regional Manager for Australia & New Zealand at Ditto Music.
Our next guest is Corbyn Asbury, Label Relations Manager at YouTube.
Our next guest is Head of Music for The Great Escape Festival, Adam Ryan.
Our next guest is Bonsound Co-founder and Managing director Gourmet Délice.
The next conversation is with Phil Loutsis, the VP of the AWAL Community Team. His job revolves around release planning, securing editorial support, building a team & marketing your music. All extremely important when it comes to moving a music career forward. At AWAL, Phil focuses his energies on helping indie artists build their careers. Part of his role includes curating content to help creators and managers make the best use of their resources. He enables artists and their teams to better tell their stories. He wants you to think of digital distribution as the canvas for the campaign rather than a bolt-on service. Phil talks about how he went from recording and playing live in a band out of Sheffield, England to being one of the early hires at AWAL. Marc and Phil get into playlisting, how to work with DSPs (Digital Service Providers/streaming platforms) and some tips and tricks on getting a little more traction when you release new music. There is also advice offered up regarding paid marketing.
Our next guest is Junior Foster, was Deezer’s Head of Global Artist Relations at the time of this conversation. Now he is over at Napster doing the same. No matter where he is, Junior works directly with artists, labels and managers to help with marketing campaigns across all major and independent labels. He talked about best practices when working with digital streaming platforms and how to build a proper music career. As the key contact for the international artist management community, Junior is responsible for implementing best practices for the entire artist marketing team to ensure the most successful outcomes and results. Junior talks about his long and winding road through the music ecosystem and what exactly a Head Of Global Artist Relations does. Marc asks about his process when working with artists and Junior explains the “conversation”. This episode offers up some great insights when it comes to DSPs (Digital Service Providers/streaming platforms), and we find out about a surprise release for Junior.
What are the best steps when building a branding strategy? Our next guest is Amber Horsburgh, a music marketing consultant and digital strategist. Amber is expert in developing strategies for artists and music brands. She has worked as a marketing executive to majors, indies & brands including Interscope, Atlantic, Downtown Records, Spotify, SoundCloud & YouTube Music.
Our next guest is the Founder of Measure of Music and was the former Global Marketing Director of Data & Insights at Warner Music Group, Christine Osazuwa. After Warner, she became the UK Director at shesaid.so and the Strategy Director at Pollen and then Chief Strategy Officer at Shoobs. Christine uses numbers for good and believes that business can be an art and art can be a business. Some of the questions this conversation answers: What does it mean to oversee and develop a marketing data strategy? How does one identify and break global priority artists by creating benchmarks and KPIs to ensure long-term global artist growth? Christine has managed to combine all of her passions, music, marketing, and data into consulting with various music startups, venues, festivals, radio stations and labels, bridging the gap between music, data & business. Christine explains how data and numbers are no substitute for a good story & passion (but, you better have some damn good numbers to back it up). She also reveals a giant list of stories and tips on making your way into and through the music industry.
Our next guest is the Head of TuneCore Brazil & Latin America, Bruno Duque. Bruno brings not only a love of music but a wealth of experience to his new role as Head of TuneCore Brazil, which is already expanding throughout Latin America. He has become an advocate for independent artists in Brazil and continues to work closely with artists while forging new relationships with key partners and growing brand awareness for TuneCore Brazil.
Our next guest is musician Brendan Canning, the co-founder of the Toronto supergroup Broken Social Scene, which includes members of Metric, Do Make Say Think and Stars, as well as Grammy-nominated Feist. One of the most enduring and influential alternative bands of the 00s. Their record 'You Forgot It In People' defined the "indie rock" era and paved the way for Canadian acts like Arcade Fire and Wolf Parade to break out. Canning also has released three solo recordings.
Jenny Kaufman at the time of this interview was the Head of Digital Strategy at Terrorbird Media, a boutique music marketing firm with offices in Brooklyn, Los Angeles and Sacramento. (She is now Head of Streaming and Sales at Crush Music). All through this conversation Jenny emphasizes a creative and authentic approach to digital promotion, facilitating meaningful positioning and support from online partners and digital storefronts. The conversation looks at Spotify, playlisting strategies, converting listeners to fans and positioning. Over the last couple of decades, when it comes to music, some things have changed but a lot has stayed the same. Playlists are perhaps the biggest new shift and opportunity. Jenny will discuss which platforms are best and to always remember to encourage fan engagement. Jenny even touches on TikTok, Twitch and advice on user-generated playlists.
We are delighted to announce that our first guest for the #HowWeListen Live: In Conversation series is Huw Stephens, a new music-ally for over 22 years and former BBC Radio 1 and current BBC Radio 6 Music & Radio Cymru DJ. This episode was recorded live from Cardiff, Wales. Huw joined us from one of his favourite music venues in Wales, Clwb Ifor Bach who, along with FOCUS Wales, an international multi-venue showcase festival, partnered with Byta for this event.
