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Everyone knows the music business has changed radically, forcing labels and A&R execs to adapt to a new sonic ecosystem—one where music consumption has increased while music sales have dwindled. Now, multiple income streams and social media activity are essential components to any successful career. Likewise, those changes have affected how A&R scouts evaluate the signability of artists. Indeed, being considered a team player is more crucial than ever. To find out exactly how the “new normal” of today’s music industry affects an artist’s ability to get signed, we spoke with representatives of four prominent labels. Their insights will help you determine if you have what it takes to get label support.

Called an “A&R guru,” David Wolter has been an A&R executive for 20 years––six of them with RCA. Previously he was Sr. Director of A&R at Virgin Records. Over the years Wolter has worked with a diverse range of artists, including Walk The Moon, Smallpools, Ray LaMontagne, Dave Matthews Band, the Strokes, Ben Harper, Three Days Grace and many others. RCA is home to an array of superstars, from Pitbull, Foo Fighters and Kings of Leon to Justin Timberlake, Pink, Alicia Keys, Shakira, Miley Cyrus and even “Weird Al” Yankovic.

After 20 years in A&R, what has changed about your job?
Ultimately, it’s still the same. I help artists with their artistic impression and how it is delivered. What has changed is how music is made. Artists now have more tools to record songs. They can record a song on their laptop and email it to me immediately. Before, they had to book studio time and FedEx a CD. New technology has been the game changer––and in some ways made my job easier.

Has anything changed the way you evaluate acts?
With the Internet there is much more information to consider. You can go online and see what’s happening with an act from different perspectives. You can see how they come across and how people respond to them and their music.

With so much data online, are live showcases important anymore?
For me, nothing replaces seeing an act perform live. If I’m interested, I want to see their live show and how the audience reacts to it. But, a live performance does not necessarily make or break a deal. If an act performs poorly, but has strong songs, they’ll still get my attention. You can always improve stage skills.

With all the superstars on your roster, how does new talent get attention?
This label has instituted an initiative to bring in new acts. We need new artists to keep our roster fresh. We might even develop artists in areas where they may need it.

How accomplished does an act need to be to get signed?
It depends on what you mean by “accomplished.” I like acts who show initiative and make things happen on their own. I’m not interested in someone who simply makes music at home and does nothing else. If I see any activity that I believe has potential, I might take a risk and help develop them.

How important is social media activity?
It’s very important. You want to see some sort of engagement and reaction. Social media allows us to see how artists connect with people and what they think of them. But, big numbers alone don’t influence me. I’m more impressed with how people react to the act and engage with them.

What qualities do you look for in an artist?
I don’t like to set up too many rules, because that’s limiting. I want to hear great music, see great performances and most of all sense a collaborative spirit. I love artists that make me ask, “What the fuck is that?”

What is your signing process?
That’s a trade secret. Every situation is different. I need to see some synergy––whether we see eye to eye. I’m brutally honest and if I don’t think it will work I won’t offer a deal. But, if I think otherwise I’ll go for it.

Is there anything an act or rep could do that would turn you off?
This is a hard business and every day it gets harder. I need to feel confident that there will be a team effort between the act, their team and the label. If I feel that they won’t pull their weight, I will pass on them.

Are you looking for anything in particular?
I just want to work with great artists who can maintain careers. I can help them reach that goal, but they have to work at it too. The days of a label doing everything, while the artist does nothing but music, are over. Now, everyone has to be involved to make it happen.

Do you see any developing?
Expectations have changed. Record sales aren’t what they used to be. Now, I’m happy if an act sells 500,000 records. If they sell a million, it shows they can actually have a career. Our focus has shifted to how music is being consumed. Radio still remains the biggest driver––especially at major labels. But, we’re also interested in how fans discover new music, whether it’s streaming services or somewhere else.

How do you like to be contacted?
Google me. If they can’t find my email address, or figure it out, they’re probably not ready for label attention.

By David Wolter | Sr. VP A&R | rcarecords.com

Comments:
James Walsh: This is not really news. Most folks I talk to know they have to build a regional following or at least have a foothold in their home town. However there is one important fact ignored. It takes money to make money. Do Record Labels really think a kid making minimum wage at Johnny Rockets has money to launch a career ? Without a backer like a Label things move along really slowly. It takes a team and hard work to build a career in music.

Adam Murphy: Informative. A&R people used to discover and try to turn the public onto new art; now it seems they just want to hop onto a pre-existing cash bandwagon. . .

http://musicconnection.com/label-reps-sound-off-artist-signable/

http://www.musicconnection.com

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SALES RISE ON VINYL RECORDS – RE-GROWING A PIECE OF THE PIE

Music purists and nostalgists alike have reason to rejoice: Sales of vinyl records are on the rise.

According to data released last week by Nielsen Soundscan, more than 9.2 million vinyl records (And that’s only the trackable ones- not near the total!) were sold in the U.S. last year, marking a 52% increase over the year before. The Wall Street Journal also reports that the vinyl sales are the highest numbers recorded by SoundScan since the music industry monitor started tracking them back in 1991. Meanwhile, data from the British Phonographic Industry revealed that for the first time in nearly 20 years, more than one million vinyl records were sold in the U.K. in 2014. (The last time the milestone had been achieved in Britain was in 1996.)

Even more startlingly are the figures on digital sales. While Nielsen revealed that streaming was also up, purchases of digital downloads dropped 9% for albums and 12% for songs in 2014.

Some are rejoicing at the new figures and anticipating a new trend. German-based company Optimal recently told the Guardian that they’re expecting to press 18 million records in 2015, while a new vinyl pressing plant called Canada Boy Vinyl (CBV) is scheduled to open in Calgary, AB, later this year.

But what’s behind this resurgence of vinyl? And why does the digital download industry seem to be floundering?

According to music industry experts in vinyl and digital, the answer is two-fold. Vinyl remains popular because the high-quality sound it delivers. While everyone from DJs to your grandfather has been saying for years that the sound on vinyl is richer, warmer and clearer than what’s being released online, it might not just be music snobbery talking. Most industry experts agree with them to an extent.

Jon Lloyd, a music genre specialist at Juno Records, an international online shop that sells both vinyl and digital music, tells TIME that in many ways digital music has been its own worst advertisement over the last decade. “You can set up a digital music label for a [relatively] very low cost meaning the market is flooded with record labels that aren’t particularly high on quality control,” he explains. That glut of low-quality, sloppily produced music has likely put off many music listeners who have turned away from downloading music online. Contrast that “throwaway culture of music,” as Lloyd describes it, to the labels that are putting out vinyl — which is expensive to produce — and sinking money into the product. “If there’s a serious investment, you have to have serious quality control because you have to know your vinyl is going to sell,” says Lloyd.

Simon Cole, the CEO of 7digital, a U.K.-based platform for creating digital music and radio services, agrees that digital music has had a quality problem in the past, which he says are reflected in sales figures. But “let’s be clear about what is in decline. What is in decline is the download of low-quality MP3 files,” he says. “I don’t think many of us will regret its passing.”

Cole also believes that along with the decline of low-quality downloads, digital music is now starting — or perhaps being forced — to become a lot more sophisticated. He says that future of music will be “higher-quality [music] files” and people are starting to look for in digital music what they once looked for in analogue: sound quality.

Yet sound isn’t the only part of vinyl’s renewed appeal. Many agree that the tangible aspect of vinyl, its physicality, is a draw for most people. “There’s a physical thing about putting a record on a record table and dropping the needle,” Cole says. “I think that physical thing is great. I think there is a new generation that is discovering the physicality of playing a piece of music like that.”

Lloyd confirms that the physically owning a record offers a connection in a way that a digital file doesn’t, comparing the digital/physical divide in music to that in the book world. “People will buy a Kindle for convenience, but people will still want to have a bookshelf [on their home],” he points out. (Interestingly, U.K. book chains have recently reported an increase in sales of paper books and a decline in e-Readers such as the Kindle or the Nook.)

Part of that appeal could come down to good old fashioned consumerism — we allow our possessions to define us. Nik Pollinger, a digital anthropologist who advises companies on the factors that motivate consumer behavior, told TIME in an email, “What we display in public is used to send social signals about our identities. Making our taste in music visible has historically played an important role in such signalling for many people.” Owning a vinyl collection, of course, “restores this ability.”

Yet while the boost to vinyl sales has been welcomed by many, there are potential problems if the market continues to grow. Josh Lachkovic, the co-founder of Wax & Stamp, a vinyl subscription club launching this year in Europe, tells TIME that if vinyl sales continue to increase, the demand on the few pressing plants out there — not to mention on those plants’ aging presses — might surpass supply.

But while vinyl sales are seeing something of a renaissance, it’s still too soon to worry about excess demand. Yes, vinyl sales are surging, but their sales still only made up six percent of album sales last year. Even so, for the beleaguered music industry, it’s nice to see a bright spot — and important to understand what’s inspiring it.

Also related:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/music-downloads-plummet-in-u-s-but-sales-of-vinyl-records-and-streaming-surge

http://www.bpi.co.uk/home/vinyl-album-sales-soar-past-the-1m-mark-for-the-first-time-in-nearly-two-decades.aspx

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/jan/07/-sp-vinyls-difficult-comeback

http://time.com/3661173/book-sales-increase-ereaders-slump/

[Article contributed by Steve Garvan]

 

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