Archives for October 2023

A conversation with Joe Swank, a freelance radio promoter who previously worked in the radio space at Yep Roc Records and Bloodshot Records.

Joe was also a touring musician in the ’90s, hosts his own radio show, and co-founded the Alt-country Specialty Radio Chart — so he’s got a LOT of wisdom to share not only on the radio side, but on building a music industry career in general.

As we’re heard on other episodes; be ready to stay in it for the long haul, don’t bank on overnight success, and constantly (C O N S T A N T L Y) work on developing your network.

Also, be nice to people.

If you’re interested in more radio talk, check out our conversation with Shil Patel of Tiger Bomb Promo.

TRANSCRIPT

A conversation with Justin Black, a Richmond, VA-based independent musician who runs his own label, Crystal Pistol Records, and also works regularly with another Virginia-based label, WarHen Records. 

Justin’s primary vessel for musical output is under the moniker Saw Black, which I recommend you check out wherever you consume music. 

Our conversation is based around the premise of independent labels — and answering common questions like…should you start your own label? Should you cut a deal with a small indie? What might that deal look like versus a traditional deal or a “bigger” label deal? We’ll also demystify a lot of the day-to-day of being an independent musician and the music industry at-large.

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This week we’re talking with David Macias, President and Founder of Nashville-based Thirty Tigers. We’ll discuss the origins of the label, how their business model has changed over the years, how they approach A&R as well as artist development, and discuss independent release plans (label or not) … and David will spill the tea on the current uproar over the streaming economy.

Skip to ~22 minutes if you’re only here for the Spotify/streaming talk.

To read more of David’s thoughts on Spotify and the streaming economy in general, check out this piece in Rolling Stone, as well as David’s full written notes here.

A conversation with Shil Patel, who owns radio promo company Tiger Bomb Promo. He’s done promo campaigns for Sufjan Stevens, Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, Hiss Golden Messenger, Julia Holter, The Magnetic Fields, Daniel Romano, Sarah Shook & The Disarmers – and many many many more.

If you want to know more about how a radio campaign works – Shil is going to break it down for us. He shares the components of a campaign, how he gauges if the campaign is successful, the hidden benefits of doing a radio campaign, and some of his best advice to up and coming musicians.

TRANSCRIPT