Paradigm’s Joe Atamian scored his big break at 2007’s National Association of College Activities confab, where he met agent Duffy McSwiggin, who got the Eastern Illinois University Student Activities Board/Concert Committee chair a job coordinating ticket counts at Monterey Peninsula Artists. When the merger came, he moved to Jonathan Levine’s desk—and got his agent stripes in 2010. With a wildly diverse roster that includes The Lumineers, Sturgill Simpson, Big Gigantic, Anderson East and more, Atamian has come a long way from booking bands around Schaumburg, Ill., as a high school student. Believing that “the barrier to entry is so low, almost anyone can put out music,” he acknowledges that finding the truly great is exponentially harder “when the haystack is 1,000 times the size it used to be.”

How has breaking artists changed?
While the way people find out about new music has certainly changed, the basic principles of breaking an artist aren’t drastically different. People need to discover quality music, and the artist needs to put in the work to develop a relationship with new fans. Touring, engaging content and releasing new music are all part of it.

Best lesson?
Say yes to as much as possible. This industry is so heavily based on luck and being in the right place at the right time. When someone asks me to take a meeting or see a new act, I always try to say yes. It’s tough to know where the next tip on a new artist will come from, but I guarantee it isn’t going to come while sitting at home on your couch.