ODDS ON FAVORITE
So you’ve assembled a team to work on a project-by-project basis?
With all the downsizing at the major labels, there are some good, quality people with passion available, and it’s way too expensive for an independent label to hire a fulltime staff. Ultimately, though, the buck stops here. It’s nice on one hand, but on the other hand, it’s, “Oh shit.”
What keeps you in the game at this point?
I’m enjoying myself more than I did 25 years ago. I’ve always tried to stay on top of the new technology. And I still get just as excited breaking a record as I did then. I didn’t sit on the sidelines twiddling my thumbs. People are still marketing music like they did in the ’70s. Still, it all comes down to one thing: if the music you have doesn’t excite people, you’re dead in the water.
You’ve got one classic group in Air Supply, and one new band, the techno-pop Ultraviolet Sound.
They appeal to very different demos. After meeting Air Supply, I was so impressed with Graham [Russell] and Russell [Hitchcock]’s attitude. They were just so emphatic about making new music. They also tour 11 months out of the year all over the world, which was one of the driving factors in getting involved with them. We need artists who are willing to be our partners. I can’t tell you how many other groups are knocking on our door after seeing what we were able to do with Air Supply.
Is there a future for the record business?
The record business may be in trouble, but the music business is alive and well. If we can continue to find exciting artists that make great music that stimulates people, it will continue to live on. Our goal is to customize a long-range development campaign for each artist on our roster. You have to connect with the music consumer and excite them enough to buy. It’s just like we did with Madonna and Prince. You put the music on for a group of people, turn it up and see what happens.
