Artist development in the digital age
A conversation with Atlantic Records A&R about emerging trends, new technologies, and the thrill of new discoveries.
The music business is all about personal connection. Artists create, consumers absorb, and through art there is communication. The artists and repertoire (A&R) arm of the industry is responsible for introducing most music to the public. Talent scouts by instinct, and savvy business people by trade, A&R reps find undiscovered artists and propel them to the top of the charts and the forefront of cultural discourse.
Atlantic Records, which has been scouting and recording cutting-edge artists such as Aretha Franklin and Led Zeppelin since 1947, remains at the forefront of dictating cultural tastes. However, like any industry, music must evolve with the times, which means technology permeates the business of artist development more than ever before.
Atlantic’s Jeffrey Sledge, Vice President of A&R, and Brian Johnston, Senior Director of A&R, talk about how their work of artist development has evolved in the digital era, and which tools best help them catalogue — and track — the sounds that influence our culture.
Can you explain the job of an A&R executive?
Sledge: The job, in a nutshell, is to find and sign talent, and then help them make their records by providing producers and writers and studio time, and helping with creative direction. On any given day, that could mean taking meetings with artists, writers and producers, and figuring out how to connect them all with each other to do the best work. There is also a lot of traveling involved — going out of town to see shows—and I personally spend a lot of time in Atlanta, where most of my artists are based.
Johnston: There are two kinds of A&R in the company — data A&R and the core A&R, like Jeff and myself. Research A&R mine the charts, looking at the data in terms of which artists are getting trajectory. It’s a research-heavy job. They might find a random song in Uzbekistan that is climbing up the charts faster than other records, so they’ll dig in and figure out the story on why that is. Or if I come across an artist I like but know nothing about, and I need the backstory, I can send it to the research team. We work very differently, but together as a department.
Jeff, you have worked in the music industry since well before digital downloads and streaming took over. What would you say are the major changes since your early days in A&R?
Sledge: It was definitely different when I first started. Even getting into the industry wasn’t as accessible as it is today. Now we have music internships, and colleges have music business majors to help you get in, but back when I was starting out, none of that existed. I always wanted to work in music, but I literally had no idea how to do it. I didn’t even know what it really was as an industry. I just thought, “I want to do that.”
Do you think emerging technologies have been beneficial or damaging to the music industry?
Johnston: I think we’re somewhere in the middle. We’re in this position because we have a certain ear and we can understand taste and what people respond to. At the same time, you can’t deny the data. When you’re able to look at numbers, it speaks back to you: maybe reaffirming what you believe, or maybe making you take a second look at something. Everybody uses all the different pieces of tech at their disposal in the way that works best for them. Some are 100 percent invested, others about 50-50, and others don’t use it at all. I’m somewhere in the middle. I’m on the phone calling producers and artists; at the same time, I’m digging around the internet using tools like Shazam Charts, SoundCloud and Spotify.
Sledge: You can’t avoid technology now, and a lot of it is extremely helpful. For example, because of SoundCloud, I have instant access to analytics that show popularity of artists based on views, and how much of their music is streamed. It’s become a huge part of my process.
But I must say, I am a little wary of technology taking over too much. A lot of the younger A&R cats are about the hot thing at the moment; they want to go to their boss and show their reach with data and charts and online stats. There’s a place for that. But I still try to maintain as much interpersonal communication as possible. I’m still looking for what is good, and what piques my interest. I don’t try to let the numbers and analytics sway me one way or the other in terms of my taste. If I like something, I like something. It has to move me. The top artists today — whether it’s Drake or Kendrick Lamar, or SZA or The Weeknd — who are huge artists on social media, and are a major part of the digital music revolution—at the end of the day, they’re great artists who make great music. You can’t ever get around that. And that’s always been true, in every generation. The top people are still the top people because they were great artists.
What are some of the digital tools you use to get your work done?
Sledge: We use Slack a lot for communications. I also use SoundCloud and Spotify analytics because for me, SoundCloud and Spotify are where most of the young artists are. So you can take a quick overview of their streaming statistics right next to the song to see what’s doing what. SoundCloud has their chart rankings as well, and I constantly will go and listen to the Top 50 on SoundCloud and Apple Music, checking out all the different playlists to see what’s trending in culture.
Johnston: Airtable is great resource for me. I use it for one purpose, and that’s to keep a producer and songwriter database. It’s incredibly helpful when I go to a city somewhere and I need to put producers and songwriters in a room together with our artists. I have it broken down into location, genre, the type of songwriter they are, even notes on their personality. I can search for an Atlanta-based hip-hop producer who does sample flips, and it’ll turn up. When I come across new artists, I add them and then reference back in a couple weeks to see what’s happening.
I used to use Gmail or a Word document that I would revisit, but it wasn’t always the easiest to get to. I love how easy the Airtable interface is, how it connects to Slack, and that I can use it on mobile.
Are there ways you marry old-school techniques with technology?
Johnston: I use a combination of things — from the regular social media space of Twitter and Instagram, to looking at Spotify playlists and Shazam charts. I may follow people whose tastes I align with, and much younger kids who are in the scene now, where I was maybe 15 years ago, constantly wanting to be the absolute first to know about things. I lean on them, look to see what they’re following, responding to, and talking about.
Sledge: Connecting with people is what keeps me interested. I recently went to see Daniel Caesar at a sold-out show. I wasn’t discovering him; he’s already established. But it was good to go to that show and watch the crowd and see who’s there and who his is really connecting with. That kind of thing really gets me excited like nothing else. I went to see SZA the other night and observed her crowd as well. I was surprised how diverse the crowds for each of these artists were — Black women, white girls singing at the top of their lungs, men, kids. It’s telling me about who the market will be for a new artist.
What are the biggest challenges to staying organized?
Sledge: For me, staying organized is about communicating with the artists, the managers, the product managers—everyone involved. Talking to people every day to get updates on what is moving and changing and developing is what keeps me on track.
Johnston: To be honest, I really never feel like I’m keeping up with it all. The pace is so intense and things are constantly changing. I feel like I’m just kind of doing what’s right in front of me, and so far, that’s worked for me. It’s probably not the best strategy; I know I could be much more organized. So I set up systems and tools to make myself a little more successful, and then I end up falling back on my instincts, which has always worked for me in the past.
What advice would you give to someone new to A&R today?
Sledge: I try to tell new people, “If you get the shot to do it, really do it and focus.” In the beginning, I think you have to make your job the number one priority in your life. Otherwise, you are going to miss out. If you don’t go to that show one night, or travel over the weekend, or track trends online all night, you are going to slip. You have to be what you do. There are going to be sacrifices along the way. It’s definitely tough when you’re in a relationship. But anyone who gets into this industry has to love music so much that allowing it to take over your life doesn’t feel like work.
Where do you see the future of music and tech emerging? What possibilities do you think are out there?
Johnston: I’ve thought about what the music industry might look like in five or 10 years. It really is changing and the landscape of what streaming has done for this industry just in the past two years alone has turned the faucet back on. There is definitely money in recorded music again. But I’m not sure what’s next. We all have to look at net neutrality and how that affects us; we’re all thinking about it and I don’t know what it will be. But I think something good is going to come of it.
What motivates you?
Sledge: I’m like most of my peers; I just love the music. People my age ask me, “Do you really like this young stuff?” And the answer is “Yes, I really do.” A lot of my peers who came up with me got to a place where they were ready to stop. I’m still excited about discovering. I still love hearing something new and fresh that has a different spin or take; that really gets me excited.
Johnston: It’s not money. There are opportunities to make money in the industry, but if you work in the music industry you just like to be part of the circus; you want to be in the loop and be around young creatives. I just enjoy the idea that there could be a smash hit in my email in the morning when I wake up, or I can play press on a demo that came in the mail and discover someone special. I love seeing a new artist in their first rollout hitting the marketplace, and the look on their face at their first sold-out show. It sounds so cheesy, but it’s what makes me get up and do this every day.
This piece was written by Heather Wood Rudulph, an author, journalist, and media professor living in Sacramento. Follow her on Twitter @hwrudulph.
