Anyone work at a record label?

[CarmenOHara]

DS is 17 and really wants to work in A&R. He’s passionate about music and really knows his stuff.

We’re having a bit of a disagreement about what he should do over the next few years. He’s v strong academically and at a grammar school- I think he should go to uni while also getting as much music industry work experience as he can. He thinks I’m out of touch and keeps telling me about successful people in the music industry without qualifications (although he accepts that it doesn’t follow that having no qualifications means you’ll be successful). He wants to just start work as soon as he can.

I’d be very grateful for any advice. To me, getting a degree just gives you more options. He is on track for A stars so should be able to go somewhere good.

If you work in the industry, what would you advise? And if he does do a degree, is there any subject you’d recommend? He’s found some music industry degrees but they’re all at ex-polys and I don’t know if they’re valued. Would a general business management degree be any good? WWYD?

Thank you.

Should add that his school careers department have been no help at all and just suggest law and accountancy 😭

Although I can empathise with your ds (I was once a young man bursting with enthusiasm for the music industry) I think that you are right to believe that having a degree can be very useful throughout life generally, and the idea of going to uni while pursuing and building music contacts in between coursework is a good one. I wasn’t in record labels or a/r but I was a studio producer/engineer and then owner, so a different area, but nonetheless part of the music industry.

In terms of degree type, you’re right that many of the MI degrees aren’t really worth much in the real world, there are a few (ie university of Surrey) but numbers are scarce and fought over. I have a friend with a degree in music production from a mid-range uni and he didn’t get any work whatsoever in that field. (They were left with the big fat student debt though)…So I think a more broad degree with some overlap is preferable and more use in the long run. Advice I’ve seen given to many aspiring engineers is to do electrical engineering- it’s a valuable degree that can be used in other areas too. So your idea of business management is not a bad one.

I didn’t myself get a degree, I plunged straight in aged 21, but looking back I do wish I had gone to uni, I’m now the wrong side of 50 and tbh it would really help me now.

The music industry is undeniably very hard to truly succeed in, and for every success there are hundreds of people who didn’t quite make it. The Hunter S Thompson quote us a good one:

“The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. There's also a negative side”

Anyway those are my thoughts, sorry for the slight ramble. Hope it helps a bit and good luck to your ds.

This is so helpful- thank you! I’ve forwarded your whole post to DS. Really appreciate it.

I don’t work at a record label but I do work in the music industry.

some of the music business degrees can be useful, particularly the ones that offer work experience. If he wants to go down that route then research carefully and choose the one with the most links to labels/companies which offers the most ‘time in the field’

i can’t stress enough how these jobs come about from people you know and work experience you’ve done.

also remember that labels operate differently these days, the days of loads of money flying about and cash to invest in ‘proper’ A&R are over. Labels often look for the instant next big seller and don’t invest much in artist development. There are exceptions to this, I’m sure your son is familiar with those labels.
there is a lot of focus on streaming and sync deals these days so that’s a good route in sometimes.

keep up with the news on Musicweek and MusicBusinessWorldwide sites. He will also find jobs on there, it’s good to see what’s out there and what’s in demand. He could also consider management companies if it doesn’t have to be a label job he is looking for.

I did not get a degree either, I started working at 19 and I now have a very interesting a lucrative career in my forties so it is possible.

He should make good contacts with everyone he meets and good luck!

Thanks so much- I’ve forwarded all this to DS. Really helpful.

A family member does. They are in their 60s but did law as a degree and a lot of unpaid work experience. They’ve always said the law degree was useful for their job.

I felt utterly compelled to reply as I was in exactly the same boat as your son when I was his age - wanted to work in the music industry and didn't want to go to Uni. Had a fair few arguments with my Dad. I ignored him (!) and got myself a job as a receptionist at a record company through Handle Recruitment, which are a Music Industry specialist recruitment agency: www.handle.co.uk

I had an INCREDIBLE time - absolutely loved it, but after a year and a half of earning £not-very-much I started to think about Uni again. Ultimately I decided to go to Queen Mary to study English Literature and became extremely active doing music stuff at the Union. I was Music Editor for the paper, set up a Music Society and put on open mic nights and up and coming bands in the Union. I got headhunted for a job at a music venue and could have quite happily carried on in the music industry. Ultimately it wasn't for me (I now work in fundraising and remain passionate about music in my own time!).

You don't have to go to Uni to be a successful A&R - passion, energy and enthusiasm, but most importantly, contacts, are what will get his foot in the door and decide whether or not he has a successful career. However, I shared my experience in the hope of demonstrating that it's not a case of either/or. If he does go to Uni, I can't recommend getting really involved in the University music scene highly enough - I absolutely loved the experience and made a name for myself and got some invaluable hands on experience that I wouldn't have benefitted from had I just remained at the record company.

I wish him the absolute very best whatever he decides to do and I hope he discovers the next big thing, but more importantly I hope he loves his career and is able to make a comfortable life for himself doing it.

I was in bands as a younger person (still in a hobby one now!) and have a lot of friends who work in A&R / busdev in the music industry.

A surprising number of them are qualified accountants, and quite a few lawyers, too (which I suppose makes sense from a contractual PoV).

However, as a PP said, each and every one of them was utterly committed from Day One - from about the age of 14/15 onwards, going to endless gigs and club nights, writing for 'zines (my muso days and those of my peers were late 90s/early 00s, so mostly pre-blogging), doing work experience at indie labels, setting up and being involved with music socs at uni or college, getting to know bands and musicians - basically networking FURIOUSLY.

Fundamentally, the music industry is an industry like any other, so it makes sense to have some formal / professional qualification, but contacts, drive and energy are equally as important, if not more.

I'd encourage your son to pay mind to both, but not at the expense of his love of music (I've seen this happen to a lot of people, who spent so much time trying to get in that they forgot why they were doing it).

Agree with all the above. Most people I know who work in A&R are people who just lived and breathed music and sidled into it. I don't work for a label but I worked at a music magazine. I did a generic Arts degree but was involved in music and dance societies and going to gigs all the time. I then got a job as a receptionist for the magazine and went from there. I got to know everyone in the industry in that job. People who worked in our PR and marketing team were involved in running events for the mag and getting bands to play and went into A&R from there.