05/03/2024
DJ George loved to spend time with up and coming people in the Music Business, often spotting talent before many others. A true Music industry visionary!
Tim Bailey, Head Of Label at Earache Records is a great example.
Tim and George put on many Bands at The Cooler Music Venue, here is Tim’s story I thought I would share………….
I didn’t get paid my first salary til I was 29... because I spent my 20's going all in on music:
🎵 As an independent promoter.
🎵 As in house booker at the Louisiana, Bristol.
🎵 As Tim Sensation (lol) my electro house dj moniker (which paid my rent for a good few years!).
🎵 As a singer in an indie rock band who amusingly got slated in Rocksound by Skindred. 3/10 Benji, how could you?!
🎵 As a freelance music writer for Venue Magazine (RIP) and occasionally the NME.
And in my 30's:
🎵 I ran the programming at the Fleece and helped take it from a venue on the brink to one of the best venues in the U.K (building a team that have gone on to be Seal’s tour PA and one of the most innovative managers in the Drag world).
🎵 I worked as a promoter for two national promoters.
🎵 I taught myself digital marketing full time whilst being furloughed for 9 months, working 10-6, 5 days a week.
🎵 I booked and promoted some of the largest ticketed broadcast events in the U.K. during the lockdown, including Gary Numan premiere of Intruder and the relaunch of Bellowhead which sold 9000 tickets!
🎵 I worked with my awesome wife Laura Kidd on her label, securing a U.K. distribution deal, learning e-commerce and running the digital ad campaigns. In 2021 Laura had a #24 chart hit for her debut Penfriend album Exotic Monsters from our house in south west Bristol.
I used to chastise myself for my wasted twenties.
But now I see it as the first step in building career capital. In “So Good They Can’t Ignore you,” Cal Newport defines career capital as “...the skills you have that are both rare and valuable and that can be used as leverage in defining your career.” His book completely changed my perception of the value I had, what I had to offer and what to pursue. Thanks Cal!
It was my immersion in music in music in my 20's that gave me that rare of depth of knowledge which allowed me to be a successful promoter at venues and then nationally.
My work in my 30's helped me grow as a manager and taught me how to get most from my supporting staff.
It’s also the time when I became a real marketer.
It was my decision to retrain in digital marketing that gave me the edge when promoting broadcast events wholly online through digital ads and email marketing in a brand new landscape.
It gave me the tools to run digital campaigns which helped Laura’s album into the top 25 with no industry help. (Her latest albums charted at #14 in 2023 shows there's a real alternative to the industry way.)
This in turn was pivotal in making me realise where my skill set would be most rare and valuable, and that was in labels.
I landed my first label manager job 2 months later on my first application. (Thanks Dig for seeing what I had to offer.)
Your time is never wasted if you’re building career capital. And you should never be stuck in your career if you've built a skill set that is valuable and sought after.
What have you done to make sure you're so good they can't ignore you?
