The Music Industry Masterminds

Jay-Z. Justin Bieber. Wiz Khalifa. Young Jeezy. Trey Songz. Ne-Yo. Rick Ross. Lil' Wayne. Ludacris. All these artists are great and successful in their own right, but what many fans don't know it's not just the artist themselves but the people who were hired to perform various roles that make a signed act work. There's the A&R, Marketing & PR, Lawyers, Agents, Publishers, Managers, and the Producers & Engineers. All these vital roles make sure everything about an artists' career and albums are successful. These are the people that spend sleepless nights and work tirelessly in order to make sure you're favorite artist is successful and sells a lot of records. The "Creative Choices" article "A guide to the music industry" examines all those positions and defines what the positions are supposed to do. All these positions work together to make an artists' career go smooth and successfully. People like Russell Simmons, Blue Williams, Kevin Liles, Diddy, Scooter Braun, Lyor Cohen, and plenty of other successful industry people started off doing jobs like A&R, Marketing, talent & booking, etc. The best execs in these positions make sure the artist not only makes a hit, but a chart topping album and can make themselves a brand that can garner more money for themselves and the execs. They require someone who is an innovative person with a love for the business side of music, film and television. They also need to be a go getter and have an ear for music and good talent to scout for producers and songwriters if they aren't already a producer or songwriter. It is positions like these that get me excited for the music industry so that I can work my way up like some of my favorite industry execs like Russell Simmons, Diddy, and Kevin Liles. I am ready to be one of the music industry masterminds behind your favorite artists' career!