10 Questions with ... April Rider

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

Rider joined Quartz Hill last fall, shortly after its launch. The label, founded by former BBR Music Group owner Benny Brown, former BBR CFO Paul Brown, and songwriter Jason Sellers, is a joint venture with Sony Music Entertainment and The Orchard. Prior to joining Quartz Hill, her extensive Music Row resume also included UMG Nashville Midwest Regional and Curb Records Regional, National and VP of Promotion. Rider resigned from Curb in 2010 for a GM role with BBR Music Group’s Stoney Creek Records imprint. Following that, she spent six years in artist and label management with RPM Entertainment. Quartz Hill has signed two artists so far, Nate Barnes and Ben Gallaher. Barnes’ debut single, “You Ain’t Pretty,” just impacted Country radio on February 16th. But Rider reveals in this interview that, “We will be announcing soon that Quartz Hill has signed a few familiar faces with some incredible new music also coming this year.”

1. You worked for Benny Brown previously at BBR Music Group, but what else drew you to this job at a startup label?

This is a new label, but “startup” is not the word I would choose to describe it. We are partnered with The Orchard and Sony Music Entertainment. We have access to a global team of experts to assist us to build our campaigns. Benny Brown has enormous wealth of experience and a proven record of success, and not just success -- big wins! Now, for this new label that Benny has formed, Quartz Hill Records, the artists he has signed, the team he has assembled -- we are all pros. We are starting this label, but in no way are we beginners. So yes, Benny absolutely was the first reason I was drawn to this label, but the music, artists, resources and team are all big reasons as to why I am excited to be here.

2. Can you elaborate on Quartz Hill’s partnership with Sony, describing what functions (other than distribution) they handle for the label and which ones are handled in house here in Nashville, as well as how the partnership strengthens Quartz Hill’s position in the marketplace?

We are all on the same team. Our resources are combined. Obviously, we have hired the team we wanted for radio, marketing, publicity, etc., but we all communicate on the release schedule and what we have coming each week as one team with our specific roles. We are partnered in the true sense of the word.

3. You likely had your pick of experienced promotion staffers when putting together your promotion team. What qualities made you choose Matt Galvin, Clay Henderson Greg Raneiri, Will Robinson and Ray Vaughn?

That is an easy answer for me. We were looking for experience, yes, and there are plenty in our industry to pick from. But for my team, I needed to find staffers with grit, passion, loyalty, maturity and a team-oriented mindset. We nailed it.

4. Greg has great radio experience as a 12-year industry veteran, but this is his first label job. How do you teach someone the ropes of being a great regional during a time when radio tours and concerts are largely halted?

A great radio guy can easily be a great records guy, and Greg is no exception. We’ve got to give our format PDs and MDs some credit here, because they are deep into the trenches every day with their record label reps. Aside from going over some basic label policies and resources, there is not much to “teach.” Greg is a natural, and his radio perspective enormously benefits our team.

5. Do you have a particular philosophy when it comes to record promotion that you have been trying to instill in all your new hires over the last few months?

I feel like, as the head of promotion, I have my own style of leading my team, but what it boils down to is a very simple, yet effective philosophy birthed by a familiar writing from poet and scholar John Donne: “No man is an island, entire of itself. Every man is a piece of a continent, a part of the main.” In simple terms, teamwork makes the dream work. We are all in this together, and we have each other’s backs.

6. Describe how you introduced Nate Barnes to radio, what the unique challenges have been in this pandemic environment, and the ways you’ve had to pivot to accommodate them.

It’s all about perspective. Some may see this pandemic as a challenge, but everyone at Quartz Hill Records has seen it as an opportunity to do what we do best: be creative. We have stepped outside of the box and connected in new ways. Our relationships in the industry are far and wide, and everyone on our team has found their way to connect, even with the world’s challenges. We do what we always do, we find a way. Honestly, when you have an authentic, talented artist with a song you believe in, the possibilities are endless, pandemic or no pandemic.

7. Benny Brown is known for being particularly enthusiastic about the A&R process. To what extent where you able to weigh in on the first single choices for Nate Barnes and Ben Gallaher with your own insight into what you think will work for radio?

Benny and Jason [Sellers] find the music that relates, that moves, that connects. Benny is always on-target and always brings his team along while finding songs. He loves the A&R process, and when he is excited about a song it usually proves to be for good reason, and I love [that] he includes all of us.

8. What qualities does Nate have that make you believe he’s a star in the making?

Nate Barnes is genuine. He is not chasing after fame, but chasing after a dream to create music that can serve a bigger purpose. Music is the great peacemaker, the greatest communicator, and always hits to the heart of the matter. The same goes for the artist that sings those songs. Nate Barnes is a star because he sings and performs with his heart. It resonates to every person that hears him and every human being that meets him. He is something very, very special, and I am honored to be working side-by-side with him.

9. What about Ben? What “it” qualities does he have that you think radio will ultimately be drawn to when you launch him?

We are very excited about Ben Gallaher, who just released his new single, “Every Small Town,” to the DSPs. We will be announcing soon that Quartz Hill has signed a few familiar faces with some incredible new music also coming this year.

10. Where do you see Quartz Hill five years down the line in terms of marketplace position, and are there any other Nashville indies you’re looking to as a model of the success you hope to emulate?

We are creating our own path and destiny at Quartz Hill Records, so there are no other labels we will try to “emulate.” In five years, the industry will see how a small group of passionate individuals got together in a pandemic, made no excuses and won with real, authentic Country music. I hope we will prove to be a great example of what is possible if you dream big enough.