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10 Questions with ... Chris Palmer
April 27, 2009
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NAME:Chris PalmerTITLE:Sr. Director of National PromotionCOMPANY:Carolwood RecordsBORN:Binghamton, NYRAISED:Binghamton, NY and Cape Cod, MA
Please outline your career so far:
Nine years of radio beginning in 1988 in Binghamton, NY at WHWK and then Cape Cod, MA and on to Myrtle Beach for the bulk of my radio years at both WYAK and WGTR. Kevin Herring hired me at Lyric Street as one of the original regionals back in January of 1998. I stayed there all the way until we opened Carolwood Records back in October of last year, when they moved me over to the new imprint to be the National guy along with the fair-haired John Ettinger.
1) Congrats on the launch of Carolwood and your promotion! How has the startup gone so far and what are you excited about?
The startup has been exciting. It's amazing building something from scratch! It's a little scary too! Having John (Ettinger), on board has been huge. He's done all this before and that has allowed me to really focus on training some young regionals and getting to know all of our friends at country radio. (By the way, I say young regionals, but I think Dave Collins is crowding 50 or 60!)
2) You were at Lyric Street as long as I can remember, seeing the growth of Rascal Flatts and many other artists- it must have been kind of bitter sweet leaving to launch something brand new, no?
Absolutely. Once you're drinking free beer in the "Flatt Shack" backstage with the Rascal Flatts boys and flying on a private jet with Billy Ray Cyrus, it's tough to go back to eating Taco Bell in a minivan with the Love and Theft kids! Thankfully, one of the acts I worked so hard to break at Lyric Street was able to come over with me. Trent Tomlinson is now a proud member of the Carolwood roster.
3) What are some of your proudest moments from your career at Lyric Street and what kind of knowledge do you bring with you to the new gig?
The first time I watched an entire arena of people sing along with I'm Movin' On" at a Flatts show. I think they were opening up for Toby Keith back then. I just stood there and thought about how cool it was that I had something to do with that. As far as knowledge, just knowing all that went into breaking an act to that level is big. That was true artist development, from three talented guys on a radio tour all the way to Madison Square Garden. I sure would love to see that again- at least once!
4) Why did you initially leave radio to move over to the record side?
Reason number one: I am a music guy. I love being involved in the whole process. It's amazing to see a song go from a burned CD on your desk all the way to the top of the charts. Reason number two: Clearly I wasn't that good at radio!! Almost 10 years in and still doing remote broadcasts at Dick's Pawn Shop in Market 158! I mean, who are we kidding here?
5) I still have trouble wrapping my arms around the fact that you worked with Chris Loss at one station- give us a couple of classic tales from that era.
Listen, Mr. Loss is a respected record executive now. I'm not going to say anything here about him being naked in a dunking booth, needing a pair of scissors after the Christmas party, fathers looking for their runaway teenage daughters at the radio station or even the "body splash" story from the Chris Ward showcase in Charlotte. I have too much respect for Chris, as well as Jon Loba, to get those stories circulating around Music Row.
6) Who have been your mentors and why?
My radio mentor was Mike Jeffries. He was the PD at WHWK in Binghamton and the first guy to hire me. For reasons still unknown to me he decided that I should be on the radio. I almost quit two hours into my first shift. I was so nervous I was about to throw up and go back to selling scanners at Radio Shack. Obviously Kevin Herring is my mentor on this side of the business. I had tried to get jobs at a few other labels, but he was the one that took the chance on me. I still hate it when I let that guy down. Of course, Randy Goodman always inspires me.
7) Obvious question- what the hell does Carolwood mean? I know it has something to do with Walt Disney.
Just as Lyric Street was named after a street that that Walt and Roy Disney used to live on, Carolwood Drive was a street that Walt lived on years later. Walt had an exact scale steam railroad in his five-acre backyard that was his pride and joy and he named it after the street, the Carolwood Pacific. We named our label after that street, too. A lot of Disney companies are named after streets (Buena Vista, Hollywood, Hyperion, etc.).
8) What music is exciting you right now?
Aside from the great stuff we have going on at Carolwood, I'm a big fan of the new Montgomery Gentry song - you just have to turn that one up! I'm also digging the new Taylor Swift, the Jamey Johnson and the Miley Cyrus.
9) The scene is very crowded out there and radio is, well, a challenge. How do you get people that are busy doing 50,000 different jobs, worried about their own jobs, nervous about people looking over their shoulder etc., to listen to your music?
It is extremely hard. Radio and records are both going in strange directions these days and we're all worried about what the future holds. The important thing to understand is that we're all in this together. We both need to keep working hard to build brands. The rest will take care of itself. The demand for music has never been greater, we just need to figure out how to monetize it.
10) You know that expression, 'he married up.' Whenever I hear that I think of you, which is a compliment. Seriously, did you drug this beautiful woman into marrying you and how do you keep her happy? Is it the non-stop one liners?
It's more like the non-stop travel. She never sees me! She would be flattered to hear that, she's a terrific wife and mother. I just hope she never reads this- holy case of the "Big Head!"
Bonus Questions
1) What 3 CDs would you grab on your way out of a burning building?
Hank Jr. Live by Hank Jr., Waiting For My Rocket To Come by Jason Mraz and the first Joe Diffie album A Thousand Winding Roads.
2) What 3 people, alive or dead, would you like to have dinner with and why? (And you can't say Kevin Herring or Dale Turner.)
David Letterman because he's one of my heroes, Jim Morrison because he'd be fun to drink with and Terry Francona (manager of the Boston Red Sox), 8-0 in the World Series - enough said.
3) Can you get us free Disney passes?
I can for PDs and MDs once in a while. Only a limited number per year AND NOT IN EXCHANGE FOR AIRPLAY!!
4) Do the Disney characters ever show up at meetings?
Mickey Mouse himself showed up at one of the first meetings we ever had at Lyric Street. Of course we were having the meeting at Disney World so he didn't have to travel far. We also have several of the Disney characters show up every year and join Rascal Flatts at the Vanderbilt Children's Hospital here in Nashville before their annual benefit concert at the Sommet Center. Over the last three years the guys have donated millions of dollars to the hospital. It's really great.
5) What Disney character most resembles you, and why?
Dopey. Do I really need to explain why?
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