10 Questions with ... Tom Baldrica

NAME:Tom Baldrica TITLE:VP/Marketing COMPANY:Sony Music/Nashville BORN:Hibbing, MN RAISED:Virginia, MN

1) You have been in your current position for a couple of years now after many years in promotion. How has the transition been personally? Do you miss promotion?

There are a few days when I feel like I am standing at the base of Niagara Falls holding an umbrella, but overall the transition has been great. I miss the camaraderie of a promotion staff and the adrenaline rush of going for a #1 record or being most added when somebody said you couldn't.

2) Your name is almost synonymous with BNA Records- becoming their VP in 1997. Being a major part in the rise of Lonestar and Kenny Chesney's careers must be quite gratifying. What are some of the other things that you are most proud of from your tenure there?

I am proud of the effort we put forth on every act we worked. I am proud of the Warren Brothers-we fought for them three separate times at BNA and always believed they had something to say, and when you look at the hit songs they have written over the past few years, we were right in that belief. I am proud of the team we built and that many of those individuals have gone on to other places to become leaders in their own right. And yes, the success of Kenny and Lonestar is very gratifying!!

3) Why did you originally want to get into radio in the first place?

Because I wanted to do sports play by play and be the next Brent Musberger.

4) And with that said, what led to you moving over to the record side?

When I got into country radio and became a PD of a Gavin reporting station, I got to know many of the promo guys, started asking them questions about their side of the business, learned as much as I could about it and eventually knew that this is where I needed to be.

5) New Media and Marketing seem to be the wave of the future in the record industry- can you give us a 'snapshot' of your job description?

I have four departments that report to me, and the best way I can describe it is I am part time psychologist, part time fireman and full time air traffic controller! I tell my staff all the time, they are the diamonds, I am the string, and together we will make a necklace. It is my job to challenge them, motivate them, teach them, guide them and bring them all together to create a great plan to advance our artists in the consumer's consciousness.

6) The future poses many challenges- and knowing how passionate you are about the music, what do you think when you look at the charts and it's moving at a snail's pace? We counted 26 records going for adds in the first three weeks of 2009. Yet, radio adds maybe one or two songs at a time- is the system broken? What things would help?

As long as radio is continued to be programmed with research being the guiding principle and entertainment values being put on the back burner, nothing is going to help. It's not about how many songs are being added, but what songs are being added. The significant disconnect is between what happens on the Monday charts (airplay) and the Wednesday charts (sales-both physical and digital). There are way too many songs that "test" that the general public can give two shakes about-and as long as that mentality prevails, we will continue to do what were doing. If the sales chart was the guiding factor-songs that are moving the audience and making them react with their dollars, I believe the passion factor for the radio station and the format overall would rise with the listeners.

7) You are so caring about your artists. It surely must have been great to see them succeed, yet at the same time it must have been very difficult seeing an artist you believed in not break through- was that and is that still tough?

The toughest part of the gig for me has always been when you have to tell the artist that their song is over, and it's even tougher when you see them leave the label. I have always felt that we are the keepers of their hopes and dreams, and when their dream dies, a part of you dies too.

8) Economic times are, well, difficult- where is Country music's place in all of this?

It seems like Country usually does well in trying times. From a lyrical standpoint, Country will be the format that is best able to reflect and represent the mood of the nation, so I feel good about that and I think that will bode well for country radio. And even in the tough economic climate, people will purchase music, but the songs will have to be great and really make a personal connection for folks to part with their cash. We have to continually raise the bar on the songs we record and release.

9) Most of us know your love for the tuba. How big of a thrill was it to play on a Brad Paisley record?

It was a huge thrill to have an artist of Brad's magnitude ask me to be a part of his record. It is in the record books as a #1 song, and it will be until the day I die! It has been a thrill to play my horn on stage with Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, The Warren Brothers and Pinmonkey. And on top of that, I just recorded on a polka album by The Boxhounds (LynnMarie Rink and Charley Kelly) called "Speechless," and that album was nominated for a Grammy!! Pretty cool stuff.

10) What are some of the projects for 2009 that you are excited about?

The new Pat Green album, the new Jake Owen album, the new Martina McBride album, the new Jason Michael Carroll album and a new act on Columbia called Caitlin and Will-and that's just only in the first half of the year!

1) Did you really play in the marching band at the 1984 Olympics?

I did. It was a "college all-star" marching band assembled for the Los Angeles Games. We had 736 members, with 48 tubas. When we had our first rehearsal and I got to hear this band, I thought I had died and gone to heaven.

2) You are a huge Batman fan- how often do you quote him during the day? Do you break into Dept. Head meetings with an occasional 'zowie,' or 'ka-pow!'?

I will break out a few quotes now and then-some from the TV series and some from the newer movies. My office is full of Batman stuff, so the caped crusader is never too far away.

3) If you were not in the music industry, what would be your fantasy job?

Play by play for the Minnesota Twins or Vikings.