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10 Questions with ... Mark Abramson
August 25, 2020
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. I always knew I would find my way back. But I also knew I needed a change and so this is a DREAM JOB! I get to rejoin my community and help to build bands AND do something different from what I was doing!
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1. What made you want to get into the music business and give us some of your early mentors?
As long as I can remember, music has always been important to me. Music is just powerful magic and has always been a driving force in my life. In the recent time when I was on the outside there was just something MISSING from my life, haha. I started off, inspired by Fingers Metal Shop (WBAB) on Long island, wanting to be a DJ and so went off to school to get a Broadcasting degree. School and I have never been the “best of friends” so I took the “early release” plan and joined the music biz and never turned back. The key mentors in my life started off with Kathie Merrit (who I was an intern for), Valerie DeLong (who helped me in so many ways in work and life), Dave Loncao and Mike Easterlin – each of those have played a key role in my life! As you all know I was given a hiatus from the biz for a little while but that driving NEED to be a part of building bands made coming back an inevitability!
2. Can you give us a rundown of the record labels and positions you’ve held over the years?
I started off as an intern at Roadrunner which led to part time which led to full time employment. I started off as the Metal radio promo guy which led to me starting the commercial radio department of Roadrunner Records (I was it, haha). After seven years I left to work for The Enclave and Val DeLong as her head of Rock. When they shut us down I went to TVT as head of Rock and stayed there for 2 ½ years. After that I went back “home” to Roadrunner for 14 more years. From there I went to Century Media and was the radio department there for a bit. Then I tried my hand at artist management for a bit and while I have nothing but love and respect for the bands I worked with but I have bills to pay, haha. So, aside from Type O Negative/Silvertomb I have really moved on from that.
3. A Big congrats on your new position at United Stations. What are your main responsibilities there as Content Producer for hardDrive?
I always knew I would find my way back. But I also knew I needed a change and so this is a DREAM JOB! I get to rejoin my community and help to build bands AND do something different from what I was doing! I get to help the AWESOME Lou Brutus put together HardDrive/HardDrive XL. I get to help set up his interviews and arrange them for the show. I also get to work side by side with Randy Hawke – we have respected the hell out of each other for so many years that it just WORKS. In addition to setting up interviews and helping with music I am going to look to find ways to expand the HardDrive brand – be it with giveaways or video content and so much more. HardDrive is an AMAZING show and a great brand – I am so excited to see what I can bring to the table in 2020 and beyond to help evolve it and find more ways to build the show and the bands we expose so that the whole format can grow!
4. Besides the host Lou Brutus, who else works on the shows with you and what do they do?
Well, Musically I work side by side with Randy Hawke of course. The guy is just amazing. He loves music, he gets radio, he knows exactly how to balance his radio and programming experience with emotional connection to music. Honestly – I have always loved working with Randy from the label side of things and we have done some amazing things with bands that this is just a tremendous partnership! Zak Tranese does the primary work on the weekend show while I do the primary work on the XL weekday shows so we are obviously side by side A LOT! Bill Powell has been with the team for years and does an amazing job at putting it all together and getting it to radio. We have Matt who does our YouTube channel – I just had a long chat with him and I see he and I doing a LOT together!
5. Let’s talk about the hardDrive and hardDrive XL host Lou Brutus. He obviously does a great job as a host with music info and artist interviews. Tell us how your collaboration makes the show work?
I have always been a fan and a friend of Lou so working with him was one of the things I was most excited about. The guy is such a passionate force of nature for ROCK! I just have had to learn the ins and outs of what he needs and how he needs it. I get him his materials on time and he makes the magic happen, haha. I am currently on a tear setting up a bunch of interviews for him. Knowing him as long as I have makes it pretty smooth as I know what kind of guy he is and where his tastes and interests lie so there is so much I don’t need to ask aside from “can you do this at this day/time?”.
6. Now let’s talk about the music on HardDrive. How do you guys decide what artists and songs to play?
After YEARS of being the guy asking for airplay – sweet justice! Now I get to turn around and tell everyone NO!!! hahaha…Just kidding! How I approach my chats with Randy about bands we are not yet playing is based on two things – reality and promo experience. I want to see the metrics, I want to see there is something happening with streams and views, etc. I know the promo game as I did it for years so you promo people bring me reality, haha. I plan on backing things that I know are real and that are connecting – I already have a few bands in my mind that are NOT at radio but I plan on fighting for when the time is right. But I look up all the stats and bring them to my chat with Randy. He has his research information and I bring mine and we look at these things together and factor in what we are FEELING as well. So – it is really a combination of radio success, reality-based reaction and emotion.
7. Now that you’re back working with the Rock format, what's your take on current Active Rock music and the Rock format overall?
You know – being on the outside has been GREAT at bringing perspective. Everyone who knows me knows that I BLEED Rock and Metal! I believe in this format and I know it will continue to thrive and grow. Here is what WE ALL need. We NEED to elevate the next wave of bands and we NEED a few different flavors. It is GREAT that we have our bedrock bands like Metallica, Shinedown, Slipknot, Five Finger, Volbeat etc but what we need is to raise up the next wave and the wave after that. There are some amazing bands out there but if we don’t do more as an industry to grow them then we will run into a real issue when the big guns start to age out. There is plenty of good music out there but I also feel that we SHOULD be in a very passionate vibrant time right now. The current political environment SHOULD be giving us a wave of passionate music not unlike the 60’s but we aren’t – I have to admit that disappoints me. Also, I like that there are a wave of bands that are obviously inspired by the early days of Rock succeeding right now so maybe we get a combo of them and the heavier aggressive unique bands that are kicking ass and make for an exciting new wave of bands.
8. Give us some Rock artists and songs that you’re digging right now and why?
OK – understand – while I was on the outside I was still getting all the emails but I will freely admit I was focusing on mostly familiar territory. So, that being said, the stuff I want to talk about is a little all over the map but that is ok! The new Trivium album is AMAZING! They push themselves EVERY album and this is one of their BEST! We just added the Ayron Jones and I love that – just a great ROCK feel and he seems to be very much the real deal! I am quickly spending time with a LOT of these new bands and there is some great stuff out there like the Bad Omens and so much more. I Prevail are always amazing and always pushing themselves. Sevendust! I am so excited for the new album and of course the Corey Taylor solo album is gonna be amazing. Some bands NOT at radio? Code Orange on Roadrunner are great but are not there yet and Poppy on Sumerian is something to watch for.
9. 2020 has certainly been a challenging year for all of us. How is working during Covid-19 impacting the job you’re doing now?
I jumped right into a work from home scenario which is (oddly) actually the OPPOSITE of what I was just doing, I was actually GOING to work. I am enjoying this as I get to get up, have some coffee, throw on some shorts and get right to work. I get to see my kids more than I was which is amazing! I like everyone seriously miss going to shows and I really want to do in studio stuff but that will come soon, just not soon enough. So – I roll with stuff and anyone who knows me knows I always like to look on the bright side of things so I am all about the work from home but PLEASE everyone social distance and be safe and wear a mask – if we do this PROPERLY we can re-open!
10. Finally, on a lighter note, what do you like to do for fun and relaxation when you’re not in your “work” mode?
You know – I love to read and Covid has been great for that – I blasted through a TON of books but here is the thing. I missed THIS – so I am having so much fun right now. When I shut it down at the end of the day I have dinner with my family, read some books, watch some movies and try and figure out how I can get my cat to be as famous as Lou’s dog!
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