-
10 Questions with ... Drew Hauser
November 15, 2005
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. -
NAME:Drew HauserTITLE:National Director of PromotionCOMPANY:Wind-upFORMATS:Rock, PopLOCATION:New York, NYBORN:Cincinnati OHRAISED:Ohio and Massachusetts
RADIO CAREER OUTLINE:
Started out as an overnight DJ at WZRH "The Zephyr" in Slidell LA (New Orleans) in 1993 where I worked for just under a year before moving to the Big Apple. In New York I worked at AAM doing college radio promotion until 1996 when I was hired to do the same thing for Grass Records. Grass became Wind-up Records in 1997. At the same time I was promoted to Northeast Regional Promotions covering Portland ME to DC to Kansas City to Minneapolis.
1. What made you want to get into the music business? Early mentors? First job?
Well I was on track to having a career in finance until a stock broker guy I interned for one summer got convicted on numerous counts of securities fraud and landed himself some jail time. After learning that my photocopying assignments were the bedrock of his criminal activity I decided to shift my career path towards a more noble and upstanding industry; Music.
2. Too many records, too few slots. What data seems to be most important to you when jockeying for an open slot on a radio station and why? Ticket sales? Tour info? Prior success? Retail? Other stations?
All of it. If you have a story on each of those fronts then you're in good shape. We develop a lot of new artists each year and as the competition for radio and the public's attention increases, every little success is a story. Given the choice, I'd take album sales over tour info, but realistically you'll see one of those categories raise its hand and that's your starting point. You connect the dots from there.
3. It seems that set-up is more important now than ever. What do you do to inspire your staff for success in the field on a daily basis with the amount of material that recording companies are releasing in today's market place?
Well we're fortunate that our release schedule is very focused here. We constantly tweak our calendar and release schedule in order to avoid having our artists in competition with each other. We begin setting up records as soon as we have something to play for radio or if it's an established act, we start talking about it as soon as we have something pertinent to share about the forthcoming music. Our staff kicks ass and we inspire each other through our individual achievements and feats of strength.
4. Things are changing rapidly in our business. Were it up to you, what would you change in our "system" to give your bands a better shot?
Once a year every employee of our "system" should have to spend a week working in an industry that's completely foreign to them. This would remind us that our perspectives are based on total immersion in this business and that the average person is not caught up in the same minutia that we toil over. The purpose of this would be to (hopefully) get everyone stop over thinking everything.
5. Who do you consider the current tastemakers in the ROCK world?
Anyone who will champion a record they believe in without waiting for someone else to prove its worthiness for them is a tastemaker. So is Rob Colosi
6. It has become apparent that in this research driven time, records are taking much longer to "test". How do you go about making sure that your record will be given a fair shot?
It's tough. Light rotations can be nearly invisible so knowing familiarity scores is crucial. The best counter argument to a record that looks like it's under performing is that it's too unfamiliar to be judged. You also need to stay on top of dayparts and set your record up with the expectation that if it's played appropriately, strong test scores will develop.
7. Repetition breeds familiarity. How does your label increase exposure of your artists outside of traditional radio promotion?
Wind-up is very internet intensive so probably 2nd to radio airplay our artists receive the most exposure through our on line initiatives. We also do some TV advertising, video game & movie soundtracks.
8. Every Promotion person has a record close to their heart that for one reason or another never broke through, "The One That Got Away"... What is your "One that Got Away" and what did you learn from that record???
Teddy Pendergrass 'You And I'. It was "Classic Teddy P" and also the first record I ever worked. Teddy gave me my alias, 'Dru Howzah' and taught me that I had no right to be cutting my teeth in promotion working a Teddy P record to urban radio as a 24 year old punk.
9. What are the most important tools/resources you use to stay on top of the rock formats growth and constant daily changes?
BDS, Mediabase, Soundscan...All Access. An ongoing dialogue with radio is the best way to really know what's going on at the format but in addition to that I rely heavily on our regional staff for the most current lay of the land and I travel a lot and pay attention to what radio is doing between the songs.
10. Artist Development. The lost art of Artist Development. What do you do to ensure your artist is building a career as opposed to just breaking a song? And does it even matter anymore?
It absolutely matters and it's our positioner here at Wind-up, 'Developing Career Artists'. For example, we worked 2 Finger Eleven records where we focused on markets in which we saw signs of interest whether it was sales or research or sold out club shows. While the national picture never fully developed as we'd hoped, we persevered and built on our previous successes with each consecutive record and finally with the 3rd album, the band broke through with a huge single in 'One Thing'. That process of artist development for us involved strategic radio and retail marketing, touring, cultivating a relationship with the fans in each market and most importantly, tenacity.
Bonus Questions
You are the remaining survivor on a remote tropical island with no chance for rescue. You have a CD/DVD player with endless power. What five CD's are a "must" to have with you?
CD'S: Groove Armada 'Vertigo', Chet Baker 'Let's Get Lost', Replacements 'Tim', Allman Bros 'Live at Fillmore East' and The Sea and Cake 'The Biz'
-
-