10 Questions with ... Gary Jay

NAME:Gary Jay TITLE:Founder COMPANY:Land Shark Promotion Studio FORMATS:Rock LOCATION:Brooklyn, NY BORN:Philadelphia, PA RAISED:Philadelphia, PA

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

Career Path since 1991 includes time served at: TVT Records, Rykodisc and AIM Marketing.

1. What made you want to get into the music business? Early mentors? First job?

My early mentor was the late, great Paul Yeskel. Bless his soul, he gave me my first job in the business at AIM Marketing, and taught me ton about radio and promotion. I worked alongside some other total promo rock stars there, such as Rob Tarantino and Joanne Grand, (for the first time!) ... I like to think that he'd be proud of Land Shark; it's certainly cut not too far from the cloth of AIM.

I also draw a massive amount of inspiration from the people I work with on a daily basis here at Land Shark; they keep me on point just trying to compete with them! John Perrone, Matt Martino and Joanne Grand (who I'm working with for the third time now!) are quite frankly, the best there is, as far as I'm concerned ... and they inspire and motivate me every day with their energy, passion and the clarity of their vision. They are each top-shelf promotion people and I'm very, very blessed to be the quarterback on this team and to be surrounded by such superstar talent

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?

For us, setting a record up is essential ... once in a while, it's unavoidable that something gets leaked, or a band gets a too-good-to-pass-up immediate opportunity, and the process is pushed forward. Ideally, though, records will get ample time to find a champion or three ... start to build a base on specialty shows, on college and Metal radio, and the band will tour, tour, tour and then tour some more ... all before we're asking radio to even consider adding a single, but again, it doesn't always work out that way.

3. 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?

The music business, as a collective, got caught up in the Hollywood mentality of having a "HUGE OPENING WEEK!"... and if not, well.... There's a ton of records that didn't come out of the chute strong, and as a result never got the opportunity to develop and thrive. While it's certainly nice to start strong, that kind of short-term thinking feeds a quick-in-and-out mentality towards records and bands. Music isn't and shouldn't be, "disposable." It's the very lifeblood that's coursing through the veins of our entire industry.

I believe in a slow, steady climb ... not hype ... building legitimate stories, gauging real reaction, true artist development ... that stuff takes a hot minute, but the payoff can be there, and while films can get a second life on DVD (Office Space or Donnie Darko, for example, weren't huge box office successes, but found a niche as cult films on DVD and late-night cable and are beloved by millions now), records -- if they don't hit right away -- well, that's that. Led Zeppelin, Steely Dan, Queen, Black Sabbath, even Nickelback ... these legendary bands might've gotten dropped after a somewhat tepid response to their first albums. Lucky for us, and the tens of millions of rock fans around the globe, they didn't. I'd like to see more artists and songs get the opportunity to grow and develop properly, I think it'd behoove our business as whole.

4. Who do you consider the current tastemakers in the Rock world?

I don't know about "tastemakers" in 2009 ... there's much less of a sheep mentality than there used to be; radio's slowly evolved into its own sense of autonomy, save for things like Clear Channel "premium choice" programming, which is anything but...

There's still programmers whose ears I trust above others ... who I know listen to everything that comes in, and then still go out and seek out the next-big-thing on their own time. I f they tell me something's hot, something's worth looking into, I trust 'em ... programmers with a vision and the clarity to pursue that in their market.

Programmers like Lenny Diana, Ryan Patrick, Dave & Steve @ WIYY, Carl and Robyn @ the RAT, Skippy up in Fresno, the kids at KLBJ in Austin, Randy and Blake at WJJO, Curtis Kay @ WDHA, Kenny Vest @ WCPR, Troy at the Buzz in Nashville, some of the hot, new stations like WFXH and KCLB are finding a legitimate audience and a unique voice in their markets, and ... I'm certainly envious of markets where there's not just one, but TWO viable Rock stations to choose from, such as Seattle with KISW and KFNK, or Detroit with RIF and 89X.

New York City needs a passionate programmer (and a company with the chalupas to invest in) to sign on a FLAMETHROWER of an Active Rock station. While there's great guys like Eddie Trunk and Jonathan Clarke keeping the scene alive, and if the weather's just right, and you're very lucky, maybe you can pick up college radio powerhouse WSOU ... but, you can't tell me a kick-ass Active Rock station playing Metallica's "Ride The Lightning," Disturbed's "Stupify" and Pantera's "Walk" at say, 2p in the afternoon, and then showcasing best of the new, hard blood couldn't pull numbers and be fiscally-viable in the five boroughs on New York City -- I simply won't accept that.

5. Repetition breeds familiarity. How does your label increase exposure of your artists outside of traditional radio promotion?

I'd say 98% of what we do is the tried-and-true model of communicating with radio, spreading the story, building a brand. We do a few things, I wouldn't even call them non-traditional, to expose the music we work with to the masses, outside of radio. Each year we host a showcase in Austin during the South X Southwest Music Festival; last year BIGELF headlined the show for us ... those are fantastic opportunities for young bands to be seen by people who might not stumble upon them otherwise. We also press and distribute 10,000 CD samplers in Austin that week. Last year's disc featured music by everyone from Bring Me The Horizon and the Black Crowes, to New Found Glory and the Toadies, plus a smattering and brand-new bands getting into people's ears for more than likely the very first time.

We host similar showcases on the Jersey shore in May each year as part of the annual Seaside Music Festival, and in 2010 we're looking into expanding into similar festivals across the country. It's something that's fun for us, and allows us to keep our feet in the street, so to speak, and work with some really amazing up-and-coming talent.

6. 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?

I like to think that not too many of 'em really "get away"... the true hits certainly manage to find their way. There's been a few that I've scratched my head over ... to my ears, they were really viable records ... records that met much of radio's criteria, generated phones, had a significant sales base,but just didn't get enough traction to stick around, at least not for very long: ESCAPE THE FATE's "10 Miles Wide," BIGELF's "Money, It's Pure Evil," BRING ME THE HORIZON's "Chelsea Smile" and ATOM SMASH's "Sacrifice" are all records that certainly should've gotten more attention from radio that they did ... I believe they woulda performed very well for anyone willing to give 'em a real shot. Both Escape The Fate and Bring Me The Horizon have been very, very successful without radio ... imagine what would happen if a savvy programmer gave them a chance?

7. What is the strangest record you have ever worked?

The strangest record I ever worked? Well, there's certainly a few funny stories from back in the day with The Brian Jonestown Massacre ... anyone see the documentary DIG!?

I know when we first delivered CHICKENFOOT's "Oh Yeah" to radio, the chatter about this strange, new "supergroup" at first was a collective "huh?!" Now, 15,000 spins later, I'm flying to L.A. this weekend to present the band w/their Gold records.

We're about to embark on a strange one -- the latest single from the German panzer attack of RAMMSTEIN, called "Pussy" (or just "Puss", if you prefer). While it's not something I see stations necessarily playing in oh, say, morning drive, but if radio has the cojones to try it, it's gonna ring their phones off the hook and be their #1 most-requested song of the 4th quarter, I truly believe that.

8. What current-based Rock artist do you see having the ability and skills to stick around for several records in today's instant-gratification oriented society?

Certainly Five Finger Death Punch have the ability to write their own chapter in rock history. On the eve of the release of their sophomore album, the anticipation from both radio and retail is palpable. They are well on their way to becoming the next (Platinum) Pantera. With that said, I believe STEMM could very well become the next Five Finger Death Punch. They're a touring machine who simply live on the road; they make new fans night after night, sell merch, and craft the kind of powerful songs that inspire headbangers and have a touch of that anthemic feel, like you could hear them in being played in a sports stadium someday to amp the crowd up.

9. Are you finding that today's "baby" bands are getting a fair shot at radio and more importantly, are they being given the airplay they need to break through to the masses and be recognized?

Are "baby" bands getting a fair shot at radio today? No ... and yes. Bands in the "information age" need to do for themselves first and foremost. Radio isn't the driver that it used to be, and it doesn't need to be. The days of handing a record to radio and asking them to break a band are all but over. There's far too much static out there for radio to combat; you simply can't expect them to nurture and develop an artist who isn't already doing so for themselves.

If you're a working band in 2009, 2010 and beyond, you need to create your own head of steam: tour, build yourself a portfolio of publicity and press, both online and off. Find opportunities to get your music heard beyond radio's reach; there are so many ways to license your music today that didn't exist even 10 years ago: film, TV syncs, video games, retail parterships, ringtones, downloadable content for your PDA, your cell phone ... if you're putting all your eggs into radio's basket, you're asking them for too much and you're probably in for a rough ride. Conversely, if you can build familiarity with your music, develop your brand, and then address radio with those elements firmly in hand, you stand a far better chance at finding traction. Let's face it, who doesn't want to bet on a seasoned, wise, road-tested veteran over a green, naive, clueless rookie?

10. 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 CDs are a "must" to have with you? What five movies?

CDs:
Led Zeppelin - Houses Of The Holy
Black Sabbath - Mob Rules
Deep Purple - Made In Japan
Judas Priest - Screaming For Vengeance
Pink Floyd - Animals

MOVIES:
OVER THE EDGE
AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON
NIGHTHAWKS
SCANNERS
THEY LIVE