In an attempt to follow my dream of working in the music industry, I applied for an A&R internship at an artist development and talent management agency in Atlanta during the summer of 2012. I found the opportunity by googling A&R/music industry internships and submitted my resume to a site that I cannot remember. I received a response within a week and was scheduled for a Skype interview. My interviewer was an experienced studio engineer who would also be my supervisor if I scored the position. After about 30 minutes of me rambling and giving no conclusive responses to his interview questions, he offered me the position. I was surprised because I didn’t believe I interviewed well that day. Maybe I was more convincing than I thought.
He immediately scheduled a date for me to come into the “office” to meet the rest of the team that I would be working with. There were three other interns, and two Agency managers. I didn’t feel welcomed when I first met the group. I will admit that I am extremely shy and I didn’t speak much, but something about my introduction felt awkward. However; I didn’t expect this to be the beginning of a short lived, but disappointing experience.
"If it Ain't About the Money"
The first event I attended was my first warning that I was wasting my time. The agency had planned a music contest where artist would pay around $100 to perform. Whichever artist or music group won the contest would receive a year of free talent development services from the agency. To start, I was shocked when I arrived at the event location. It was held in the basement of a corner store located in one of the roughest/rundown areas of Atlanta. There was sketchy activity around the venue and I didn’t feel comfortable. It was not a place to bring potential clients. I remember calling a friend and complaining for about 20 minutes before making the decision to head into the event. When I walked in, the two ladies in charge of the agency seemed shocked that I had arrived. I could have sworn they, along with my supervisor, invited me to the event to get a good idea of what the company does. After they led me to be seated, I waited for quite some time until my supervisor found me. He and I chatted for about 20 minutes until the show started.
The show was horrible. Half of the performers already had contracts with the agency and the others were random, local, artist desperate for a breakthrough. The event did not seem professional or promising. I left the event before it ended. At the next staff meeting, I learned that the winner of the contest was an artist that was already signed with the agency. Really??!!??
Shady Event
A few weeks into my internship, the agency told us and the artist they currently signed, that the company would be performing at a local night club the same night of a notable celebrity. This would be a great show to perform as there would likely be well connected music professionals attending the event. I had previously attended this nightclub on other occasions and never found this to be true, but I trusted their plans and assumed that the night of their event would be different. Unfortunately, I was disappointed again. The headline celebrity was definitely scheduled to perform however; the event was a regular club night. When we arrived to the venue, we learned that the management had planned for the agency’s artist to perform outside, in the backyard, of the club. (No one really heads back there unless they want to smoke or get a breath of fresh air). When we arrived, the outside stage wasn’t even set up for the performers. All of the artist were angry and began to feel less confident in the management that they paid for. The Agency owners acted as if they had no idea of what happened and that they were scammed by the club. I didn’t understand how they did not know the details of the event before we arrived. Why didn’t they come to the club days before to do a walkthrough? I know that club promoters often lie to make money, but I didn’t believe that was the case for this situation.
The agency leaders argued with the club management majority of the night and couldn’t provide a proper solution or explanation to the artists. Most of the artist left shortly before the headliner performed. The agency leaders were able to talk the club management into letting their main artist perform for a few minutes, but by that time, much of the audience was headed out the door and the club was closing. Other striving artists that were not affiliated with the agency also signed up to perform for five minutes at the same time. It turned out that what the agency had signed the artist up for was an event that anyone could have signed up for on their own for a small fee. The night ended up being a complete waste of everyone’s time.
It’s not THAT serious....
The company leaders pitched ideas that they never acted on. During one session, they talked about trying to get the agency on a reality show. To show initiation, I went home to research reality film production companies in Atlanta that we could later contact. After showing them my research, the agency leaders completely ignored me and acted as if they weren’t serious about the idea. I remember another occasion when I found a local rap artist to sign to the agency. (This meant more money for the agency) The two women completely dismissed my effort and began explaining to the team that they only wanted to sign rock artist because rock music makes more money. This came as a shock to everyone, and my supervisor began to question their decision. It seemed as if he was on a different page than them. I decided not to do anymore work for them and I realized that they weren’t serious and didn’t know anything about the music industry.
No to mention, that majority of scheduled meetings were canceled, I was never informed on meeting cancellations or updates with the agency, and my supervisor hardly ever attended company events.
The deal breaker was the second time that I arrived to the office for a weekly meeting only to find that no one was there. I texted one of the company leaders and learned from her that the meeting had been canceled. “Why didn’t anyone tell me?” I thought. By this time, I was over it and decided that I would no longer be treated with such disrespect. Two days later, I called my supervisor and told him I was quitting. His tone seemed as if he was surprised, but not.
About a month later, the supervisor reached out to me. He told me that he was headed to New York to pitch the agency’s main artist to a record label and to conduct some other music business. It felt as if he was calling to make me regret my decision of leaving. I didn’t budge.
Months after that, I found that the company’s twitter page had no recent post since shortly after I quit. Their website disappeared and the company’s leading artist was never signed to a label. I finally realized that the company was set up to make quick money. I could have just had a bad experience or the agency could have been having a rough time getting off the ground. Unfortunately, nothing I witnessed made me feel as if an internship with them would be worth it.
I thought it would be helpful to share my experience for others hoping to break into the music industry. During the summer of 2012, I was introduced to one of many types of schemes and scams that prey on people’s dreams and willingness to achieve. It is very important that you do as much research on companies before you agree to devote time and energy to them. Here are some tips or things to look out for before committing to internships.
· Pay very close attention to everything and everyone around you. How serious are the staff? Do they really know about music or the music industry?
· What type of events does your company participate in or host? Are they well planned?
· What industry moguls are they affiliated with? If they don’t know anyone, this may very well be a red flag.
· Think about the actual projects or work you will perform for them. Are you comfortable with sharing them with the next employer?
· Are you certain that the leaders/managers of the organization are reliable references?
There is a difference between being put to the test, and being used as a prop for someone else’s personal gain. Whatever you choose to do, be sure that the time you invest would be worth it in the end.
-Jolly
