Alex Brees shares his journey from studying physiology to embracing sales and marketing in tech before diving into the music industry. Alex discusses his transition from working in asset management to becoming deeply involved in data analysis for marketing decisions in tech, and eventually the music industry. His insights highlight the importance of data in crafting effective marketing strategies and his personal growth from sales through analytics and into tech and music.

Nancy Lu is a seasoned publicist & founder of the New York based PR firm, Fancy PR. She discusses her unconventional journey from healthcare and tech into the music industry. Nancy shares insights into the evolving role of PR, emphasizing its shift towards being a content facilitator amidst the fragmented media landscape. She highlights the importance of personal connections with artists and the creative challenges of navigating the music PR world, stressing the need for diversity and accessibility in the industry.

Emily White is a best-selling author and award-winning podcaster. She shares her journey from Wisconsin to New York, highlighting the significance of her education and internships in shaping her music industry career. She discusses the practical experiences gained through various internships, emphasizing the importance of building a network and learning on the job. Emily also talks about her work as a music manager, author, and advocate, providing valuable insights for aspiring music professionals.

Roman Rappak is not only the Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer (CCO) at Ristband but is also an active, touring musician. Rappak's talks about his journey from being a touring musician to co-founding Ristband, a company that merges music with gaming, AI, and VR technologies. He discussed the challenges faced by musicians in the evolving music industry and how Ristband aims to create new revenue streams by integrating music into the gaming world. Additionally, Rappak emphasizes the importance of artists embracing new technologies and exploring innovative ways to connect with audiences and sustain their careers.

Brian “Z” Zisook is the Co-Founder & SVP of Operations & Artist Services at Audiomack. This conversation goes deep into how to operate as an up-and-coming creator/artist/musician. There are many tools out there to help you succeed. Brian has years of experience mentoring thousands of artists and his advice is top-drawer. His first piece of advice: Always come off as organized.

Simon Pursehouse is the Global Director of Music Services at Sentric Music, an “industry challenging” music publisher. Simon has been an integral part of Sentric since the company’s infancy. He oversaw the signing of Sentric’s first artist in 2006 and today they work with a community of over 400,000 songwriters. Simon’s number one priority is that artists get the most out of their publishing. He has been featured in Music Week's ‘30 Under 30’ list and regularly speaks at music conferences around the world.

Lara Baker is the General Manager at FUGA for the UK and Ireland. Named in Billboard's International Power Players in 2022, Lara’s passions lie in improving diversity, gender balance and inclusivity in the music business. Lara talks about making her way into the music ecosystem from a showbiz family and Music Business school. Most recently she joined FUGA, before that she was with the music publisher, Songtrust as Director of Business Development. This episode looks at the music ecosystem from many angles, including Lara's attempts to even out the scales when it came to representation.

Daniel Seligman is the Creative Director and Co-Founder of POP Montreal and the Founder of Danagement Artist Management. Daniel talks about how he made his way into the music business with no strategy and how Pop Montreal grew out of a very fertile music scene at the beginning of the 2000s. Marc and Daniel also get into "the hustle". Festival showcases can only help artists so much. Artists also need to know what their goals are and how to help themselves. As an artist manager, Daniel offers tips on sustaining a career in music, be it as a musician or on the industry side, plus a whole lot more...

Andee Connors is Pandora’s Senior Manager of Catalog & Creator Services, but he approaches his job with a storied history as a touring Black Metal musician firmly rooted in the DIY ethos. A working drummer, musician, artist, DJ, music curator, photographer, former record store owner, and former record label owner. At Pandora, Andee is also the head of Metal & Punk programming as well as programming experimental and new-age music.

Our Guest is May Mahmoudi who does A&R for Ninja Tune’s Big Dada Records and works on the publishing side as well. This conversation is a great introduction to how artists are able to get signed to publishing deals and label deals, big and small. This is your best first step for getting a better perspective on how the music ecosystem works for artists and what they have to keep in mind when talking to publishers and labels.

Obinna Agwu is the newly appointed A&R Executive at Horus Music Nigeria, an office opened in 2021, he is their third hire. Nigeria is quickly becoming one of Africa’s top music-producing countries in Africa, with the help of superstar Burma Boy’s popularity. There is much more to Nigerian music than Afrobeat, but the growing popularity of this genre of music has helped that country a great deal. This episode digs into the Nigerian music scene with lessons that pertain to every creator and their team.

Mike Warner is an independent artist, educator, author, speaker, music executive, curator and the go-to person when it comes to playlist strategies on music streaming services. He also works at Believe, USA. All of his experiences in the music ecosystem informed the writing of his acclaimed book, Work Hard Playlist Hard – The DIY playlist guide for Artists and Curators. Mike is also the Head.

Jason Grishkoff is the founder of SubmitHub. One of the key stages of getting your music heard and promoted outside of your own network is accessing the world’s music curators, but who are they? How can artists and creators access these curators and influencers themselves? This is what SubmitHub and Jason are expert in.

Our last #HowWeListen Live: In Conversation event of 2022 brings together a top-drawer panel. Hosted by Byta’s Marc Brown, they dissect the music ecosystem’s recent past and what the future looks like. They each suggest some tools and strategies that might help a musician move their career forward. Each of our guests weighs in on music discovery.

Kevin Erickson, Director of The Future of Music Coalition is our guest on this episode. Make sure you bookmark and reference what Kevin has to say for your journey through the music industry. Kevin works at the intersection of DIY music, community organizing, and policy. His experience spans the full range of the music industry, from playing in a band, and managing a community radio station to live show booking, PR and even running a record store. He knows music, has years of experience and has developed a new strategy: no longer Do It Yourself(DIY), but Do It Together(DITO)! This episode covers all of this, plus Marc and Kevin talk puppets.

Saidah Blount is a New York City-based brand and marketing executive known for focusing on music culture. A Senior Manager and the Executive Producer at SONOS radio. She has helped to establish and develop new sonic and cultural platforms for the company, positioning the company as an emerging leader in the music and content space. Saidah was also recently promoted to be SONOS’ Primary Impact Storyteller. A title she is still figuring out but is super excited to dig into. In the past, Saidah has worked with several innovative and influential media outlets and brands. Notalbly NPR Music, The Fader, Adidas, Punchdrunk, Spotify, and Topshop. How does a radio and music fan go from mid-west America to curating SONOS Radio in New York City? Marc and Saidah follow the path to the big apple.

Kevin Breuner, Senior VP of Engagement and Education at CD Baby is our guest on this episode. Previously VP of Marketing at CD Baby, Kevin’s new role reinforces what CD Baby is all about: making sure musicians are as prepared as possible when planning to release their music into the world. At the end of August, CD Baby hosted their DIY Musician Conference in Austin, Texas. Kevin created the DIY Musician brand, which has become the cornerstone of CD Baby’s strategy.

Senior VP Creative at Kobalt Music Publishing, Miller Williams is our guest on this episode. Miller has been in the music business for a long time and made his way from publishing to record labels and then back to publishing. Miller traces his journey through the music ecosystem and talks about where to start when it comes to getting a synch license for your songs. Plus a little insight into writing for K-Pop & J-Pop.

Head of TuneCore, West & East Africa, Chioma Onuchukwu is our guest on this episode. What is happening on the continent of Africa when it comes to music? Is music from Africa exporting to other continents and territories more effectively these days? We get a great many thoughts and ideas about music and Africa. There is talk about Amapiano, Highlife and Afrobeats & the 4 Ps of marketing.

This episode digs into the Art of Booking Tours & Artist Management with Michelle Cable from Panache Booking & Panache Management. After putting everything on hold for 24 months, “live” has never been more important. What does the future hold?