Volume 1, Issue 3 |
| Big Billy Clark |
Every now and then we meet an entertainment professional whose work ethic and personality
explains their success. Big Billy Clark is one such professional. Despite his intimidating 6’5”
bodyguard frame, Billy is one of the nicest, most reputable executives in entertainment that we’ve
ever met. Not only is Billy a record industry executive who has worked at some of the industry’s
top record labels, he is also the co-founder of the successful music industry networking site,
Musicolio.com, as well as the manager of actress Keke Palmer (star of Nickelodeon’s hit TV show
‘True Jackson VP’).
I Am Entertainment Magazine sat down with Big Billy Clark at one of LA’s best kept secrets, The
Griddle Café on Sunset, and discussed music and film from the mind of an entertainment industry
veteran.
IAE: Please tell us where you’re from and what inspired you to get into entertainment?
BBC: I was born and raised in LA, and I’ve always been interested in entertainment. As a kid, I always thought I
would end being a dancer because I loved to dance. Unfortunately, I was too tall for that (laughs).
IAE: What was your first job in the entertainment business?
BBC: Well, when I got out of high school, I got an agent and began acting for about a year. Then when I was
19 years old I went to New York to visit a friend of mine who was working for Russell Simmons at the time.
While I was there, Russell offered me an internship at Def Jam Records and I started interning for Def Jam in
their LA office.
So my first job was the internship, which I drove an hour everyday to do, and wasn’t being paid. Needless to
say, my dad wasn’t too happy about it because I would ask him for gas money to get to and from Def Jam’s
office (laughs), but I was really passionate about it and I knew it was going to pay off. In order to make money
while I was interning, I worked the “grave yard shift” at an electronics store called, The Good Guys. I did that
for about 2 years and in hind sight I couldn’t even imagine doing that (laughs). When Russell sold his share of
Def Jam to Universal, the label became Island/Def Jam, and when that merger happened I was offered an
assistant position. I worked my way up from assistant to coordinator, and eventually I was running the West
Coast Office and doing the A&R for all the artists. It was a blast and I had a lot of fun.
IAE: As a record exec, what artists did you help become successful?
BBC: When I was at Def Jam I worked with every artist on the label. The West Coast office was really small and
we had about 6 people in the office and because of that every artist that would come from New York we had to
deal with. We’d go to radio stations and do all the runs together. I worked with DMX, Jay Z, Ja Rule, Method
Man, Redman, Ashanti, Sisqo, Keith Murray, LL Cool J, Foxy Brown, Christina Milian, FeFe Dobson. When it
became Island/Def Jam I started working with all the rock bands like Sum 41, Bon Jovi, Hoobastank, and so on.
IAE: As a talent manager, what are the differences between managing in music versus film?
BBC: Different but similar. It’s really the same thing because, as a manager you have to use your expertise to
make sure you always get the best situation possible for your talent. As a manager I get called all hours of the
night for everything from my clients’ dog being sick, to something more career related. You name it, I get a call
about it (laughs). As a manager you have to create the team, you make sure the agents and attorneys are
right for the artist or actor. The agents find the jobs and the attorneys negotiate the deals, so you have to
make sure it all makes sense and each person on the team knows what they are doing.
IAE: As an entertainment entrepreneur, tell us about some of the projects/ventures you are
working on?
BBC: Something I’m very excited about is a new website my partners and I launched in February called
‘Musicolio’ (www.Musicolio.com). As a music executive I feel like there are certain things the music industry is
missing as a result of the labels downsizing, folding, or merging. There are a lot of amazing artists whose
dreams haven’t died just because a label can’t or won’t sign them. A label doesn’t validate you as an artist,
and there’s literally an entire world of people on the internet who haven’t heard your music yet, which is
something artists have to understand. So I created the site for that purpose. Musicolio is like a social
networking site just for people who are serious about the music business. This site allows you to connect,
collaborate, find talent or work opportunities. In the current economy it’s hard to find jobs, and since a lot of
labels are cutting back their operations there are a lot of out-of-work Talent Executives. So my goal with
Musicolio is to create an environment where these out-of-work executives can all get together with the
unsigned artists and rebuild the music business. This site is perfect for people who are searching for a
producer, songwriter, harp player, photographer, or whatever, there is always somebody looking for you. You
have to let people know that you are out there and this site will house all of this. You can upload your music,
video, and list your experience so that people can hire you for gigs.
Most recently, multi-platinum, Grammy Award Winning Producer/Songwriter, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds,
posted on the site that he is looking for new artists for his label which is backed by Island/Def Jam.
IAE: What are the Top 3 mistakes that most up-and-coming talent make when approaching you for
management or help with starting their career?
BBC: Mistake #1 – Not understanding the politics of the entertainment business. All they know is that they want
to be successful and be seen on TV, or heard on the radio. Since they don’t know how to make that happen,
they come to me explaining how they are the hottest thing in the market, and then I ask them what have they
done and they don’t even have some sort of demo tape or reel to backup their claims. To me, it just shows
they’re unprepared and not serious about their particular craft. When you approach a film or music executive,
or a professional talent manager, please make sure you have your stuff together. If you don’t present yourself
properly, how am I supposed to take you seriously? They want what they see on TV but they aren’t serious
about it, and in most cases they want a hand out.
Mistake #2 - When an artist or actor reaches some level of successful and finally makes a little bit of money
from their work; most of them blow it (money) on frivolous things. For any artist out there reading this, I’d like
you to understand that when you get signed to a record label you haven’t made it yet, that’s actually when all
the work begins. So save your money and be smart.
Mistake #3 – When artists begin pursuing their career, they tend to listen take everyone’s advice and opinions
to heart. This only causes them (artists) to over-analyze things. For example, if the artist has a manager, but
after hanging with someone else in the business for a month the artist is told that their manager should be
doing this or that, the artist just drops the manager without evaluating the whole situation first. The worst kind
of artist is one who has no loyalty. I understand if you’ve been with a manager for a year and you haven’t
made any progress, but people today seem to just jump to what they think is the next best thing, which only
brings them back to the manager apologizing. By that point it’s too late because the artist has shown that
he/she isn’t trustworthy. This happens all the time. So I tell artists to do their research and know who they’re
dealing with before making any hasty decisions. This industry is very small so if you hop from one manager to
another, most likely we all know each other and eventually no one will work with you.
IAE: If you could change one thing about the film business, what would it be and why?
BBC: I wish it wasn’t so political. It should be based on talent as opposed to politics. That’s not the way it’s
supposed to be. Hire or sign someone because they are talented, not because you may get a piece of the
deal. It’s unfortunate, but this industry is too dirty and political sometimes.
explains their success. Big Billy Clark is one such professional. Despite his intimidating 6’5”
bodyguard frame, Billy is one of the nicest, most reputable executives in entertainment that we’ve
ever met. Not only is Billy a record industry executive who has worked at some of the industry’s
top record labels, he is also the co-founder of the successful music industry networking site,
Musicolio.com, as well as the manager of actress Keke Palmer (star of Nickelodeon’s hit TV show
‘True Jackson VP’).
I Am Entertainment Magazine sat down with Big Billy Clark at one of LA’s best kept secrets, The
Griddle Café on Sunset, and discussed music and film from the mind of an entertainment industry
veteran.
IAE: Please tell us where you’re from and what inspired you to get into entertainment?
BBC: I was born and raised in LA, and I’ve always been interested in entertainment. As a kid, I always thought I
would end being a dancer because I loved to dance. Unfortunately, I was too tall for that (laughs).
IAE: What was your first job in the entertainment business?
BBC: Well, when I got out of high school, I got an agent and began acting for about a year. Then when I was
19 years old I went to New York to visit a friend of mine who was working for Russell Simmons at the time.
While I was there, Russell offered me an internship at Def Jam Records and I started interning for Def Jam in
their LA office.
So my first job was the internship, which I drove an hour everyday to do, and wasn’t being paid. Needless to
say, my dad wasn’t too happy about it because I would ask him for gas money to get to and from Def Jam’s
office (laughs), but I was really passionate about it and I knew it was going to pay off. In order to make money
while I was interning, I worked the “grave yard shift” at an electronics store called, The Good Guys. I did that
for about 2 years and in hind sight I couldn’t even imagine doing that (laughs). When Russell sold his share of
Def Jam to Universal, the label became Island/Def Jam, and when that merger happened I was offered an
assistant position. I worked my way up from assistant to coordinator, and eventually I was running the West
Coast Office and doing the A&R for all the artists. It was a blast and I had a lot of fun.
IAE: As a record exec, what artists did you help become successful?
BBC: When I was at Def Jam I worked with every artist on the label. The West Coast office was really small and
we had about 6 people in the office and because of that every artist that would come from New York we had to
deal with. We’d go to radio stations and do all the runs together. I worked with DMX, Jay Z, Ja Rule, Method
Man, Redman, Ashanti, Sisqo, Keith Murray, LL Cool J, Foxy Brown, Christina Milian, FeFe Dobson. When it
became Island/Def Jam I started working with all the rock bands like Sum 41, Bon Jovi, Hoobastank, and so on.
IAE: As a talent manager, what are the differences between managing in music versus film?
BBC: Different but similar. It’s really the same thing because, as a manager you have to use your expertise to
make sure you always get the best situation possible for your talent. As a manager I get called all hours of the
night for everything from my clients’ dog being sick, to something more career related. You name it, I get a call
about it (laughs). As a manager you have to create the team, you make sure the agents and attorneys are
right for the artist or actor. The agents find the jobs and the attorneys negotiate the deals, so you have to
make sure it all makes sense and each person on the team knows what they are doing.
IAE: As an entertainment entrepreneur, tell us about some of the projects/ventures you are
working on?
BBC: Something I’m very excited about is a new website my partners and I launched in February called
‘Musicolio’ (www.Musicolio.com). As a music executive I feel like there are certain things the music industry is
missing as a result of the labels downsizing, folding, or merging. There are a lot of amazing artists whose
dreams haven’t died just because a label can’t or won’t sign them. A label doesn’t validate you as an artist,
and there’s literally an entire world of people on the internet who haven’t heard your music yet, which is
something artists have to understand. So I created the site for that purpose. Musicolio is like a social
networking site just for people who are serious about the music business. This site allows you to connect,
collaborate, find talent or work opportunities. In the current economy it’s hard to find jobs, and since a lot of
labels are cutting back their operations there are a lot of out-of-work Talent Executives. So my goal with
Musicolio is to create an environment where these out-of-work executives can all get together with the
unsigned artists and rebuild the music business. This site is perfect for people who are searching for a
producer, songwriter, harp player, photographer, or whatever, there is always somebody looking for you. You
have to let people know that you are out there and this site will house all of this. You can upload your music,
video, and list your experience so that people can hire you for gigs.
Most recently, multi-platinum, Grammy Award Winning Producer/Songwriter, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds,
posted on the site that he is looking for new artists for his label which is backed by Island/Def Jam.
IAE: What are the Top 3 mistakes that most up-and-coming talent make when approaching you for
management or help with starting their career?
BBC: Mistake #1 – Not understanding the politics of the entertainment business. All they know is that they want
to be successful and be seen on TV, or heard on the radio. Since they don’t know how to make that happen,
they come to me explaining how they are the hottest thing in the market, and then I ask them what have they
done and they don’t even have some sort of demo tape or reel to backup their claims. To me, it just shows
they’re unprepared and not serious about their particular craft. When you approach a film or music executive,
or a professional talent manager, please make sure you have your stuff together. If you don’t present yourself
properly, how am I supposed to take you seriously? They want what they see on TV but they aren’t serious
about it, and in most cases they want a hand out.
Mistake #2 - When an artist or actor reaches some level of successful and finally makes a little bit of money
from their work; most of them blow it (money) on frivolous things. For any artist out there reading this, I’d like
you to understand that when you get signed to a record label you haven’t made it yet, that’s actually when all
the work begins. So save your money and be smart.
Mistake #3 – When artists begin pursuing their career, they tend to listen take everyone’s advice and opinions
to heart. This only causes them (artists) to over-analyze things. For example, if the artist has a manager, but
after hanging with someone else in the business for a month the artist is told that their manager should be
doing this or that, the artist just drops the manager without evaluating the whole situation first. The worst kind
of artist is one who has no loyalty. I understand if you’ve been with a manager for a year and you haven’t
made any progress, but people today seem to just jump to what they think is the next best thing, which only
brings them back to the manager apologizing. By that point it’s too late because the artist has shown that
he/she isn’t trustworthy. This happens all the time. So I tell artists to do their research and know who they’re
dealing with before making any hasty decisions. This industry is very small so if you hop from one manager to
another, most likely we all know each other and eventually no one will work with you.
IAE: If you could change one thing about the film business, what would it be and why?
BBC: I wish it wasn’t so political. It should be based on talent as opposed to politics. That’s not the way it’s
supposed to be. Hire or sign someone because they are talented, not because you may get a piece of the
deal. It’s unfortunate, but this industry is too dirty and political sometimes.
| Big Billy Clark, Record Exec./Talent Manager/Entrepreneur |
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