Volume 1, Issue 2 |
Many recording artists see the record label A&R as the gatekeeper to their destiny. If the A&R is the
gatekeeper, Kevin Shine, is the gatekeeper’s boss.
Kevin went from teaching Music Business at Columbia College in Chicago, to working with A-list stars at Jive
Records, and developing his own crew of songwriters. IAE sat down with Kevin and learned Music Business 101.
IAE: Where are you from and how did you get started in the music business?
KS: I’m from Chicago, Illinois. As for me getting into the business, I sort of stumbled into it. A friend of mine
called me into a rehearsal to critique a performance when I was a student at Columbia College in Chicago,
because I was one of the top directing students there. So I gave my feedback and reworked their stage show
and within less than a week, I got called to go on tour with an unsigned artist who was opening up for some
major artists. As a result of that, it helped me meet people, which eventually led to me getting a job doing street
promotions at A&M Records with a guy named Carl Washington. Actually one of my first projects was Janet
Jackson’s “Rhythm Nation” album. So that’s how I got started in the business.
IAE: How did you end up teaching Music Business at Columbia College in Chicago?
KS: One of the students at Columbia College came to me and asked if I could help the Columbia Urban Music
Association (CUMA) put a music conference together. At the time I was traveling as a record label consultant,
so when I came on board and helped them rewrite their business plan and we ended up raising about $4500 to
put on the conference. We ended up having like 7 VPs of different companies join the panel. So CUMA grew
from literally less than 10 students, to over 100 students after that. That led to the city of Chicago giving me a
program called METI, which stood for Music Entertainment Training Institute, and from there Columbia College
offered me a job teaching a class that they made up for me called, “Developing Record Deal Strategies.” During
that time I had helped an artist get signed to Mike Tyson’s label, as well as doing some lecturing at NYU about
Contract Negotiations. So that’s how teaching happened.
IAE: How important is it for people to know the business before they get into it?
KS: It’s very important because, early on I made a lot of bad decisions because I made a lot of choices based
on my emotions. So I was combative and arguing with people when they didn’t agree with me, instead of just
accepting that I needed to learn this business. I think a lot of people do that to this day, they make a lot of their
decisions based on emotions, instead of just educating themselves about the game so they can be successful.
I have this analogy I like to use when I do music seminars to show how people just want to get in the game, they
don’t wanna learn the fundamentals. That analogy is this; if I put a lawyer and an accountant in one room and
call it the “Money Making Seminar,” where we’re going to teach people how to make a living in the business, but
then I put Usher in the room next door to sign show off his new line of cologne, regardless of whether or not
they even meet Usher, everyone will choose to see Usher over learning to make their own living. Which just
proves that people would rather get into it without knowing what the business is about.
IAE: We hear a lot of people call the music business, the “game,” what does that mean?
KS: The game part is totally different from the business aspect of music. A lot of people don’t understand that in
order to be successful at the business you have to know the game. A couple of friends, Gerald Thompson and
Tony Calloway, told me I better learn the business. So after I got the business figured out, I thought I knew it all
then. But I quickly learned that you don’t have to know anything about the business to make it. You have to
know the game, you have to know people and how to conversate with them properly. The game is set up to
weed people out, and if you’re not built for it, you won’t make it. You can look around and see examples of it
everyday if you read Yahoo or other media sources.
IAE: You’ve done a lot of things in this business, what are some of the most valuable lessons you’ve
learned about the game part of music?
KS: Because I’m from Chicago, I learned the game from the streets of my home city. The game is knowing who
the players are and who’s controlling things so you can work your way in. I always tell people there are three
rules of breaking you in this game.
[1] Divide and conquer - if they can use money, girls, or whatever else to pit your camp against you, from the
bottom up, they can take you down.
[2] Sabotage - if they can befriend you and those around you, then start talking in everyone’s ears so you all
are at odds with one another, they can sabotage you.
[3] Buy you out or find a way to pull you away financially so that it’s impossible for you to make it.
I’ve been through all of three situations. But when you get caught up in that, you forget that you’re supposed to
be finding a way to make some money to feed yourself (laughs).
IAE: How do you find hot new talent?
KS: It depends. A lot of times, I find people when I’m not really looking. But I also have a team of writers that I
manage and they’re getting work. Actually one of my writers, Carla, is on the hook on one of Ludacris new
singles. So the unfair part for artists is that, when I’m listening to them, it’s from a stand point that if you come to
me and your music isn’t better than what my writers are doing then I’m probably not going to be interested in
you.
gatekeeper, Kevin Shine, is the gatekeeper’s boss.
Kevin went from teaching Music Business at Columbia College in Chicago, to working with A-list stars at Jive
Records, and developing his own crew of songwriters. IAE sat down with Kevin and learned Music Business 101.
IAE: Where are you from and how did you get started in the music business?
KS: I’m from Chicago, Illinois. As for me getting into the business, I sort of stumbled into it. A friend of mine
called me into a rehearsal to critique a performance when I was a student at Columbia College in Chicago,
because I was one of the top directing students there. So I gave my feedback and reworked their stage show
and within less than a week, I got called to go on tour with an unsigned artist who was opening up for some
major artists. As a result of that, it helped me meet people, which eventually led to me getting a job doing street
promotions at A&M Records with a guy named Carl Washington. Actually one of my first projects was Janet
Jackson’s “Rhythm Nation” album. So that’s how I got started in the business.
IAE: How did you end up teaching Music Business at Columbia College in Chicago?
KS: One of the students at Columbia College came to me and asked if I could help the Columbia Urban Music
Association (CUMA) put a music conference together. At the time I was traveling as a record label consultant,
so when I came on board and helped them rewrite their business plan and we ended up raising about $4500 to
put on the conference. We ended up having like 7 VPs of different companies join the panel. So CUMA grew
from literally less than 10 students, to over 100 students after that. That led to the city of Chicago giving me a
program called METI, which stood for Music Entertainment Training Institute, and from there Columbia College
offered me a job teaching a class that they made up for me called, “Developing Record Deal Strategies.” During
that time I had helped an artist get signed to Mike Tyson’s label, as well as doing some lecturing at NYU about
Contract Negotiations. So that’s how teaching happened.
IAE: How important is it for people to know the business before they get into it?
KS: It’s very important because, early on I made a lot of bad decisions because I made a lot of choices based
on my emotions. So I was combative and arguing with people when they didn’t agree with me, instead of just
accepting that I needed to learn this business. I think a lot of people do that to this day, they make a lot of their
decisions based on emotions, instead of just educating themselves about the game so they can be successful.
I have this analogy I like to use when I do music seminars to show how people just want to get in the game, they
don’t wanna learn the fundamentals. That analogy is this; if I put a lawyer and an accountant in one room and
call it the “Money Making Seminar,” where we’re going to teach people how to make a living in the business, but
then I put Usher in the room next door to sign show off his new line of cologne, regardless of whether or not
they even meet Usher, everyone will choose to see Usher over learning to make their own living. Which just
proves that people would rather get into it without knowing what the business is about.
IAE: We hear a lot of people call the music business, the “game,” what does that mean?
KS: The game part is totally different from the business aspect of music. A lot of people don’t understand that in
order to be successful at the business you have to know the game. A couple of friends, Gerald Thompson and
Tony Calloway, told me I better learn the business. So after I got the business figured out, I thought I knew it all
then. But I quickly learned that you don’t have to know anything about the business to make it. You have to
know the game, you have to know people and how to conversate with them properly. The game is set up to
weed people out, and if you’re not built for it, you won’t make it. You can look around and see examples of it
everyday if you read Yahoo or other media sources.
IAE: You’ve done a lot of things in this business, what are some of the most valuable lessons you’ve
learned about the game part of music?
KS: Because I’m from Chicago, I learned the game from the streets of my home city. The game is knowing who
the players are and who’s controlling things so you can work your way in. I always tell people there are three
rules of breaking you in this game.
[1] Divide and conquer - if they can use money, girls, or whatever else to pit your camp against you, from the
bottom up, they can take you down.
[2] Sabotage - if they can befriend you and those around you, then start talking in everyone’s ears so you all
are at odds with one another, they can sabotage you.
[3] Buy you out or find a way to pull you away financially so that it’s impossible for you to make it.
I’ve been through all of three situations. But when you get caught up in that, you forget that you’re supposed to
be finding a way to make some money to feed yourself (laughs).
IAE: How do you find hot new talent?
KS: It depends. A lot of times, I find people when I’m not really looking. But I also have a team of writers that I
manage and they’re getting work. Actually one of my writers, Carla, is on the hook on one of Ludacris new
singles. So the unfair part for artists is that, when I’m listening to them, it’s from a stand point that if you come to
me and your music isn’t better than what my writers are doing then I’m probably not going to be interested in
you.
| Kevin Shine - Jive Records A&R |
The former college professor who has made a name for himself in the music
business
business
| Kevin Shine |
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