What lessons have you learned from 2021 that you will apply to 2022 and/or what processes and practices necessitated by the pandemic will continue even when the pandemic is (hopefully) over? (Remote work, use of Zoom enabling more people to be involved in the creative approval process, etc.)
By far I think the pandemic has allowed more members of the creative team to be part of the music discussion and process. Prior to the pandemic you might be speaking to the music producer and one producer. However, now when on a zoom, I often interact with the executive producer, the commercial director, the creative director, the art director, and the post house team. It’s often a packed house on zoom which makes it pretty cool to see the full squad that’s about to make the magic happen. Listening is always my first objective, allowing me to understand how the team thinks and what is important to them. Once I hear the room, my discourse is solution oriented. I love giving my impression while engaging in the team’s concerns.
How do new technologies, markets and platforms figure in your creative/business plans in 2022? For example, with NFTs gaining momentum, do you foresee related sound and music work resulting? Same for VR/AR? Will increased content spurred on by the emergence of additional streaming platforms open up music and sound opportunities for you? Any growth prospects in the advertising and/or entertainment industry?
I think emerging technologies can be huge and advance the Music Advertising/Sync space in new creative ways. These technologies can be very helpful in reinventing and expanding our industry. THE VR and NFT world is burgeoning and the value is surreptitiously rising. I believe this world will force creators to take their music to another level in order to keep up with the value of NFT’s. and better music is always a great thing.
How has your role–or that of your business or company–evolved in recent years? What do you like most about that evolution? What do you like least?
I think that because more people are engaging over zoom throughout the process, I’m developing a greater sense of who is listening to our submissions and from what perspective. When creating the music, I can recall the personality of the different comments and suggestions given so they don’t just read as bullet points. It all adds up to being someone who can solve problems and instead of viewing it as lots of cooks in the kitchen, I receive it like a great bowl of gumbo where I’m the Chef’k and I’m including all these great ideas from the zoom call into the music. I find that the interaction and mutual respect creates stronger individual relationships and builds more trust. Therefore, when team members switch agencies or start new companies, they know they can trust you to go around the world and back for them because the trust is there instantly. Least satisfying is that the pandemic has made travel and face to face contact so difficult. I miss those pre pandemic days in that respect.
What was the biggest creative challenge posed to you by a recent project? Tell us about that project, why the challenge was particularly noteworthy or gratifying to overcome, or what valuable lesson you learned from it.
I had a commercial that was due on Christmas day which has never happened before. I have a one year old son and all I could think about while I was meeting the deadline for the afternoon mix was, how did I arrive at this moment? How did I get to a point where Christmas day became a deadline. And I was explaining my situation to a good friend on the phone while I was rearranging the strings to the spot, and he said to me in a smug voice,”MUST BE NICE!” I knew what he meant right away. He meant that making music for a living was a blessing and that he would gladly switch places on Christmas day. And the moment he said it, I realized the same thing, then took a break and opened gifts with my son. 🙂
What recent work are you most proud of and why? Or what recent work (advertising or entertainment)–your own or that of others–has struck a responsive chord with you?
I am so proud of so many projects. I’m very proud of scoring the Emmy nominated feature The Sit In: Harry Belafonte Hosts The Tonight Show. I’m proud of the Emmy Award-winning ESPN work. I’m proud of the two television shows that I compose and write all the songs for, Netflix’s Family Reuniion and Nickelodeon’s That Girl Lay Lay which are both nominated for NAACP Image Awards this year. I scored HBO’s Black and Missing, a four-part docu-series that is competing this year for an NAACP Image Award against Spike Lee’s powerful documentary, 911. Scoring “Frontline’s American Reckoning” which premiered February 15th on PBS was an amazing journey. I’m also very happy to have just finished scoring two new features “Storming Caesars Palace and Hazing. But I think my most gratifying project has been scoring Janet Hubert of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air’s animated feature film JG & The BC Kids which actually stars my daughter Jasmine Hanes as the lead character. It’s been a blast working with my daughter. She also sings on the theme song for Nickelodeon’s That Girl Lay Lay.
A growing number of superstar artists and songwriters have been selling their music rights/catalogs in megabuck deals. What will be the ripple effect of this on music creatively and from a business standpoint relative to the advertising, film, TV and streaming platform markets?
Well, one good thing about it is that it will make the music supervisor job a lot easier instead of having to deal with artists who don’t want their songs licensed or are super picky about what brands use their music. Labels for the most part will want to make money off of their catalogues and may be easier to deal with down the line. Of course they will still want to get paid, but their may be easier an easier path forward.
What are the implications of emerging dynamics such as the pandemic and relatively new markets like NFTs, podcasts, streaming platforms, etc., on the music library business?
The music library business will continue to fatten with more music makers entering the landscape and looking at libraries as their solution. I say there is room for everyone to eat and opportunities can be endless if you’re in the right supermarket.
