A little while back I was interviewed by Casino Gobbet from Yahoo Brazil.

I really enjoyed the questions Casino had and I thought you may find interesting reading our conversation. 

Ruth has a Ph.D. in Management and Organizations from the University of Michigan and taught Entrepreneurship to MBAs at the University of Illinois in Chicago. She has written for TheAtlantic.com, Psychology Today and Wired.com.She currently writing a book about the history and production of rock concerts.

Ben's publicist reached out to me a while back when he was in Vancouver with Lionel Ritchie. She connected the two of us which lead to this interview. It was fascinating hearing Ben's story of how he got the gig playing with Lionel Ritchie, Brittany Spears, Christina Aguilera, John Fogerty, Tony Braxton, Don Felder and many more. I will hint that it had something to do with playing all the open mics and jam nights in NYC. Equally as interesting is hearing about how he is pursuing a parallel solo career as an independent artist.

I recently had a great conversation with David Dufresne, CEO of Bandzoogle, an amazing company that probably a lot of you already use to build your websites. Bandzoogle is based in Quebec and have made a major impact on the independent music scene giving tools to musicians to help build their career. In our conversation we discussed ways you can ensure visitors to your website are converting into fans and spending their time and money where you want them to, website dos and don'ts, apps and responsive websites as well as knowing your audience and who consumes your content. With David's background as a venture capitalist he shares his unique perspective on this new music industry.

Mark Maryanovich is a Canadian photographer based in Santa Monica, CA, born in Windsor, Ontario and raised on Canada’s rainy west coast.  He has won a number of awards for photography and is a referenced source of inspiration by many in the industry. His clients have included Chris Cornel, Randy Bachman, Gibson Guitars, Bob Rock, Chad Kroeger and Henry Rollins to name a few. His work has appeared on the cover of books, in Rolling Stone, Billboard, and Canadian Musician and that’s just skimming the surface.

Oscar is a renowned Canadian radio promoter who has worked with the likes of Sarah McLachlan, Tiesto, Swollen Members, Classified, and Marcy's Playground to Jets Over Head, Madeleine Peyroux, Robbie Robertson and Jordan Knight. He focuses on commercial radio in Canada and knows exactly what it takes to break on radio.

Tom is author of the bookTom Jackson’s Live Music Method and the All Roads Lead to the Stage DVD series, is a master at transforming an artist’s live show into a magical experience for the audience!

He has worked with hundreds of artists in nearly every genre, including major artists like Taylor Swift, The Band Perry, Jars of Clay, and others, along with countless indie artists and bands, giving them a foundation and direction to define their unique voice and style to showcase their talent.

Glen Kolotkin has recorded some of the world’s finest musicians, including Santana, Barbra Streisand, Pete Seeger and Jimi Hendrix. He has more than 20 gold and platinum albums to his credit. And he’s looking for new artists to work with. Talking with Glen was fascinating  and I would have loved to have heard all his stories of some of my idols. He really has been part of this industry since the start!

The Guerilla Music Marketing Handbook has likely been read by most independent artists today. So when it comes to being heard "Above the Noise" talking to Bob Baker was a no brainer. His marketing savvy and music career insight show how to start making some "noise."

Tom Lubin has engineered in some of the worlds greatest studios, taught sound, edited a magazine, had a rock and roll hotel, toured the US for Fostex, made instructional videos on recording that are required viewing at many universities... all the while still making records! In '87  he moved to Oz, and was increasingly involved in film, TV, games, and digital media.

Sarah Gavigan has placed literally thousands of indie and unsigned artists to TV ads. She has been in the commercial production industry since 1995. In 2000, Gavigan created Ten Music, the first company to represent independent record labels and artists to advertisers for music licensing. Recently, she built HANK (hankmusic.tv), the first online music supervisor. Gavigan has licensed music to well over 1000 commercials for such companies as Adidas, Nike, Nissan, Hummer, Target, Microsoft, Old Navy, and Payless Shoes.

Tommy Marolda is a respected songwriter, musician, record producer, engineer and music publisher who has appeared on more than 50 albums either as an artist, producer or composer. He has been nominated for a Gammy Award and has worked on gold and platimun albums with artists such as Cher, Bee Gees, The Killers, Rod Stewart, Kurupt, DR. Dre and Richie Sambora from Bon Jovi. Working in the music business for more than 30 years, Tommy and his two bands, THE TOMS and HORIZONTAL LADIES CLUB, continue to record and release alternative and independent music.

Along with being a Music Supervisor, Kyle Merkley also coordinates everyone’s needs including music submissions, licensing administration, and all the other fun stuff that comes with music supervision. As an avid musician and the top-ranked graduate of his year in the Music Business Management Program at Durham College, Kyle possesses a firm grasp of music licensing from both sides of the fence.

Mark Hornsby is an acclaimed music producer, audio engineer, musician, writer and marketing consultant – widely considered to be one of the most diverse figures in today’s music business.

Mark is the former co-owner of one of Florida’s largest recording and rehearsal studios – Ridenour Studios – whose clients included New Found Glory, Foreigner, Ricky Martin, Joey Kramer, Steve Winwood and Johnny Depp.

I first interacted with Stacey when she was working at Vapor music with David Hayman, who's interview you may remember. Through Stacey I was introduced to Michael Perlmutter whom she has also worked with. Over and over, networking proves to be the most important tool in this industry. I love how Stacey got started in Music Supervision and how it has taken her from Victoria, British Columbia, to The Big Apple, NYC!

A few years back I came across Thorney Bleeder Records and their free compilation, "Get Thorny". Since then, it seems that Brian's name, along with that of Thorny Bleeder, are constantly associated with exciting music updates and a wealth of music business knowledge.  Brian's DIY Daily and blog posts carry some priceless insight for bands that should not go unread. Getting the chance to pick Brian's brain on a topic he knows better than most was interesting and insightful to say the least. Thanks again, Brian, for sharing your knowledge!

David Weiss is President of D Media, Inc. (www.dwords.com) and is an internationally published freelance journalist. He is the NYC editor of Mix magazine, the world's leading pro audio publication, and his work has appeared regularly in publications such as Systems Contractor News, Archi-Tech, Digital Television, TV Technology, Time Out NY, Remix and Drum! magazine. He is also co-author of the book Music Supervision: The Complete Guide to Selecting and Licensing Music & Sound Design for Media, published by Schirmer Trade Books in September, 2005. Mr. Weiss is a music supervisor for retail, restaurant and hospitality environments, guiding content and music management systems while working with one of New York City's premiere A/V integrators, Essential Communications.

Michael Perlmutter is a Music Supervisor and owner of instinct entertainment.  He finds songs for films, TV shows, docs. and commercials.  He loves music.  He loves the arts. And, happy to admit, the Toronto Maple Leafs. He has been asked to speak/moderate on panels at various conferences including: MIDEM (Cannes), Winter Music Conference (Miami), Billboard Dance Music Summit (NYC), NXNE (Toronto), ECMA Music Conference (Maritimes), Atlantic Film Festival (Halifax) and CMW (Toronto).

Ariel Hyatt is the founder of Ariel Publicity, a social media PR firm based in New York. Their Cyber PR ® Campaigns place musicians on blogs, podcasts, and Internet radio stations and coach them to create authentic relationships with fans. Since 1996, Ariel Publicity has represented over 1,500 independent musicians.

Her book Music Success in Nine Weeks has helped over a thousand musicians get in control of their online strategies and her ongoing blogging challenges keep artists accountable through the reading process.

Over 140 million records sold ww (albums/singles) during his career as Head of A&R, Managing Director / CEO and European A&R Executive.

Hits and recordings with: Christina Aguillera, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Janet Jackson, Celine Dion, Santana, Clay Aiken, Carrie Underwood, Katherine McPhee, Jessica Simpson, Ronan Keating, Sugababes, Danity Kane, Duffy, Christina Milian, Monrose, Danity Kane, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, The Saturdays, Ben's Brother, No Angels, Thomas Godoj, Shinee, Super Junior, Girls Generation, F(x), BOA, Namie Amuro, Tata Young, Daniel Schumacher, Till Brönner, Thomas Godoj, Cinema Bizarre, Tarja Turunen, Millencolin, Baxter, Sugarplum Fairy, Infinite Mass, Rachel Stevens, and many, many more...

As Head of A&R and International for Sony BMG Canada from 2000-2004, Berry was responsible for the development, recording and international marketing of Sony BMG Canada’s domestic roster, including artists such as Keshia Chanté, Wyclef, Shawn Desman, Sloan, Rascalz, Treble Charger, Gino Vannelli, In Essence, The Guess Who, Ryan Malcolm (Canadian Idol), Kalan Porter (Canadian Idol) and many more.

Brian Cannon is a British graphic designer, art director, photographer, and music video director. He is best known for his Microdot graphic design company and its work in the 1990s, which created the album cover for Oasis' record breaking debut album, Definitely Maybe, in 1994.

Dave is an executive music producer, music supervisor, published author, artist manager, producer, voice-over artist, on-air talent, and writer for TV, Film, Advertising, New Media, and Live Events. Dave was awarded for his contributions to a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series, "All My Children" (ABC / Disney). During his tenure at ABC, Dave made on-camera appearances on shows like Live Regis and Kathi Lee as well as NBC’s Maury Povich Show…

A rock n’ roll legend in his own right, Canada’s Bob Masse has been creating highly collectible concert posters since the ‘60’s. As one of the pioneers of the psychedelic art movement, he has worked with everyone from Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, The Doors, and The Cream, to U2, The Red Hot Chilli Pepers, Tool, ACDC, and many more. His poster for U2 at the Reunion Arena has been listed as one of the top 10 concert posters of all time by Billboard Magazine.

Ryan Stanley is a Professional Coach, Band Manager, Screenwriter and Independent Film Producer. A graduate of iPEC (The Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching), Ryan is considered by many to be the leader in Professional Life Coaching throughout the Music Industry. Whether it's becoming a better musician, businessperson, and/or just living a more positive existence, working with Ryan will enhance your ability to take the necessary steps so that you will be successful in any area of life that you choose. I have to personally thank Ryan for doing this interview as well as the insights he has shared in our sessions.

Jonathan Simkin's name is associated with a long list of the who's who in the Canadian music business. This interview provides a ton of great insight for bands that are trying to make a career in music, as well as for those who are simply interested in learning more about the business.

Greg's credentials can be found on numerous reality showswith networks including MTV, VH1, The Discovery Channel, SPIKE, A&E, Lifetime, BRAVO, to a name a few. As a music supervisor with experience as a composer/arranger in conjunction with session work on production music cues, Debonne also is a well integrated member of the Los Angeles music community. To top it off he has perfect pitch!

From the age of 15, when he ran the Fed 13 Rock n' Roll Roadshow which spent three years as the premier Rock n' Roll/Rockabilly management and promoter in Southern England, to the current running of a global PR/Marketing agency - Mojo Working International,  "I've managed to stay alive and work in the industry I love very much for ALL of my life" says Kevin.