Building an Artist Management Empire and Breaking Country Artists

Ari Herstand interviews Bruce Kalmick, CEO founder of Y and How, about his experience in the music industry, his work with country artists, and his philosophy on breaking artists and building successful careers.

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Bruce Kalmick, CEO of WHY&HOW, specializes in developing country music artists. Emphasizing the important role of marketing and a dedicated team, he seeks to ensure these artists can penetrate a genre he believes is often stuck in old trends. His work primarily involves artist management, but he has also launched a record label, Hazel Street Records; a joint venture with Sony/Orchard.

Bruce was a Billboard Power Player in 2018 and 2019 and has been featured in Billboard’s “40 Under 40.” Pollstar nominated Bruce for “Manager of the Year” in 2014. In addition to his music industry ventures, his company, WHY&HOW manages 15 clients and has a robust team situated in various US cities.

Learn more about Bruce and WHY&HOW here: https://whyandhow.com/

00:00 - Welcome

08:02 - WHY&HOW’s partnership with Red Light Management, Operations of WHY&HOW

14:17 - The current state of the country music industry according to Bruce, and thoughts about breaking country music artists

19:30 - Breaking a country artist, being where your audience is

29:30 - Why having an in-house marketing staff makes a difference vs. hiring an agency

34:10 - How artist management works within WHY&HOW

39:00 - The importance of mental health for artists and those in the industry

47:27 - Starting his own record label, Hazel Street Records, post Triple-8

54:00 - Working with independent labels vs working with major labels

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