My Beautiful Mistakes

Sergio Mottola - Co-Founder & CEO , Public Pressure

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 08:00:00 +0100

In this episode of My Beautiful Mistakes host Andy Saunders talk to Sergio Mottola , Co-Founder & CEO of Public Pressure.

Public Pressure was originally launched in London in 2015 as an online community and magazine dedicated to giving a voice to emerging artists and labels. Today, it’s a global Web3 media company with a carbon neutral NFT marketplace designed to support the transition of music to Web3. Focusing on the interactions between music, fashion, culture, and technology, it powers a fair and equitable, direct-to-fan strategy for creators. Public Pressure is built on Polkadot/Kusama, which has the lowest total electricity consumption and carbon emissions per year of the six proof-of-stake (POS) blockchains. It is also the most robust, modular and secure of POS chains and joins all other blockchains into a unified network to enable the creation of smart contracts.

Sergio talks to us about his life and career to date, his early ventures into tech based businesses, his pivot into the European political arena and the development of Public Pressure as a leading exponent of Web3 and Metaverse solutions for the music, fashion and gaming industries.

Tom Allen & Richard Leach - Curve Royalty Systems

Thu, 03 Mar 2022 08:00:00 +0000

in this special edition of My Beautiful Mistakes Tom Allen and Richard Leach the co-founders of Curve Royalty systems talk about how they prefer to be known as entrepreneurial problem solvers rather than royalty geeks and how they built their company from humble beginnings into a seven figure turnover mainstay of the global music industry, representing many of the worlds most successful independent music companies.

Tony Wadsworth CBE -Former Chairman & CEO, EMI Music UK & Ireland

Tue, 15 Dec 2020 08:00:00 +0000

Our final guest of 2020 is the Lancashire born, working class son of a window cleaner whose early academic promise saw him earn a scholarship to a good school and then a place to read economics at Newcastle University .

It was there that he formed a band with some fellow students and after completing his studies moved down to London to try his luck at making music his full time job much to the dismay of his parents.

When things didn’t work out with the band he searched the job ads in Music Week and secured a position as a production manager at a little known compilation and novelty record label eventually ending up via several moves at EMI.

A serendipitous move into catalogue marketing and then a hugely successful stint running the mighty Parlophone label and overseeing artists such as Blur, Radiohead , Coldplay and boyhood heroes The Beatles were staging points on his way to the very top of EMI before the ill-fated takeover of the company by venture capitalist Guy Hands saw him edged out.

Tony Wadsworth , made a CBE in the Queens Birthday Honours List in 2011, talks to Andy Saunders about all of this , what he's up to these days and more in this week’s edition of ‘my Beautiful Mistakes.'

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Publish: Dec. 14, 2020 @ 7PM Edit

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Rell Lafargue - President & COO , Reservoir

Tue, 08 Dec 2020 11:00:00 +0000

Hello and welcome to this week’s edition of the pod – this latest interviewee has the distinction of being our first American guest – Rell Lafargue is the President and COO of Reservoir , one of the fastest growing and successful independent music companies in the world. With music pubLishing at its core Reservoir has in recent years added record companies and artist management firms to its portfolio, as part of its ambition to be, in Rell’s words, ‘a complete music company.' Born in Louisiana, Rell was a prodigious musical talent when growing up and went on to study music and eventually play professionally before a Xmas season playing the Nutracker Suite over 70 times with the Miami Ballet saw him looking for different career options. Stints in royalties and business affairs departments eventually led to the legendary TVT records when he established a highly successful music publishing division before Reservoir came calling ……..Rell talks to Andy Saunders about his life , his career and his advice to others in this edition of ‘My Beautiful Mistakes’

Alan McGee - Founder , Creation Records

Mon, 30 Nov 2020 16:00:00 +0000

In this week's episode of 'My Beautiful Mistakes ' Andy Saunders talks to his one time boss and mentor Alan McGee. Born in Glasgow Alan moved to London in his teens to follow his dreams of playing in a punk rock band only to find himself homeless and living in the doorway of boots the chemist in Covent Garden. A chance meeting with a kindly friend who offered him the opportunity to live in their squat led to him starting a club night, 'The Living Room' and then the record label that became the legendary Creation Records. From its earliest days as a purveyor of cool indie music the label went on to find global success with artists such as primal scream and most notably Oasis before Alan decided to sell up to pursue new adventures. Still a successful artist manager and label owner Alan talks about his life and career and reminisces with Andy about some of the amazing experiences they shared together.

If you are interesting is supporting or sponsoring 'My Beautiful Mistakes' please contact Andy Saunders on andy@velocitypr.co.uk

Korda Marshall - Founder , Infectious Records

Tue, 24 Nov 2020 10:00:00 +0000

In this episode of 'My Beautiful Mistakes' we talk to Cornwall raised trainee architect , who came to London with his band searching for success only to end up in the music business . Korda Marshall talks to Andy Saunders about a life and career that has seen him head up both independent and major record companies and work with a hugely impressive list of critically and commercially successful artists from across a wide range of genres.

Mark Dayvd- Founder & CEO , Music Venue Trust

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 09:00:00 +0000

This week’s guest was born in West London and raised by a single mother before developing a serious, degenerative illness at just 11 years old – an overwhelming dislike of formal education and problems at home led to him leaving home at just 15 and going to work in the construction business before his love of music saw him join a local band . Stints as a roadie and then as a successful local live music promoter and venue owner led eventually to him founding Music Venue Trust of which he is CEO – in this episode of 'My Beautiful Mistakes' I talk to Mark Dayvd about his life and career and how he and his team have been at the forefront of saving grassroots music venues during the current pandemic …..

Tim Ingham- Founder & Publisher, Music Business Worldwide

Wed, 28 Oct 2020 05:00:00 +0000

In this episode Andy Saunders talks to Tim Ingham , founder and publisher of the hugely influential music industry trade platform Music Business Worldwide (MBW), which is read by anyone who is anyone in the global music industry.

After getting his first journalistic break on London free sheet Metro , Tim became one of the UK's most successful editors in the computer games trade media before taking over at Music Week when he transformed a previously moribund magazine into a must read for music industry professionals.

Tim then founded his own media platform, MBW, in 2015 and quickly established it as the voice of authority in the global industry and has recently announced a wide-ranging partnership with Penske Media Corporation (owners of Rolling Stone and Variety Magazines among other ), which has provided MBW with a strong foothold in the American marketplace.

In this edition of 'My Beautiful Mistakes' Tim talks candidly about his career, provides some fascinating insight into the current state of the music industry and discusses some of things he may have done differently given the chance .....

Episode is Not Live

Publish: May. 30, 2020 @ 7PM Edit

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David Bianchi - Founder & CEO, Various Artists

Wed, 21 Oct 2020 05:00:00 +0100

This week's guest is a manager who has guided artist careers across extreme metal, punk, indie, mainstream pop and several other genres – a onetime self-confessed goth from Corby , a Midlands steel town, David Bianchi started out as , in his own words, a pretty hopeless musician and transitioned into the role of artist manager after a close friend told him he was “shit” and should try something else . A stint in club promotion at the birth of Britpop saw him hook up with legendary Mark Morrison manager johnny laws before branching out on his own. Just some of the artists whose careers David has overseen include The libertines, Tom Grennan, Killing Joke, The enemy, Charli XCX, Ashnikko, Barnes Courtney – the list goes on and on… This was a fun chat, so sit back and enjoy this episode of ‘My Beautiful Mistakes’ ….

Colin Lester- Founder & CEO , JEM Artists

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 06:00:00 +0100

This weeks' edition of the pod features one of the music industry's best known artist managers , a man never afraid to tell it like it is – the son of a holocaust survivor he was in a band that were managed by the legendary Don Arden, has guided the careers of the Brand New Heavies, Travis , the Arctic Monkeys and many more, but is probably best known for his 20-year professional relationship with one artist - Craig David. Colin Lester talks to Andy Saunders about his remarkable father, his early days in 70’s London , his move into artist management and about some of the adventures he’s had along the way in this weeks episode of ‘My Beautiful Mistakes.’

if you would like to sponsor this podcast please contact Andy Saunders on andy@velocitypr.co.uk

Iain Watt - Managing Director, YMU Music

Tue, 06 Oct 2020 06:00:00 +0100

In this episode of My Beautiful Mistakes Iain Watt , Managing Director of YMU Music one of the world's leading artists management companies, talks us through his life and career. From his early days as a junior PR at Lynne Franks PR and Freud Communications , his time as a major label press officer at Sony Music , his pivot into the nascent world of the internet and the realisation that his real strengths lay in artist management, Iain talks to host Andy Saunders about his successes and of course the times he might have done things differently.

Kenny Gates- Founder & CEO , [PIAS]

Tue, 29 Sep 2020 08:00:00 +0100

Kenny Gates was born the youngest son of an English father and a Belgium mother. Growing up in Brussels he discovered a love of independent music in the city's many record stores meeting his long-time business partner Michel Lambot in one that he owned , Casablanca Moon, in 1982. 38 years later Kenny and Michel have built their company [PIAS] into a global powerhouse and one of the leading independent music companies in the world. In this week's episode of 'My Beautiful Mistakes' Kenny talks to Andy Saunders about the journey from wide-eyed music fan to CEO with some cautionary tales along the way.

Rak Sanghvi - Global President , Spirit Music Group

Tue, 15 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0100

In this episode host Andy Saunders talks to Spirit Music Global President Rak Sanghvi about his journey from 4 year old Ugandan Asian refugee, escaping the terrors of Idi Amin , through medical school , a pivot into the law , a rise to become Managing Director of Sony/ATV Music Publishing , time in the post-sacking wilderness and finally to his current position heading up one of the world's most successful independent music publishers. There are plenty of twists and turns to reflect on in this episode of 'My Beautiful Mistakes.'

Lohan Presencer - Chairman, Ministry of Sound

Mon, 07 Sep 2020 22:00:00 +0100

This week Andy Saunders talks to Ministry of Sound Chairman Lohan Presencer about the key moments and decisions that shaped his career.

From his early days as the Entertainments Officer at Southampton University, his first job in the music industry at , in his words, "a terrible company promoting terrible records" , through his time as a chart analyst and compilations specialist at Warners we hear how Lohan ended up running Ministry of Sound , one of the most successful and best known dance music brands in the global music industry.

A searingly honest , funny and at times shocking tale, Lohan pulls no punches when talking about the journey that led him to him becoming one of the most successful and respected executives in the music industry in this episode of 'My Beautiful Mistakes

Mike Smith - Global President , Downtown Music Publishing

Mon, 31 Aug 2020 12:00:00 +0100

This episode of 'My Beautiful Mistakes' features host Andy Saunders in conversation with A&R legend Mike Smith, who at the time of recording had just been announced as the new Global President of Downtown Music Publishing. A 30-year veteran of the UK music industry Mike started his career in the post room at MCA Music Publishing before becoming an A&R scout at the company. A move to EMI Music Publishing allowed him build a reputation as a talent spotter of rare ability before a pivot into records saw him become Managing Director of the legendary Columbia Records, where after a successful tenure he took the veins at Universal's Virgin/EMI label. It was only a matter of time, however, before he returned to his real love , music publishing, and he was appointed Managing Director of Warner Chappell Music in 2016. In this episode Mike talks about his early life and the experiences that led him towards a life in the music industry, some of the amazing artists he has worked with and gives an honest account of some of the mistakes he has made during his amazing career.

Alison Wenham - Former CEO , Association of Independent Music

Fri, 22 May 2020 22:00:00 +0100

Andy Saunders talks to Alison Wenham OBE , the Co-Founder and former CEO of The Association of Independent Music (AIM) and Worldwide Independent Network (WIN) .

Starting life in the music industry behind the counter of a local record shop Alison ran successful independent and major record labels before becoming a much respected global champion for the independent music community.

In this episode Alison talks with humour and honesty while reflecting on some of the mistakes that shaped her amazing career.