In which ways has the digitalization changed the A&R profession A&R in today’s digital industry A valuable resource Sondre Decser Storstadmo Supervisor Daniel Nordgård This master’s thesis is carried out as a part of the education at the University of Agder and is therefore approved as a part of this education. However, this does not imply that the university for the methods that are used or the conclusion that are drawn University of Agder 2017 Faculty of Fine Art Department of Popular Music Abstract Behind every artist there is a handful of people that work day and night to make sure the artists career keeps going steady forward. In this machine consisting of record labels and managements, there is one profession that works in-between these to make sure everyone is happy. This paper aims to get a deeper understanding of the a&r profession and the importance this person actually has in the music industry. The background for this thesis lies in that a&r is a topic that not so many know too much about, and neither speaks of. In this paper, I will go deeper in to the world of the a&r and their working methods. The foundation for this thesis will be the a&r and the importance of their role before and after the digitalization. The A&R role will be set up against the changes the digitalization has applied to the music industry, to see if a&r role has been sustainable through the transition from analog to digital. Acknowledgements I would like to thank my interview partners for providing me with much knowledge and experience around my subject. A big thanks to Peter Jenner for taking his time to share his thoughts, knowledge and life experience regarding the topic. I would also like to give my thanks to my friend Ingvild Bang for providing me with a computer when mine broke down, and to my friends and family for supporting me throughout this semester. In the end, I will thank my supervisor Daniel Nordgård for inspiration and guidance through these two years, and especially through the final stages of this thesis. Table of Content Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... II Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................................... III 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 The history of the A&R profession ............................................................................................... 2 1.2 The A&R Department ................................................................................................................... 5 1.2.1 A&R Scout ............................................................................................................................. 6 1.2.2 A&R Manager ........................................................................................................................ 6 1.2.3 A&R director .......................................................................................................................... 7 1.2.4 MD of Co. – Head of company .............................................................................................. 8 1.3 Overview ....................................................................................................................................... 8 2. Theory .................................................................................................................................... 10 2.1 The digital paradigm shift .......................................................................................................... 10 2.1.2 The music business - Analog to digital ............................................................................... 12 2.2 A new media channel ................................................................................................................. 14 2.2.1 The Social media ................................................................................................................. 14 2.2.2 A new tool ........................................................................................................................... 15 2.3 Revenue streams; before and after ........................................................................................... 17 2.4 DIY (Do It Yourself) ..................................................................................................................... 21 2.4.1 Better or worse ................................................................................................................... 25 3. Methodology .......................................................................................................................... 27 3.1 A qualitative approach ............................................................................................................... 27 3.1.2 Qualitative methods ........................................................................................................... 28 Interview ................................................................................................................................................ 28 Depth interview ..................................................................................................................................... 28 Audio recording ...................................................................................................................................... 28 Transcribing ............................................................................................................................................ 29 Interview by mail ................................................................................................................................... 30 3.1.3 Ethical challenges in interview ........................................................................................... 30 3.2 Reliability and validity ................................................................................................................ 32 3.2.1 Hability ................................................................................................................................ 33 3.3 Interview objects ........................................................................................................................ 34 3.3.1 Peter Jenner ........................................................................................................................ 35 3.3.2 Askil Holm ........................................................................................................................... 35 3.3.3 David Atoradiyan ................................................................................................................ 36 3.3.4 Julie Sandberg ..................................................................................................................... 36 4. Analysis & results ................................................................................................................... 37 4.1 Analysis Process .......................................................................................................................... 37 4.2 Results ......................................................................................................................................... 38 4.2.1 Holm & Atoradiyan ............................................................................................................. 38 4.2.2 Jenner & Sandberg .............................................................................................................. 41 4.3 Findings ....................................................................................................................................... 43 5. Discussion .............................................................................................................................. 45 6. Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 50 7. Literature list .......................................................................................................................... 52 1. Introduction As a 90’s child, I have been so fortunate to grow up and experience two different ages of the music industry. Born in the CD era and physical sales, and then, be a part of and experience the transition of the music industry in to the digital era. From going to music stores to look through albums of albums until I found something I liked, to just one press of a button and all the music in the world is available. For me, the curiosity for finding and creating music has always been a passion that has driven me, and with the different knowledge that I have gathered through experience in my years of studying music, this passion has been even more amplified. I have always had an interest in working with people and to draw out their musical potential to the fullest. Through my studies these last two years I have gained a deeper insight and understanding in how the music industry work with their artists, both musically and industry- oriented. My interest is especially pointed towards A&R and how the music industry find, develop and maintain their artist, so for me to discover that this was a profession unknown to many, this subject became most naturally for me to write a thesis about. Through decades,