"You can't spell STAR without A & R"

 

That's right kids. One of the fundamental truths of the music industry is that you will never make it unless you have a shit-hot A&R manager. Ideally he will have no musical ability whatsoever, questionable personal hygiene and a complete lack of morals and ethics. You will be uncomfortable in his presence (it's usually a he, unfortunately...) and then bitch about him when he fails to turn up to your gig. But you will love him... because he can make all your dreams come true. In fact you need him.

 

Who else is going to take your calls at 4am? Who else is going to pick up the bar tab after you've drunk all the rider and can't afford to buy your own beer because the record isn't selling? And who is going to take you to that fancy restaurant when they want to try and impress you? That's right. He may be a complete snake of an A&R man, but he's YOUR snake. And you will love him. 

 

But seriously, there are still an awful lot of artists out there who believe in the Record Company Fairy. Despite all the evidence to the contrary, they still believe that if they leave their demo tape under their pillow when they go to bed, they will wake up in the morning with a recording contract. Personally I blame their parents, and to a certain extent, Australian Idol and the like. "Be true to yourself girlfriend"... yeah, and learning how to sing and write a song wouldn't go astray either.