WEBVTT - #377 - John Esposito on How He Turned A Record Label Around + Introducing Himself to Frank Sinatra at a Restaurant + How Kenny Chesney Rescued Him + Leaving Warner Music Nashville After 13 Years 0:00:01.240 --> 0:00:05.240 Welcome, Welcome, Welcome, episode three seventies seven. John Esposito referred 0:00:05.240 --> 0:00:07.880 to his es BO. He's the head of Warner Music Nashville. 0:00:08.600 --> 0:00:13.440 Big record label, cool record label, very successful record label, 0:00:13.640 --> 0:00:17.200 especially since he took over. You could tell from this, Mike, 0:00:17.280 --> 0:00:19.919 I have a long relationship with ESPO. With John, however 0:00:19.960 --> 0:00:21.919 you want to refer to him, he was one of 0:00:21.960 --> 0:00:23.439 the first people when I moved to town, and that 0:00:23.440 --> 0:00:27.080 feels like ages ago, but also feels like yesterday to go, oh, 0:00:27.280 --> 0:00:29.040 you're gonna have some trouble here because you're different. But 0:00:29.040 --> 0:00:30.880 he's also way different too, and that's how he knew that. 0:00:31.720 --> 0:00:33.959 So I always appreciate him because I didn't know who 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:35.440 to trust. I didn't know who liked me, who was 0:00:35.520 --> 0:00:37.320 trying to get me fire to But I have a 0:00:37.400 --> 0:00:39.919 long relationship with SPO. It was one of those where 0:00:39.920 --> 0:00:41.599 there be times wouldn't talk for a year, but then 0:00:41.640 --> 0:00:43.440 we'd go back and you just feel like you never 0:00:43.560 --> 0:00:47.320 left off. But he is retiring after a great, great career, 0:00:47.760 --> 0:00:51.000 so I really enjoyed the talk. But also at the 0:00:51.080 --> 0:00:52.479 end when he starts to break down each of the 0:00:52.560 --> 0:00:56.000 artists that he signed, really cool, so many good stories 0:00:56.200 --> 0:00:58.640 and then he talks about when he was starstruck. That's 0:00:58.720 --> 0:01:00.880 really cool. Who he went up to a restaurant randomly. 0:01:01.280 --> 0:01:03.560 I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it, mind blown. 0:01:04.440 --> 0:01:07.600 So it's John Esposito. I think you'll like it. I 0:01:07.640 --> 0:01:10.399 liked it, but also I like him. This is episode 0:01:10.440 --> 0:01:12.560 three seventy seven of the Bobby Cast. Thank you for listening. 0:01:12.600 --> 0:01:16.160 Here we go. I was talking to Brett, who was 0:01:16.200 --> 0:01:18.560 one of my dearest, lifelong friends. Now I want to 0:01:18.560 --> 0:01:20.360 say lifelong, one of my dearest friends in this stage 0:01:20.400 --> 0:01:22.520 of my life. He feels that, Yeah, that's like he's 0:01:22.520 --> 0:01:25.640 like my guy, right, he's uh, he's sad. Like as 0:01:25.840 --> 0:01:27.960 close as Brett and I are. You guys haven't much 0:01:28.440 --> 0:01:34.800 stronger longer. Uh. Your relationship has been very mentor mentee 0:01:34.800 --> 0:01:38.000 like you found and made him and he trusted you. 0:01:38.000 --> 0:01:41.600 You know, he's he's sad. You know I'm sad. Well, 0:01:41.680 --> 0:01:46.520 I appreciate that. On on you saying that, I'll tell 0:01:46.560 --> 0:01:50.560 you what it's It's pretty crazy. I've been reflecting a 0:01:50.560 --> 0:01:54.480 lot because my last day in my office is going 0:01:54.520 --> 0:01:59.600 to be on Friday, and you've not been to my 0:01:59.680 --> 0:02:02.080 office us, but you've heard about my office kind of 0:02:02.120 --> 0:02:05.880 play and it's and it's a museum and it's it's 0:02:05.920 --> 0:02:09.360 my life. You know. You can see the Sinatra rat 0:02:09.360 --> 0:02:12.280 pack wall, the Springsteen wall, the wall with all the 0:02:12.280 --> 0:02:16.840 plaques of what we've accomplished during these thirteen plus years 0:02:16.880 --> 0:02:22.000 down here, um, and many other things that are very 0:02:22.040 --> 0:02:26.320 intriguing to me. I kind of wish I had made 0:02:26.680 --> 0:02:30.040 the decision and announced it a week before I left, 0:02:30.800 --> 0:02:34.359 because the number of conversations I've had to have has 0:02:34.560 --> 0:02:37.280 has It's going to be cathartic when it happens, but 0:02:37.320 --> 0:02:40.359 I needed to happen actually because I got to move on. 0:02:40.720 --> 0:02:43.560 I made the decision. I have accomplished what I wanted 0:02:43.600 --> 0:02:45.560 to accomplish. I was asked to come down and fix 0:02:45.560 --> 0:02:50.240 a record label that was moribund and UM, and I'm 0:02:50.360 --> 0:02:53.360 very proud of what we've done and part of the 0:02:53.400 --> 0:02:57.640 emotion that runs through it, and there's there's much, you know. 0:02:57.720 --> 0:03:00.880 And tonight they're having an for me at the Hall 0:03:00.919 --> 0:03:04.240 of Fame where there will be some speeches and you know, 0:03:04.639 --> 0:03:07.600 I'm going to probably h do a lot of crying 0:03:07.600 --> 0:03:11.560 because I'm an emotional guy. But Blake and and Brett 0:03:11.600 --> 0:03:14.840 are going to fit to the top of the emotion 0:03:14.960 --> 0:03:18.600 because there's Blake Shelton, who was getting ready to get 0:03:18.680 --> 0:03:22.680 dropped at Warner, who you know, life changed for him. 0:03:22.760 --> 0:03:25.480 And Brett was the first guy I signed. And when 0:03:25.520 --> 0:03:28.440 I met Brett, I knew there was a brotherhood there that, 0:03:29.240 --> 0:03:31.799 you know, if I were lucky enough that that bet 0:03:31.840 --> 0:03:35.000 was right, we could have a long fun ride together. 0:03:35.040 --> 0:03:37.720 But experienced some things together, and I'm sure he's shared 0:03:37.760 --> 0:03:40.320 with you. He's come up, stayed at my Nantucket house 0:03:40.360 --> 0:03:44.400 and gone fishing, and we've we've done many things together. 0:03:45.840 --> 0:03:50.560 I don't feel I ever have a problem separating work 0:03:50.920 --> 0:03:54.320 from play. If I have to give him a hard conversation, 0:03:54.720 --> 0:03:57.320 I can do it because he knows it's all in love, 0:03:57.920 --> 0:04:00.920 you know. But I also prefer that I play, you know, 0:04:01.040 --> 0:04:03.120 because he's one of the dearest people to me in 0:04:03.160 --> 0:04:06.119 the world. He and I both came upon, for instance, 0:04:06.200 --> 0:04:12.800 meditation at the same time for different reasons, from different motivations. Somebody, 0:04:14.480 --> 0:04:17.880 a doctor I have tendatus, told me I should meditate. 0:04:18.000 --> 0:04:20.760 I'm thinking the head of Vanderbilt's tell me I should meditate, 0:04:21.320 --> 0:04:24.039 and it will help the ringing in my ear that 0:04:24.200 --> 0:04:28.320 legitimizes it. So let me try. You know, Brent for 0:04:28.600 --> 0:04:33.200 um the various reasons of helping his mental health, but 0:04:33.279 --> 0:04:36.119 the number of times we've talked about it and how 0:04:36.160 --> 0:04:38.560 important it is as part of our life. You know, 0:04:38.600 --> 0:04:42.279 when you have that kind of loving relationship with an 0:04:42.360 --> 0:04:45.240 artist and you can dive deep, it makes it far 0:04:45.320 --> 0:04:50.440 more fulfilling relationships. They're a big part of why people 0:04:50.520 --> 0:04:52.280 love you. What you've been able to do professionally is 0:04:52.320 --> 0:04:57.560 why people respect you. In that combination rare you have 0:04:58.080 --> 0:05:00.640 and I just will tell him the version my story 0:05:00.640 --> 0:05:03.640 with you. Still after I've been here almost ten years now, 0:05:03.760 --> 0:05:06.760 I've only ever been to dinner with one executive in 0:05:06.800 --> 0:05:09.039 the history of my life, and it's you, and we 0:05:09.080 --> 0:05:11.440 would you know before COVID. We and it's hard, but 0:05:11.480 --> 0:05:14.200 we tried. We try to go once a year, or 0:05:14.800 --> 0:05:16.200 we go every ten months or then a year and 0:05:16.240 --> 0:05:20.440 three months. But and it's hard to see people, especially 0:05:20.440 --> 0:05:23.960 when you're executive of your stature and I'm traveling a lot. 0:05:24.000 --> 0:05:26.479 But we we made it a priority. And I didn't 0:05:26.480 --> 0:05:29.800 get anything from it professionally, and you didn't get anything 0:05:29.800 --> 0:05:34.240 from it professionally, But there's always an affinity that I 0:05:34.279 --> 0:05:39.120 had for you because when I moved here. You had 0:05:39.120 --> 0:05:41.159 a wing, and I wouldn't say you took me under it, 0:05:41.160 --> 0:05:42.800 because it wasn't only I needed to live under. But 0:05:42.839 --> 0:05:44.320 you had a wing, and you said, Hey, I know 0:05:44.320 --> 0:05:46.520 what it's like to come here where people look at 0:05:46.560 --> 0:05:51.279 you like you're different, and because you are, but also 0:05:51.400 --> 0:05:53.839 you came here because you know that you could provide value. 0:05:53.960 --> 0:05:57.520 And I just remember those early talks because your experiences 0:05:57.680 --> 0:06:00.000 before you came to country, you had done a little 0:06:00.040 --> 0:06:04.719 to everything. And I'm so grateful for that relationship me too, 0:06:04.760 --> 0:06:09.440 and I appreciate that, you know. I remember very specifically 0:06:09.640 --> 0:06:14.440 we were out at the Oklahoma benefit event for raising 0:06:14.520 --> 0:06:17.479 money for the tornado that it blown through Blake and 0:06:17.520 --> 0:06:20.240 re but yeah, yeah, and I walked up to you, 0:06:20.240 --> 0:06:22.000 you know, and it's just kind of how I rolled, 0:06:22.000 --> 0:06:23.400 and I said, I'm really proud of you, and I'm 0:06:23.440 --> 0:06:25.240 rooting for you. I want you to know that, you know, 0:06:25.279 --> 0:06:29.279 and sometimes let's get together. And I'm probably the worst 0:06:29.320 --> 0:06:32.359 promo person in the world because I never want to 0:06:32.400 --> 0:06:34.479 ask for the order. I just want to talk to 0:06:34.520 --> 0:06:37.320 people and talk about music. And so the dinners you 0:06:37.400 --> 0:06:40.240 and I had um at that special little table at 0:06:40.240 --> 0:06:44.919 Giovanni's there's a plug for you guys. Um um. We 0:06:45.120 --> 0:06:48.400 never asked each other for anything. It wasn't work. It 0:06:48.560 --> 0:06:51.880 wasn't work. We are sharing humanity. Yeah, well, I I 0:06:52.040 --> 0:06:54.760 value that. I will always value that. And that's why 0:06:54.800 --> 0:07:01.440 I it's it's a sadness, not that you're or moving away, 0:07:01.520 --> 0:07:05.280 but that there's not somebody that's running that that I like. 0:07:06.880 --> 0:07:10.280 I feel like if I need to go, hey, like Tyson, 0:07:10.320 --> 0:07:11.840 can I tell you something? Can I have this talk 0:07:11.880 --> 0:07:14.840 with you? This happened to me, this happened to an artist. 0:07:15.400 --> 0:07:16.840 You know, I don't like this that's leaving. And not 0:07:16.920 --> 0:07:18.960 that I can't form that eventually, but I felt like 0:07:19.000 --> 0:07:20.760 we had a really strong bond there and I appreciate 0:07:21.520 --> 0:07:24.200 and hopefully it continues. I'm not leaving Nashville, and I 0:07:24.240 --> 0:07:28.800 haven't figured. I'm just saying I'm not. I don't want 0:07:28.800 --> 0:07:32.760 to get weaky the whole time. God bless you. Why 0:07:33.160 --> 0:07:35.000 you started in two thousand nine, I think when I 0:07:35.080 --> 0:07:39.520 look back at it, and yeah, here and their label 0:07:39.560 --> 0:07:43.160 has grown like four times the size that it was 0:07:43.280 --> 0:07:45.360 that when when you got here? What do you think? 0:07:45.520 --> 0:07:47.040 And this is a you question, but it's also a 0:07:47.120 --> 0:07:48.960 question because we have a lot of new artists, and 0:07:49.040 --> 0:07:51.920 we have a lot of people in the music business 0:07:51.920 --> 0:07:56.080 of country country music that are early agents, early record 0:07:56.080 --> 0:07:59.040 people that listen to this. Why do you think you 0:07:59.080 --> 0:08:01.640 were able to do the like? What did you bring? 0:08:01.960 --> 0:08:05.040 What vision did you have to go? I can go 0:08:05.160 --> 0:08:08.000 do this. I'm not from there exactly, but I can 0:08:08.080 --> 0:08:11.520 foresee how we can make changes. I do believe that 0:08:12.120 --> 0:08:16.200 I never came here with the notion that I knew anything, 0:08:16.840 --> 0:08:20.600 and I wanted people to know that. Obviously, I knew 0:08:20.640 --> 0:08:22.880 something about how the music business worked. I'd worked at 0:08:22.880 --> 0:08:25.280 Island def Jam, I'd worked at PolyGram, I had worked 0:08:25.720 --> 0:08:28.880 running a distribution company. I knew a lot of stuff. 0:08:28.920 --> 0:08:32.120 But the last thing they needed is the distribution guy 0:08:32.200 --> 0:08:35.079 from New York City to come down here and pretend 0:08:35.160 --> 0:08:39.200 he could teach them anything. So I just listened. But 0:08:39.320 --> 0:08:41.560 the one thing I wanted everyone to be clear on 0:08:41.760 --> 0:08:46.480 is I'm willing to outwork anybody, and I love music 0:08:46.520 --> 0:08:50.520 on a level that's almost um unhealthy. What did they 0:08:50.520 --> 0:08:53.920 see in you just to to want you to do it? Well? 0:08:54.040 --> 0:08:57.760 There's one thing that I heard a lot um in 0:08:57.840 --> 0:09:02.320 the beginning, and I hear it occasionally is the town 0:09:02.480 --> 0:09:05.120 and they kind of referred to it as the town. 0:09:05.160 --> 0:09:09.120 It is a unique community of music, this Nashville thing 0:09:09.160 --> 0:09:12.920 that we work in. UM wanted Warner to come back 0:09:12.960 --> 0:09:15.480 to life. It was not good for the town that 0:09:15.600 --> 0:09:19.360 they didn't have a strong Warner UM. An artist manager 0:09:19.440 --> 0:09:22.120 didn't want to have one less door to knock on 0:09:22.360 --> 0:09:25.160 because it wasn't in good shape. So if I could 0:09:25.200 --> 0:09:28.960 help be part of bringing Warner UH to a life 0:09:29.240 --> 0:09:33.920 where we could break artists, it gave optionality to everybody 0:09:33.920 --> 0:09:38.360 through the ecosystem. The publishers they wanted It's like an economy, right, 0:09:38.480 --> 0:09:40.560 you bring a big a store, let's say a local store, 0:09:40.640 --> 0:09:42.760 but then it's a big a lot of jobs, and 0:09:42.800 --> 0:09:45.160 those jobs people can buy other stuff. So they needed 0:09:45.160 --> 0:09:48.040 to help that the music economy was. They wanted more 0:09:48.080 --> 0:09:50.160 fueling and they thought you could do it. And I'm 0:09:50.160 --> 0:09:53.760 sure some of them selfishly thought, well, they'll negotiate better 0:09:53.800 --> 0:09:55.880 deals because somebody else is hopping in the fray and 0:09:55.960 --> 0:09:59.839 offering a number or a term or whatever. But at 0:09:59.840 --> 0:10:01.960 the end of the day, I think what happened fairly 0:10:02.040 --> 0:10:08.360 quickly was people realized, God, this guy is relentless. You know, UM, 0:10:08.400 --> 0:10:10.880 I gotta hang with him. I gotta learn more about him. 0:10:10.880 --> 0:10:13.080 And I wasn't trying to do anything but be myself. 0:10:13.120 --> 0:10:16.160 If if I've had success in forty five years of 0:10:16.240 --> 0:10:19.719 running businesses, it's because people I want to hop on 0:10:19.960 --> 0:10:23.800 that train with me, because I'm a I'm a cheerleader 0:10:23.960 --> 0:10:28.160 on a profound level, you know, and it's it's sincere. 0:10:28.760 --> 0:10:32.560 And because I could admit to them I couldn't name 0:10:32.679 --> 0:10:35.320 ten artists on the top fifty chart when I got here. 0:10:35.720 --> 0:10:38.520 I really, you know, I said to the folks in 0:10:38.559 --> 0:10:41.600 New York, I know how to run businesses, but I'm 0:10:41.640 --> 0:10:43.320 going to have to learn all this stuff. You sure 0:10:43.520 --> 0:10:45.240 that I'm the guy? Yeah, you get down there and 0:10:45.280 --> 0:10:49.240 do that. Well, yeah, you'd find people. Um, Mike Dungan 0:10:49.360 --> 0:10:52.600 wanted to help me. Joe competitors wanted to help me. 0:10:52.920 --> 0:10:57.160 It was uncanny, you know, Ultimately they wanted to be competitors. 0:10:57.600 --> 0:11:02.800 Troy Tomlinson wanted to help me a publisher. Um, because 0:11:03.800 --> 0:11:10.200 it my enthusiasm begot their wanting. Man, I want this 0:11:10.200 --> 0:11:13.480 guy to succeed. And then some stuff happened that you know, 0:11:13.679 --> 0:11:17.240 ingratiated me to the community. The the head of the 0:11:17.280 --> 0:11:19.959 c m A was ousted and I was asked to 0:11:20.880 --> 0:11:23.880 run the what do you call it? The search committee 0:11:24.160 --> 0:11:27.320 that ultimately led to us bringing in Sarah Trey Hern. 0:11:27.360 --> 0:11:29.160 And we did such a good job with that. God 0:11:29.160 --> 0:11:31.400 bless you, Sarah Trey Hearn. That they asked me to 0:11:31.440 --> 0:11:34.720 be the chairman of the c m A board. And 0:11:34.720 --> 0:11:38.559 and so I'm kind of pinching myself. A kid from 0:11:38.559 --> 0:11:42.920 punk Stani, Pennsylvania via New York City who couldn't have 0:11:43.000 --> 0:11:45.960 named ten artists on the chart is the head of 0:11:45.960 --> 0:11:48.440 the c m A board five years into coming down here. 0:11:49.880 --> 0:11:53.200 I think that people know, and this is self aggrandizing, 0:11:53.240 --> 0:11:55.680 but I think they know. I'm sincere. I just want 0:11:55.720 --> 0:11:59.719 good ship to happen. We allowed to curse where do 0:11:59.760 --> 0:12:02.080 you want? Okay, that's the rules. Since the car's words 0:12:02.080 --> 0:12:06.640 are okay, I'm closing my speech tonight. I'll give you 0:12:06.640 --> 0:12:09.480 a preview. Is that what you have there? Your speech? 0:12:09.520 --> 0:12:11.679 You you just know this is just some notes in 0:12:11.720 --> 0:12:17.520 case I forgot who's signed to my label. That's funny, uh, 0:12:17.559 --> 0:12:21.280 But by speech tonight to close this Hall of Fame event, 0:12:22.080 --> 0:12:24.040 says you know. But when all is said and done, 0:12:24.280 --> 0:12:26.880 you know, while I'd love to give you a great advice, 0:12:27.280 --> 0:12:29.400 the only right, real advice I can give you is 0:12:29.800 --> 0:12:34.120 signed great and our people and get the fucking record played. Yeah, 0:12:34.200 --> 0:12:35.680 I mean it's a two B. If you can do that, 0:12:35.679 --> 0:12:37.600 everything else just kind of falls in and solve every 0:12:37.600 --> 0:12:39.959 problem in the world with three minutes and thirty seconds 0:12:39.960 --> 0:12:44.520 of magic. Whenever you talk about magic, and I say, 0:12:45.160 --> 0:12:48.200 what magic comes to mind? And that's such a vague question. 0:12:48.240 --> 0:12:50.040 But the three minutes and thirty seconds can be any 0:12:50.040 --> 0:12:53.160 song that you as a head believed in quickly and 0:12:53.200 --> 0:12:56.000 said that's it. Because again, you're a player. People to 0:12:56.080 --> 0:12:58.480 know this too. You're when you love music. It's not 0:12:58.559 --> 0:13:01.240 just listening like you are musical in every way. You're 0:13:01.240 --> 0:13:03.400 not torious. People come and play with you in your office, 0:13:03.400 --> 0:13:06.120 like after the CMA. Sorry, what what's the magic for 0:13:06.160 --> 0:13:09.760 you that when you think that song was magic? Immediately, well, 0:13:09.800 --> 0:13:12.920 I can tell you a few pop to my head 0:13:13.080 --> 0:13:16.440 when you say that. And then I want to go 0:13:16.480 --> 0:13:18.720 back to a little Blake Shelton story. But I remember 0:13:18.720 --> 0:13:23.520 when Blake was second guessing himself, he already had number 0:13:23.559 --> 0:13:26.800 one records and thinking, well, maybe they don't care about 0:13:26.840 --> 0:13:30.160 me anymore. And I went to a dinner with him 0:13:30.200 --> 0:13:34.760 and Gwen Um and you know. We both were telling him, 0:13:34.880 --> 0:13:39.720 you know, get over that. You know people want you, 0:13:40.440 --> 0:13:42.360 and he said, well, I got something booked for the 0:13:42.400 --> 0:13:45.439 studio on Monday. I don't know. I just don't know, 0:13:45.960 --> 0:13:49.920 you know anyhow, And on Thursday Walks a song called 0:13:49.960 --> 0:13:54.600 God's Country. As soon as we heard the demo, Blake 0:13:54.679 --> 0:13:58.640 sends me the most hilarious texts in the world, many 0:13:58.720 --> 0:14:04.040 of which I couldn't uh but anybody ever see. Um, 0:14:04.080 --> 0:14:07.680 But it was you know, I actually wish I could 0:14:07.679 --> 0:14:09.400 find that one right now and share it with you, 0:14:09.480 --> 0:14:12.080 but it would be something along the lines of ESPO. 0:14:13.840 --> 0:14:19.880 I think I just found money, real money. And I said, okay, Scott, 0:14:19.960 --> 0:14:23.360 send me this song. And I hear the demo of 0:14:23.360 --> 0:14:27.640 of God's Country. There's an artist on Thursday morning, not 0:14:27.680 --> 0:14:29.720 sure he wants to go to the studio, who puts 0:14:29.720 --> 0:14:32.160 out the biggest song of his career that it's recorded 0:14:32.200 --> 0:14:35.200 three days later, and you knew the magic of that song, 0:14:35.520 --> 0:14:38.040 and you knew that he was going to deliver it. 0:14:38.360 --> 0:14:40.920 I felt the same thing, um a lot when I 0:14:41.000 --> 0:14:45.040 heard a demo which my buddy Dan Smires is still 0:14:45.080 --> 0:14:48.000 piste off at me about of from the ground up, 0:14:48.880 --> 0:14:51.240 and it was with a little drum machine and an 0:14:51.280 --> 0:14:54.720 acoustic guitar, and you just knew that song was gonna 0:14:55.440 --> 0:15:00.280 change people's lives. It such a resonance, such a um, 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:03.800 such a such an amazing message in it. I started 0:15:03.800 --> 0:15:05.680 playing it for a few people who came in the office, 0:15:05.680 --> 0:15:07.160 and the word got back to him, and he says, 0:15:07.520 --> 0:15:09.880 don't you ever do that again? You know, he's he's 0:15:09.920 --> 0:15:14.200 one of these the finished product only guys. He you know, 0:15:15.200 --> 0:15:18.800 we're Smiers is a club super close to us, and 0:15:19.000 --> 0:15:22.080 Caitlin and Abbey are really great friends. And Dan is 0:15:22.760 --> 0:15:25.840 no c d guying myself everything, it's got to be 0:15:25.840 --> 0:15:29.720 in the exact order. He's a he's a perfectionist um. 0:15:29.760 --> 0:15:32.360 And I was telling him that you guys did such 0:15:32.360 --> 0:15:35.640 a good job yourself, your team, Dan and Shay from 0:15:35.720 --> 0:15:38.480 that song, because that was a graduation for them, whenever 0:15:38.520 --> 0:15:40.800 you guys did for the ground up. Because I remember 0:15:40.800 --> 0:15:42.600 the I still remember the visuals, and I see visuals 0:15:42.600 --> 0:15:45.480 of everything all the time. I'm constantly inundated with new music, 0:15:45.480 --> 0:15:47.280 new clips, new content, what about this, what about I 0:15:47.280 --> 0:15:48.880 remember what you guys did and how you built the 0:15:49.200 --> 0:15:52.000 that like the church, that all of it, all the 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:55.840 aesthetic for that song. You graduated them at that point 0:15:55.920 --> 0:15:58.640 because you believed in that song so much, and so 0:15:58.680 --> 0:16:00.240 as you say that, that to me was a big 0:16:00.240 --> 0:16:02.800 point of Dan and Jay's career because they had they 0:16:02.840 --> 0:16:04.960 did the work, and you guys believed in it so 0:16:05.080 --> 0:16:07.320 much that you pushed it and it was massive and 0:16:07.320 --> 0:16:10.120 it led them to the next graduation step. You've gotta 0:16:10.120 --> 0:16:12.640 be proud of those guys. I am. I'll tell you 0:16:12.680 --> 0:16:16.880 if anny story about Dan and Shaye. I was riding 0:16:16.920 --> 0:16:22.480 to a studio to meet Jay Joyce, a producer of 0:16:22.480 --> 0:16:26.920 of Very Much Notoriety here in town, and on the 0:16:26.960 --> 0:16:33.840 way Ben Vaughan, who runs the Warner publishing company Warner Chapel, said, 0:16:33.840 --> 0:16:37.160 I got this new song from this duo called ragtop Red. 0:16:37.240 --> 0:16:42.720 You've gotta listen to it, and on comes UM nineteen. 0:16:42.760 --> 0:16:46.760 You and me, I think it's damn near the finished product. 0:16:46.800 --> 0:16:49.680 We ended up putting out. I said, ragtop Red, what's that? 0:16:49.720 --> 0:16:51.400 He goes, You just got to meet these guys. So 0:16:51.440 --> 0:16:55.040 the next day I had Dan and Shay in my 0:16:55.160 --> 0:16:59.080 office and you know, you you do these auditions and 0:16:59.120 --> 0:17:02.880 you think they're gonna lie about forty five minutes. There 0:17:02.880 --> 0:17:04.720 are some you wish were over in ten minutes, but 0:17:04.760 --> 0:17:07.640 you still have to be courteous, right. I never wanted 0:17:07.640 --> 0:17:09.760 anybody they got their final moment to get there in 0:17:09.800 --> 0:17:13.400 front of the head of a label. You know. Well, 0:17:13.440 --> 0:17:16.240 after about ten songs, I'm looking over at Scott Hendricks, 0:17:16.240 --> 0:17:18.119 our ahead of eight, R, A and R at the 0:17:18.119 --> 0:17:21.800 time and ultimately the producer of eighty number one records 0:17:21.800 --> 0:17:25.680 in this format, and I'm like nodding. He's giving me 0:17:25.680 --> 0:17:27.960 a little nod, but you know, we've never done this before, 0:17:28.000 --> 0:17:30.840 and I'm like on my fifth nod, and I finally said, 0:17:31.240 --> 0:17:34.240 you guys are signing to Warner today. You're not leaving 0:17:34.320 --> 0:17:37.159 until you're signing to Warner. Okay. I went over and 0:17:37.200 --> 0:17:38.840 I locked the door, and I said, what do you 0:17:38.840 --> 0:17:43.160 want to drink? It turned into six hours in my office, 0:17:43.240 --> 0:17:47.320 them playing one smash after another, and then I realized 0:17:47.320 --> 0:17:49.560 they didn't have a pot to piston. So I called 0:17:49.640 --> 0:17:51.960 up my wife and said, Sean, tell but you please 0:17:52.400 --> 0:17:55.520 cook dinner for them. Cook dinner for them five nights 0:17:55.520 --> 0:17:58.400 in a row over in that Bell meat house, and 0:17:58.480 --> 0:18:00.560 just said, I'm telling you I'm not letting you go 0:18:00.600 --> 0:18:04.720 on too. You become Warner brothers artists here and you 0:18:04.800 --> 0:18:09.240 know that thankfully it worked out. What about ragtop Red? 0:18:09.240 --> 0:18:11.000 How did you convince them to lose? Oh yeah, I 0:18:11.000 --> 0:18:14.920 forgot that part of the Well. Yeah, I mean a 0:18:15.160 --> 0:18:17.480 very good name, you know. And it also doesn't represent 0:18:17.600 --> 0:18:22.240 them top Bread, it didn't walot so too funny pieces 0:18:22.240 --> 0:18:25.879 in this vignette. I have a Steeler's wall in my 0:18:26.040 --> 0:18:29.320 office because I grew up in the Pittsburgh area, and 0:18:29.760 --> 0:18:32.720 Dan Smiers walks right up to and stairs at it, 0:18:32.800 --> 0:18:37.040 and I said, you're not from Cleveland, are you? No? No, 0:18:37.080 --> 0:18:39.440 I'm from Pittsburgh. I'm thinking good, I got one. I 0:18:39.520 --> 0:18:43.480 got one here. Hey, guys, But about that name? And 0:18:43.680 --> 0:18:45.920 without mr a beat, they said, oh, we hate that name. 0:18:45.920 --> 0:18:48.200 We dropped it. We're Dan in Shay And I thought, 0:18:48.520 --> 0:18:52.040 I don't have to have that. Goddamn but that's funny. 0:18:52.040 --> 0:18:53.879 So that was it. That was what we already thought it. 0:18:54.119 --> 0:18:58.320 We're just um. Whenever it came to the branding of 0:18:58.359 --> 0:19:04.080 those guys, that and that cross, that whatever that is, like, 0:19:04.160 --> 0:19:07.160 that's what I think of when I think of them. 0:19:07.240 --> 0:19:10.760 That decision obviously had to be okayed by you as well, 0:19:11.400 --> 0:19:14.000 because it's Dan and shake. Even that little thing that 0:19:14.119 --> 0:19:16.399 is so branded, is so important. Do you remember when 0:19:16.440 --> 0:19:22.159 you get settled on that even well you do. I'm 0:19:22.480 --> 0:19:25.440 you'll laugh as I say this. We love those guys. 0:19:25.480 --> 0:19:27.600 There are certain things you just don't argue with. So 0:19:27.640 --> 0:19:30.400 it was them that was that, Yeah, it's good, it's good, 0:19:30.400 --> 0:19:34.040 it works if it makes you feel good, you know, um, 0:19:34.119 --> 0:19:38.240 and you know we It probably created a little confusion 0:19:38.240 --> 0:19:40.600 in the early days in terms of what is it? 0:19:40.680 --> 0:19:43.800 Is it Dan plus you know, yeah, you get a 0:19:43.840 --> 0:19:47.159 couple of hit records, people forget yeah exactly, and they 0:19:47.240 --> 0:19:49.880 learn it. They forget that they were confused, and they 0:19:50.080 --> 0:19:58.320 learn it forever. That's right. Um. I remember talking to 0:19:58.400 --> 0:20:02.000 John Peaks a little bit when I first came to town, 0:20:02.640 --> 0:20:04.720 who was always super nice to me, who another who 0:20:04.760 --> 0:20:06.040 was a guy by the way, didn't go to dinner 0:20:06.040 --> 0:20:07.960 with him, and he's not a record executive, but he 0:20:08.040 --> 0:20:10.840 was a guy to whom gonna pull me aside and 0:20:10.960 --> 0:20:15.240 was like, yeah, you're different like me, and it ain't 0:20:15.240 --> 0:20:18.280 gonna be easy for people like you. And here's some 0:20:18.280 --> 0:20:20.480 stuff that I've been through. And again, I was so 0:20:20.520 --> 0:20:23.280 appreciative to that. And I never listen to music with 0:20:23.280 --> 0:20:25.000 people because one it's awkward to just nod your head 0:20:25.040 --> 0:20:26.440 and be like, yeah, I could. You always have to 0:20:26.440 --> 0:20:28.719 act like you like it even if you don't. But 0:20:28.480 --> 0:20:31.199 he played me this artist and he said, you know, 0:20:31.280 --> 0:20:34.399 we're not really doing much with her now, but we 0:20:34.440 --> 0:20:36.400 really believe in her and there's gonna be some There's 0:20:36.400 --> 0:20:38.920 gonna be something here when we figure out exactly how 0:20:38.960 --> 0:20:40.800 to do it, because what it is is awesome. And 0:20:40.880 --> 0:20:44.040 he played me Ashley McBride because she's from Arkansas like myself, 0:20:44.840 --> 0:20:46.280 and he kind of used that as a conduit to 0:20:46.320 --> 0:20:48.800 get to playing the music. And what you guys have 0:20:48.800 --> 0:20:54.400 been able to do with Ashley it feels very strategically 0:20:54.720 --> 0:20:58.880 awesomely non traditional. How you made her a star and 0:21:00.240 --> 0:21:03.960 to see her be a superstar now is her talent, 0:21:04.040 --> 0:21:07.280 but also you your talent. You guys this talent. To 0:21:07.640 --> 0:21:10.520 sign Ashley McBride and have a vision for her, I 0:21:10.520 --> 0:21:13.280 imagine there was I don't know what were there a 0:21:13.320 --> 0:21:14.760 lot of meetings like what kind of artists do we 0:21:14.760 --> 0:21:16.240 want her to be even though she already knows who 0:21:16.240 --> 0:21:23.119 she is. No meetings to have that discussion. Um. I 0:21:23.160 --> 0:21:26.199 saw actually maybe six years before we signed her, and 0:21:26.240 --> 0:21:32.439 there was no doubt she was incredibly talented, but um 0:21:31.880 --> 0:21:36.439 M not ready and she admits that too. Why not 0:21:36.480 --> 0:21:40.160 What does that mean? Not ready? Um? Green The songs 0:21:40.200 --> 0:21:44.359 weren't captivating, Um the performance was you could tell, you 0:21:44.400 --> 0:21:46.520 know that she could sing. She might have been over 0:21:46.600 --> 0:21:49.800 singing some of it. You know, you're young, you're trying 0:21:49.840 --> 0:21:57.040 to impress and and god, I really just can't um. 0:21:57.080 --> 0:21:59.520 Even though I play guitar and I played drums and 0:21:59.560 --> 0:22:02.760 I play in bands, I haven't had audition to audition 0:22:03.320 --> 0:22:07.040 in in front of a bunch of wankers from this business. 0:22:07.320 --> 0:22:12.560