I'm a musician and host of The Unstarving Musician podcast. Subscribe for conversations with working musicians, creative pros and industry professionals on the craft and business of sustainable creative careers.
Unstarving Musician | The only opinion that matters in music (according to a 2x Grammy A&R)
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Happy Friday! After 35 years of evaluating artists at the highest levels of the major-label system, what does an A&R executive actually believe matters? Pete Ganbarg served as President of A&R at Atlantic Records from 2018 to 2024, capping nearly 16 years at the label. He now runs Pure Tone Music, sits on the Songwriters Hall of Fame board, and teaches at Berklee, NYU, Wesleyan, and the University of New Haven. He's seen what works, what doesn't, and what artists keep getting wrong. Insights from our conversationThe audience is the only judge The bar is quality Relationships are 50% (and so is showing up) 🎧 Where to listen (plus show notes and related links) Want the implementation-depth resources?Liner Notes Insider goes deeper than a podcast episode can. Recent editions have covered things like royalty recovery tool kits, release planning templates, and revenue comparison calculators — the implementation layer beneath the episodes. If you’re not yet a Liner Notes subscriber, the free edition covers highlights from this and 300+ conversations. Liner Notes Insider gets you the complete frameworks.
This episode is brought to you by Podcast Startup.Whether you're launching your first episode or adding video to your show, Podcast Startup eliminates the guesswork with the systems and strategies I've developed from producing 250+ podcast episodes—without the trial-and-error that cost me months. Learn more at UnstarvingMusician.com/PodcastStartup. 🎧 Episode notes and related links Peace, love and more cowbell, Support the Unstarving MusicianIf you find value in this podcast, please consider a donation via our online tip jar – click, tip, done. Or visit UnstarvingMusician.com/CrowdSponsor to learn about the many other ways of showing your support. Your support = love 💟 Share this email and/or read it on the web Stay in touch! Feedback, comments, complaints? Reply to this email. I'd love to hear from you. 📭 Where to Listen to The Unstarving Musician Click here to listen on Apple Podcasts Click here to listen on Overcast Click here to listen on Spotify Click here to listen on YouTube Click here to listen on Pandora |
The Unstarving Musician
I'm a musician and host of The Unstarving Musician podcast. Subscribe for conversations with working musicians, creative pros and industry professionals on the craft and business of sustainable creative careers.
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