Among the most passionate people about music are those who work in the music industry: at labels, as press relation people, as concert promoters, as booking agents, as managers, as music critics, and so on. RREVERB proposes to its readers a series of interviews with passionate music artisans. Today, we meet… CHRISTOPHE PIOT PRESENTATION What’s your name, what’s your role in the company you are presently working at, and since when are you working there? Where are you from and where do you live now? My name is Christophe Piot, CEO of All Right Music and a music Publisher too. I make my residence in Biarritz, South West of France by the Ocean close by the Spanish border. I represent the publishing rights and interests of David Guetta, AIR, Nolwenn Leroy, and theatrical shows such as “Robin Hood”, and I co-manage an amazing Artist named Quentin Mosimann. All Right Music, in partnership with “Premier Muzik International”, in Montreal Canada, handle Neighbouring Rights for many successful international acts such as Avicii, Lady Gaga, Metallica, Lorde, and many others including the fantastic newcomer Stromae. What are Neighbouring Rights and why are they important? Neighbouring Rights are the rights for every performer who are part of a recording session, main artist(s) and additional musicians, Neighbouring Rights are also granted to Master Owners as well. The remuneration/royalties come from private copy (ie: USB Key, Smartphone, blank cds, etc.), radio broadcasting, clubs, public performances and television. Many countries collaborate in paying such royalties, however local rules and regulations make it difficult to collect such royalites for each performer, and this is the main reason we are here to represent the rights of all artists, performers and master owners worldwide. Our efforts in collecting such royalties have been with our partner of 10 years with Premier Muzik in Canada, the North American office. A great team of dedicated people and I am very blessed of this relationship with the Premier Muzik founders, Gino Olivieri and Gino Crescenza. When have you started to work in the music business? I started 30 years ago, with an avid passion for music, and today the passion is stronger than ever. At what age have you started to love music? Since my primal scream 🙂 Christophe Piot et Quentin Mosimann, DJ ABOUT THE MUSIC BUSINESS Is it still possible to make a living with music today? What do you need to do to make ends meet? Yes earning a living in the industry is possible, but you have to constantly reinvent yourself; as there is no established pattern nowadays and one must supply added value to Artists and Labels. I couldn’t dream of a more enjoyable adventure. Who did you meet in your musical path that was key to your development / success? They have been numerous; one is Tom Arena, who hired me at MCA Music as an A&R and at Warner Chappell as Director of the Creative Services. Secondly I would say David Guetta and his business partner Jean Charles Carré. Thirdly was Lalo Schifrin (my first US client) and others would be Joachim Garraud, Fred Riesterer, Francois Bernheim the great French songwriter (Patricia Kaas, Renaud,…) who is so close… and my friends at Shapiro Bernstein Michael Brettler, President and Debbie Rose VP, in NYC and finally my good friends Gino & Gino from Premier Muzik (they are awesome guys). All of these fine people had a major influence in my music career. What would you change about the music business today There’s no business like show business… there is less and less money involved but more and more new comers in the marketplace. Music rights are threatened continuously, highly due to companies not wanting to pay for artist rights. How to survive with streaming income? I would definitely say a bigger slice of the pie for Artists and Songwriters as this can mean the survival or death of them. Which great personal goal have you not achieved yet? I could have been a Writer, but I think I am too business orientated Vinyl, cassette, CD or digital? Digital! It’s today’s music, and sound quality is improving which I believe is really necessary. ON ARTISTS AND MUSIC What are your preferred music genres? I love US and British music. My tastes go from Gershwin to Stevie Wonder, from The Who to Emimen, from Alex Clare to Metallica and including Sam Smith. On a desert island you bring those 5 albums (no more!) o Tumbleweed Connection / Elton John o Songs of The key of Life / Stevie Wonder o Tommy / The Who o I Want You/ Marvin Gaye o Tapestry / Carole King Playlist! Who is the friendliest artist/music celebrity you’ve met? I would have to say David Guetta, he’s smart and loyal. It’s a blessing to work with such an Artist like him. He doesn’t follow trends, he likes to create it, artistically that is amazing. Did you know he’s the most successful French Artist in about 60 years of British pop music, with 6 UK number ones and several top 5’s? I Gotta Feeling, which was co-written with Fred Riesterer, stayed for 14 weeks in top of billboard. It’s one of the biggest song ever. DAVID GUETTA (photo: DMahoney ) Some artists weren’t friendly nor easy to work with. Without naming them, can you pinpoint why or the circumstances of a negative experience? Is ego always the problem? An Artist as any other human being has good and bad days, it’s necessary to be direct and honest it helps a lot in the relationship. You can’t always mix the arts with the real person, a very sensitive writer can also be a sharp business man (which is good) and sometimes is considered a difficult person, but this business is a difficult one, especially when exposing your emotions to the rest of the world. Which brilliant artist should have made it big, but didn’t (yet)? I strongly believe that “Anyone” has a chance but you’d better seize that moment! It’s a huge part of talent. Who would you like to meet? What would you tell/ask them? You can be deceived by the musicians you love, so sometimes it’s better not to meet your heroes and just focus on their music. Thank you Christophe! To find out more about All Right Music, click on their logo below. The French version of this article can be found here Réagissez à cet article / Comment this article commentaires / comments
