I was recently interviewed by a UT student as part of her final project. Thought I'd share...enjoy!!

1. What is your job title and what are your top three responsibilities?

I'm a radio promoter - I am the liaison between the artist I represent and the radio station.

I promote artists and albums to Americana, Triple A, College, and Folk/Roots radio stations.

I track album spins reported to the national AMA and FMQB charts, and the international FAR report.

I schedule interviews, ticket and cd giveaways during the artists tours, and I organize and coordinate other promotional campaigns ("Win it Before You Can Buy It" etc).


2. What is your educational background ? high school, college, post grad?

I attended San Marcos High School (Go Rattlers!)

I earned my BBA in Music Business at Belmont University in Nashville, TN in 2001. (At the time, it was the only university in the nation that offered a Business Degree in Music Business.)


3. Briefly describe your career path from your first job through today.

Not sure how brief I can be - I've actually been in the music industry for over a quarter century (and I'm 32)...I began to perform professionally as a fiddler/vocalist alongside my dad when I was eight years old, playing everything from fairs and festivals throughout the Southwest to the Democratic National Convention to dance halls and bars across Texas.

At Belmont, I interned at Virgin Records and Major Bob Publishing, and co-produced several artist showcases at the Ryman Auditorium (where I discovered my love for helping artists on their road to success).

After earning my degree, I returned to Texas where I began a career in music promotion and preservation. I was the Program Director for the Center for Texas Music History at Texas State University in San Marcos; Events Coordinator for Documentary Arts, Inc. in Dallas; and Director of Label Promotions for Compadre Records in Houston.

I started my own business, Jenni Finlay Promotions in 2006, and it's been going strong for 5 years now - my roster includes James McMurtry, Gurf Morlix, Ray Wylie Hubbard, HalleyAnna, Ben Kweller, Kinky Friedman, Matt The Electrician, Slaid Cleaves, Lincoln Durham, Danny Barnes, Bobby Long, Dawes, Mike McClure, Joe Pug, and many more.


4. Which job(s) did you think was/were the most beneficial in advancing your career?

Understanding the life of a touring musician has helped (for example, I know better than to schedule a 6 am filmed radio interview the day after a late night show or 8 hour drive. haha). Also, I found that working at a small, hands-on record label - like Virgin-Nashville or Compadre - is a great way to learn the ropes. From mailroom intern to label-head, you'll learn the ins and outs of what everyone does.


a. Which job did you like the best? Which job did you like the least?

Jenni Finlay Promotions is my passion. And I do it well. As much as I loved to perform in my youth, I much prefer promoting the artists and singer-songwriters (that are more talented than I could ever be), than performing myself at this point. I'm extremely selective about which projects and artists I take on. I only represent projects that I absolutely love, which makes promoting them a joy.

I never was much of a bartender.

5. What is the biggest challenge you've faced in your career?

Ensuring Billy Joe Shaver makes it to his instudio. haha.

Seriously, I work extremely hard for the artists I represent, pushing for the top spins, best interview slots, etc. But, like the old saying goes, "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink," at the end of the day, I have to remember that I can't want it more than the artist does. It's his/her career, after all. And sometimes, no matter how good the opportunity may be, the artist - for whatever reason - may miss it.
The challenge is to move forward, without pause or regret, knowing that (for the most part) opportunities have a way of coming back around. And next time might be the break that the artist has always been waiting for.


6. What project was the most fun to work on and why?

It's always a wild ride working with Ben Kweller. And there's no one more inventive and "out-of-the-box" than Danny Barnes or Steve Poltz.

The first record I ever worked to radio was James McMurtry's Live in Aught-Three. I've worked with him ever since, going on 8 years and 5 records now. I truly believe that working with James will prove to be the most fun, rewarding, educational, and notable time of my life. Everything I know about record promotion (and most of the things I know about the music industry in general), I learned while working a McMurtry album.


7. What advice would you have for students who want to go into that field?

Be nice. Memories are very long in this business. And if you suddenly become known as a thoughtless jackass, you may find yourself fighting your ghost for many years to come.


8. What are some of the biggest changes you?ve seen in your career as far as the skills and the tools you use to accomplish your work? Ex. New media

There will always be the "Next Big Thing."

I went to college in the days of AOL Instant Messenger and Napster. By the time I graduated, both were pretty much obsolete. I learned not to get too comfortable - there will always be something around the bend that will blow the current technology out of the water. The trick is to always be anticipating what's around that corner.

The way people communicate and buy records is in a constant state of evolution. Today, you can purchase a song while watching the video on YouTube. There are widgets available that allow you to purchase albums without having to leave your Facebook chat. It's so much easier to discover new music...and there is so much more music to discover. Artists have to be original and creative to stand out.

Back in the 'olden days' (haha), you would launched a record, which would launch a nationwide tour...which would fuel the 2nd single, video and international dates. Radio stations would spin the record in anticipation of a live show in their area (and the chance to have you on-air).

The success of the record and success of the tour would feed off of each other. You could zip around the world promoting your record for about a year, building your bank and buzz for the next release.

The economy has affected the music industry significantly. Today, records don't sell the way they used to. Record stores are closing, and artists now need to tour more than ever, just to make a living. But touring has become more costly and difficult as well. You can't drive around the country at $3.75 a gallon unless you're filling venues each night. You can't fill the venues unless you do your due diligence to promote the show (ie. press, radio, blogs, social media, etc). You're fiercely competing for the attention of the ADD generation. As a result, everyone has had to become more clever and inventive.

Michael Nesmith very well may have the wave of the future. From Sand City, CA, he has a revolutionary virtual venue called VideoRanch. It allows people from all around the world to attend, hang out, dance, chat and cheer at a live performance in real time...from the comfort of their homes.

But who knows what's next? You just have to be ready for it.


9. Is there any area you wish you had more training in?

I'm always discovering new techniques to best promote my artists. I think that - no matter what you do - in order to excel, you should always be eager to learn everything you can...the new technology, the old school tricks...to find the methods that work most effectively for you and your client.