Industry Spotlight: Bobby Owsinski

Hello, everyone! We spent the last few weeks running advice columns on Thursday, but earlier this week we decided to make a change in order to share one of our favorite interviews to date a few days early. This is a bit different than our typical conversation, but it’s also one of the most important discussion about the state of the industry we have shared in almost two years of existence.

This blog exists to promote the future of the music industry, and to do that we need input from people like you and your music-loving friends. If you have any questions about the content in this article, or if you have an artist you would like to see featured on this blog, please contact james@haulix.com and share your thoughts. We can also be found on Twitter and Facebook.

It’s not often than I find myself in a position to speak with someone in the industry whose career has been so abundant with accomplishments that I find myself not knowing where to begin our conversation, but earlier this month that exact thing happened as I was dialing author, teacher, consultant, manager, producer, engineer, and general industry extraordinaire Bobby Owsinski. His legacy in music is one that needs no introduction, though I guess this may count as one. He has worked with the biggest names, contributed to some iconic albums, and through it all made sure to connect with young music fans whenever possible. To say he’s lead a life others dream of embarking upon would be an extreme understatement.

I wanted to have Bobby on this blog for longer than I care to remember, and today that dream is finally realized. Enjoy.

H: Hello!

B: So far, so good. It’s still morning for me.

H: How’s the weather in California today?

B: Pretty good, I think. Looks to be about 60 outside.

H: It’s 16 here in Boston, so I think you’re better off.

B: I lived there for a while. It gets rough.

H: For people that aren’t familiar with your work, what would be a good summary of your experience in the music industry.

B: It’s everything from being a musician, to a producer, an engineer, a teacher, an author, a consultant, and many things in between.

H: I know you have taught in the past, but would you say you consider yourself an educator?

B: Well you’re right in that I have been in the past. I taught college, including working at Berklee. I’ve also lectured at other colleges and universities around the globe, so -to a certain degree-yes, I guess I am an educator at some level.

H: I guess I was referring more to your writing. As an author, do you feel you’re writing as a teacher or simply sharing your experience with the reader? Is it a mix of the two?

B: No, it’s actually pretty selfish. There’s usually something that I want to learn about that I don’t feel I know enough about. In the beginning, I thought if I felt that way that perhaps there were other people who did as well. That was later proven to be true. So, in many cases, it’s my own curiosity trying to figure something out. In other cases it’s about gaining a deeper understanding I know already. I have a lot of friends who are considered gurus in many ways, so I know a lot of people who are smarter than me that I can tap into whenever it’s needed.

H: You mentioned living in California, but you’ve also spent time in Boston. Where are you from originally?

B: I’m from Pennsylvania originally. I lived in Boston when I taught at Berklee, but later moved to New Jersey. I’ve been here for a while now, so I feel like a native.

H: Do you feel like piracy is still a concern for the industry, or have bigger issues taken its place?

B: Piracy isn’t really a problem anymore. I shouldn’t say that, as people do still worry, but the fact of the matter is that the entire piracy conversation has been changed by streaming. When I say streaming, I mean everything from Spotify to YouTube. When you can get something for free, or for a low cost, why pirate it?

H: In my mind piracy is still a big issue, but generally only in the lead up to a release. Most people don’t download an album illegally six months after release. If it leaks six weeks early, however, that is an entirely different story.

B: That’s a really good point. I was looking at your website and I saw that, in addition to fighting piracy, you also offer watermarking. I have been hearing more and more discussion about watermarking and its growing importance. It’s not so much for identifying piracy, or at least it doesn’t have to be. It can be used for identifying original versions of tracks versus remixes and alternate cuts. It can highlight the people responsible for the song, including guests and composers.

H: I wanted to get a feel for your thoughts on high quality audio streaming services. Is it a trend worth hopping on, or is it something that will become an industry standard in the near future, thus making services like Deezer unnecessary at this point?

B: There are some services that are completely hi-res, but Deezer’s hi-res is a premium membership tier. I think both will push the conversation in such a way that it becomes a feature that everyone will have to offer. I’m thinking Apple will rebrand BEATS in 2015, and when they do that I think they will make it a hi-res streaming services. The reason I think that is due to the fact Apple has been collecting hi-res files for years. So if anyone can turn on a hi-res services with a gigantic catalog, it’s them.

H: I didn’t know Apple had been doing that.

B: Yes, they have a service called Mastered For iTunes. It was quietly rolled out to labels a few years ago, and basically what they requested was that label upload their highest quality files.

H: While we’re on the topic of high quality music, I also want to talk about the Pono player. A lot of people were quick to write it off, and I guess you did too, but you were at least fair in your takedown. You didn’t write it off as a rushed/useless attempt to get into the market, but rather an idea that may or may not have been outdated by the time it reached consumers.

B: My thought about it this whole time is that the Pono player is a product with limited market potential. There are not a lot people who will be interested in this. If the creators are okay with that, it’s fine. If they’re expecting to make a huge splash, they’re wrong. I think it really comes down to managing expectations.

H: I often wonder what kind of product would need to be introduced into the world of music plays to truly cause disruption at this point. The market seems so flooded as is, how could anyone hope to stand out?

B: Something that is more convenient than what we have now. I can’t say what that is, but if you look at the history of the music business it has evolved every time there is a new technology, and almost always it is more convenient. Cassette topped vinyl because it was portable. It didn’t sound better, but it was portable. CD beat cassettes because they were portable and offered better sound quality. Downloads took the place of CDs, and a few years later streaming appeared. I don’t know what will follow, but it will almost certainly be more convenient.

H: You put out at least four different books in 2014, so I’m curious about what you have on deck for 2015.

B: It’s a busier year so far. I’m pleased to say that I am in demand, so I am going to be speaking at a lot of different places. As far as books, I’m signed on for five more, so I will be working on those. I actually have two right now that exist outside the music industry, and that is kind of exciting in its own way, but yes-there are more music books as well. There is always something on the horizon.

H: You have so much going on right now, but I have to wonder if there is a project or goal you hope to reach this year that you simply haven’t had time for up to this point?

B: Not really because if there is something I have in mind I tend to find a way to do it. I’m sure it has something to do with being at least slightly ADD, but as soon as I finish one thing I’m always off to the next. It’s not that different than many people today though, as we now live in an age of diversity.

H: If you had to pick one of your many projects as the one that typically take priority over the others, what would it be?

B: I do love writing and I gotta say, when I go on vacation I write for five hours a day instead of ten. I don’t have as much time to write today as I once did, but I still try to do it often. If I have a book to finish I will shut out the rest of the world. If it’s in-between, I spend a few hours writing early on and then spend the rest of the day doing other things. The blog helps, as it gives me a reason to write something every day.

H: I’m always curious when speaking with someone who has written more than one book as to whether or not the process of creating a book ever gets easier. Is the twentieth book easier than the third?

B: Yea, absolutely. I tell everyone that a lot of brain cells die during the process of writing a book. After the first book you almost always tell people there won’t be another, but before you know it book number two is taking shape. Just like everything in life, you eventually find a pattern that works. You figure it out over time and then improve.

There’s a method I use and I advocate at least trying it. I call it the ‘three pass method,’ and it works for areas of life outside writing as well. The first pass is a stream of consciousness. I don’t worry about spelling or anything other than getting my ideas out. After that, I take a second pass and figure out the paragraphs, as well as the basic layout. The third pass is where I clean things up and ensure they’re as good as they can be. Sometimes I take a fourth pass as well, but I never go over five. People think they have to be perfect off the bat, but the truth is that writing – like many things – is a long process for most people.

H: Before I let you go, I wanted to ask you for one more piece of advice. We try to gear our posts towards those aspiring to enter the industry, and I was wondering what you tell people who ask you about how they can make it in the entertainment business?

B: Perseverance is more important than talent. I know lots of successful people. Most of them started from nothing, but they stayed the course and persevered. If you stay with it, almost everyone I know has eventually found success. If they made a lot of cash, that’s nice, but it’s really a bonus. They found careers.

There’s a new saying going around the industry today, and it’s pretty fitting. “Making a living is the new success.” There was a time when everyone wanted to be a star in order to be considered a success, but today just being able to cover your bills is an accomplishment.

James Shotwell