Electric Ibiza might not be a name you recognise straight away, but if you’re into dance music there’s a good chance you’ll have been at an event that they’ve promoted. Do Not Sleep and Cuckoo Land are two brands that the Electric Ibiza team are behind, and at the end of March they’re partnering with Miami legend Jonathan Cowan and the Winter Music Conference to bring six huge pool parties with brands like Defected, Repopulate Mars and Claptone’s ‘Masquerade’ to what is one of the music industry’s most famous weeks.
With decades of experience behind them in promotion, booking, marketing and even artist management, we asked Electric Ibiza founders, Lisa Barraclough and Neil Evans, to share some advice on where to start for anyone who might be considering a career in the music industry.
Get to know the industry
Not everyone is cut out (or wants) to be a DJ or performing on stage, but that’s certainly not the only place to work in the music industry. Take a step back and look at all the different ways you can be involved – you’ve got booking agents, PR, tour managers, social media and marketing teams who work directly with artists, and then there are promoters, production and stage designers, lighting technicians, sound engineers, producers, journalists… The list goes on. Work out what it is that you’re good at and there will almost certainly be a role for you somewhere within the industry.
Network
The music industry is surprisingly small and having the right contacts can make all the difference when you’re looking for an opportunity to get your foot in the door. Get yourself out there – attend as many events as possible and get to know the people involved. But above all, keep in mind that it’s important to be known for the right reasons – reputations are everything and it’s hard to shake a negative one.
Get involved
Everyone has to start somewhere, and that place is usually at the bottom. For example, if you’re interested in working in events, find out who the local promoters are and see how you can help – this could be anything from flyering to selling tickets, working the door or even helping with the logistics of getting the guest DJs from A to B when they’re in town. If you make yourself invaluable, you’ll soon start climbing the ladder, learning skills and gaining contacts on the way.
Organisation is key
If you could see how many emails, WhatsApps and phone calls we get on a daily basis, it might actually put you off pursuing a career in events and music, but you definitely get used to it! There are a lot of moving parts in this industry and it means you are having to interact with a lot of different people about a lot of different issues – inevitably, all at the same time. If you’re organised, you’ll go far – you can’t wing it forever so it’s definitely a key skill which is worth adopting from the start.
Passion
We can’t emphasise this one enough – the music industry is tough and if you don’t love what you do and the product you’re selling, you’ll hate every second. Prepare yourself for a job that requires you to be available 24 hours a day and trying to keep hundreds of plates spinning at once. You’ll have doors slammed in your face regularly and hear the word ‘no’ more than you hear ‘yes’ (or, more likely – no reply at all) – but it’s all worth it when that project you’ve been working on for months all comes together. If you love the music, everything else is easy.
EPIC Pool Parties Miami
03.26 – Official WMC Opening Party w/ Kings of House NYC – Louie Vega B2B David Morales (6 Hour exclusive WMC set)
03.27 – Do Not Sleep w/ Carl Craig, Danny Tenaglia, David Squillace, Emanuel Satie, Darius Syrossian, Steve Lawler, Luigi Madonna, Luca Donzelli, wAFF + more
03.28 – Defected w/ Kenny Dope, Todd Terry, Sam Divine, Riva Starr, Monki, Low Steppa, Josh Butler, Jess Bays, Jacky, Ferreck Dawn
03.29 – Repopulate Mars w/ Lee Foss, MK, Detlef B2B Nathan Barato, Michael Bibi, Eli Brown B2B Mason Maynard, Max Chapman B2B Secondcity B2B Huxley, Prok | Fitch, Danny Howard + more
03.30 – Claptone presents: The Masquerade w/ Claptone, Dennis Ferrer, Franky Rizardo, Weiss, Mat.Joe
03.31 – The EPIC Closing Party w/ Kerri Chandler, DJ Tennis, Mathias Kaden, Victor Calderone + more
EPIC Pool Party Info & Tickets – https://theepicpoolparty.com/
Electric Ibiza – http://electricibiza.com/
Winter Music Conference 2019 – https://wintermusicconference.com/
