Industry Profile: Rishon Blumberg

— By Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen

Rishon Blumberg is a co-partner in Brick Wall Management. He began his career in the music business while in college as the talent buyer for the University of Pennsylvania where he booked Living Colour, De La Soul, Blues Traveler, Cypress Hill, The Indigo Girls and others. He then had short stints at Major Music (artist management: G-Love &Special Sauce, Fun Lovin' Criminals), Susan Blond PR, and in the Epic Records marketing department.

Rishon then went on tour with Natalie Merchant, handling her merchandising and acting as assistant tour manager. After this, he worked in concert promotion at Nederlander Concerts and then DelsenerSlater Entertainment (now owned by Clear Channel Entertainment), where he worked on the promotion, sales and marketing of shows for artists as diverse as Smashing Pumpkins, Soul Coughing, Sonic Youth, Alanis Morrisette, Hole, Rancid,and others.

In 1995 Rishon and Michael Solomon formed Brick Wall Management, an artist management and entertainment-consulting firm. As a partner in Brick Wall, Rishon co-manages all of the company's artists and is on the board of advisors for Musicians On Call. Current clients are John Mayer (co-managed with Michael McDonald/Mick Management), The Clarks and Marc Broussard; past clients have included Martin Sexton, Velocity Girl, Marcy Playground, Tuscadero, Cinnamon, Dogma and others. Brick Wall Management has also consulted for Jon Landau Management and StarPolish, and administers The Kristen Ann Carr Fund.

The consultation for Jon Landau Management included industry VIP ticketing/credentials for the 1999-2000 U.S. Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band world tour; press, label and promoter relations for the European Springsteen tour; talent coordination for the Shania Twain CBS-TV winter special; talent coordination for Natalie Merchant's Rosie television show appearance; and press, label and promoter relations for the first leg of Natalie Merchant's Tigerlily tour. Brick Wall has also consulted for the NARAS Grammy Showcase in New York for the two years it existed and oversaw all activities for the national showcase that was held in Los Angeles. They also consulted for Miramax on the soundtrack for Crow II.

Do you miss being a talent buyer?
In many ways I feel that I've never stopped being one. I still derive the most pleasure from putting shows together and seeing the fans get off on the band. But as for working on the promoter side, nah. I was fortunate enough to have some great learning experiences starting in college and then Nederlander and Delsener/Slater to realize that there were only certain aspects of promoting that I truly enjoyed. Happily those aspects can still be a part of my life.

Do you miss being a tour manager?
I never really tour managed. I assisted, did merch and have spent some extended time on the road sort of tour managing an artist that we managed. Life on the road is not really for me. I love going out for a few days at a time but I've found that I'm best in the office where my own chaotic style can find a little more structure. Some people are road people and some are not, I'm not. It gives me the utmost respect for those that are though. I view the role of the tour manager (and all tour personnel) as paramount to the success of an artist on the road. If you've got a good one, it makes all the difference. We've been very fortunate to have worked with a bunch of great ones.

Why did you become a manager?
I was always very entrepreneurial. I started when I was about 16 and I've never looked back. I had several jobs/internships that allowed me to see a variety of sides of the business and that's when I realized that I didn't want to be restricted to just one thing. I also found out that I was terrible at working for other people. Management satisfied so many of the things I wanted to do in my life - it was a perfect fit.

How did you find John Mayer?
It's one of those right-place-at-the-right-time kind of stories. Michael McDonald, who is John's chosen manager and who also runs ATO Records, is represented by the same lawyer (Elliot Groffman) that works with our company. A few months prior to the release of John's debut album, Room For Squares, Michael had mentioned to Elliot that he was interested in partnering with someone and we happened to be the lucky folks he partnered with. The funny thing is that we had coincidentally seen John twice at SXSW a month prior. It was a great fit from the start. The fact that Michael Solomon and I have been partners since the inception of Brick Wall Management made it a much easier for us to partner with Michael McDonald and make the 1+1= more than 2. Michael McDonald has limitless capabilities and is not only a great manager but is a real mensh (Yiddish not Peter). We've learned tons from the entire experience and we'd relish the opportunity to be involved with Michael in any number of other ways. I can't say enough good stuff about the guy.

What makes a good manager?
Passion, attention to detail without losing focus on the big picture and an endless capacity to deal with BS. Knowing which fights to pick is crucial.

What do you look for in an agent?
The key is the right cross-section of attention and connections. I really like to work hand in hand with the agents that we're involved with. To me, that's the most important part of my job. I'd much rather work with an artist that has a growing live base so I spend a lot of time focusing on that. Again, we've been fortunate to work with agents who are great and jibe with our way of doing things.

How have you used the Internet to help market and break your artists?
The Internet can play a wide variety of roles in helping to break artists. At the early stages, it's a great way to spread the word about an artist. It was very helpful in the development of John and continues to play a vital roll we're using the Internet extensively in the development of Marc Broussard. The Internet has really put the ability to connect directly with fans into artist/management's hands and we try to leverage that as much as possible.

As a management company, Brick Wall does more than manage artists.
From the start, we've tried to involve ourselves with things beyond just management. Again, it has something to do with the fact that my partner, Michael Solomon, and I derive great pleasure from working on a wide variety of projects. In the cases of The Kristen Ann Carr Fund and Musicians On Call, we also have a very strong desire to give back any chance we get. There are three projects that we've been very proud and honored to be a part of - 1) The Kristen Ann Carr Fund; 2) Musicians On Call; and 3) StarPolish.

1. The Kristen Ann Carr Fund is an organization named after a good friend of mine, and daughter of Springsteen co-manager Barbara Carr and rock historian Dave Marsh. Kristen died of sarcoma when she was 21 (a little over 10 years ago). Each year, we hold a massive event for around 1,000 people. It's one of the main fundraisers of the year and consistently nets more than a quarter of a million dollars. Our entire office spends a large part of the year working on the event - it's a wonderful and always challenging experience.

2. Musicians On Call is an organization founded by my partner, Michael Solomon and friend Vivek Tiwary (see below), initially as an offshoot of The Kristen Ann Carr Fund. MOC helps to bring the healing power of music to healthcare facilities. Now in its fourth year, MOC is a self-sufficient, stand-alone organization that has it's own dedicated, full-time staff. The primary goal of MOC is to bring musicians to hospitals and healthcare facilities to perform for patients, so money generated goes to funding those programs (and others).

3. Our good friend and co-founder of MOC, Vivek Tiwary, founded StarPolish. Although StarPolish is a for profit venture, I feel that its mission, to help empower and educate musicians and teach them how to help themselves, is extremely worthy. Brick Wall is proud to have played an integral roll in making StarPolish the best resource for any developing artist or aspiring music exec. With a massive advice library written by music industry professional to the Velvet Rope, StarPolish is a one-stop location for any artist, aspiring music exec or fan. There is no fee to join. The artist/exec has free access to a large number of very detailed articles that cover a wide variety of topics. They can sell CDs (fulfilled by CDBaby), create a web page, and take advantage of their large resources database. Those that set up a web page and put MP3s up have the opportunity to be reviewed by StarPolish's staff of artist reviewers. There are frequent columns about a wide variety of music/entertainment related topics written by people like Dave Marsh, Michael Goldberg, Gail Worley, etc. The site is www.starpolish.com.

What kind of tour support do you look for from record labels?
If possible, we try not to take any tour support. In some ways it's like a badge of honor and in others it's just a smart way to ensure that your artist recoups. That being said, we've been fortunate with the kinds of artists we've worked with - either they've had a large enough base not to need it or they're able to tour extremely cheaply until their revenue catches up. Beyond just the financial aspects of tour support, we like to work hand in hand with the tour marketing departments to help ensure that the shows we play are maximized. We work with them to set up in-stores where it makes sense, to make sure the promoter has the promo tools they need, make sure tour press is being sought, radio visits where appropriate, etc. We also utilize our own band rep programs and ask that the label support this by servicing promo items to reps.

How do you feel about the free downloading of music on the Internet?
There is no doubt that downloading is here to stay. There's also no doubt that free downloading is both hurting the industry as well as many established artists. But, I also think that free downloading and file sharing has helped to put a wide variety of artists on the map, helped them develop a "real" following and afforded them the opportunity to percolate before a major or indie steps in to supply the big push. Eventually, the industry will learn how to harness and monetize (or monatize - both seem to be used frequently) downloading, but just like any entertainment medium, there will continue to be a black market.

First industry job
First paid job was at Nederlander Concerts in NYC. I had hired them to be the middle agent for my school and they were kind enough to repay me with a job.

Career highlights
John Mayer winning a Grammy. Working with all the artists we have managed over the last 7 years (is it really that long!!!).

Career disappointments
Too many to catalogue, but I'm very sad I never had the opportunity to meet Bill Graham.

Greatest challenge/Best business decision
Starting Brick Wall Management at 26 and making it fly.

Best advice you received/best advice to offer
"It's a marathon, not a sprint." Can't remember who said it to me.

Most memorable industry experience
There's no single moment that stands out.

What friends would be surprised to learn about you
That Duran Duran's Rio is one of my favorite albums of all time.

Industry pet peeve
Jaded bitterness.

Office paraphernalia
iPod, flat screen monitors, AIM, headsets.

If I wasn't doing this, I would be...
…doing something else entrepreneurial.

Industry mentor
Everyone at Jon Landau Management. To be honest, I wish I had more people in my life that could help show me how NOT to screw shit up.

Rishon can be reached at 212-501-0748; e-mail: rishon@brickwallmgmt.com