Show Notes
This week on the New Music Business podcast, Ari sits down with Ash Avildsen, founder of Sumerian Records. Ash shares the story of building one of the most influential independent labels in modern rock and metal, from booking DIY tours in the MySpace era to helping artists break into arenas.
During this episode, Ari and Ash dive into artist development, the evolution of touring, music video economics, social media virality, the ethics of tour buy-ons, and why building an artist brand matters more than ever. Ash also opens up about expanding Sumerian into film, the future of entertainment brands, and why he believes music videos deserve a better business model.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sumerianrecords/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sumerianrecords
Check out Ari’s Take: https://aristake.com
04:21 - Ash’s Journey from Touring Musician to Founding Sumerian Records 08:04 - Why Ash Left Booking to Focus Fully on the Label 12:00 - MySpace, TikTok, and How Artists Break Today 17:30 - Scenes, Community, and the Evolution of Heavy Music 22:16 - Artist Development and Getting Bands to Their First 500 Tickets 25:22 - The Ethics and Reality of Tour Buy-Ons 31:49 - Discovering Artists in the Streaming Era 35:15 - Why Music Videos Still Matter 49:00 - Building Sumerian Beyond Music Into Film and Media 56:00 - Ticketing, Industry Frustrations, and What It Means to “Make It”
Edited and mixed by Ruben Zarate Music by Brassroots District Produced by the team at Ari’s Take
Order the THIRD EDITION of How to Make It in the New Music Business: https://book.aristake.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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