Bobby Owsinski's Inner Circle Podcast

My guest this week is Josh Rogosin, who stumbled into NPR headquarters in 1999 on his way to mixing shows at The Shakespeare Theatre in downtown DC. Since then, he has been at the controls for all of NPR's flagship newsmagazines and gathered sound in far flung places like Togo, Cambodia and Greece for the Radio Expeditions series.  Josh has engineered at both NPR West and NPR NY, and spent two years as Technical Director at Marketplace Productions in Los Angeles. He’s also served as Senior Broadcast Engineer for New York Public Radio and Studio 360, and was an originating producer and sound designer for NPR's Ask Me Another. In his current role, Josh is the Technical Director for NPR Music and has recorded and mixed over 500 Tiny Desk Concerts. During the interview we spoke about learning audio for the theater, recording Congressional hearings, using audio to tell stories, behind the scenes at Tiny Desk Concerts, working with U2 and David Crosby, 3and much more. I spoke with Josh via Zoom from his

My guest this week is Temima Shames, who’s the CEO of Next Step Talent, a full service talent management and digital brand agency that’s home to more than 20 music artists, influencers and actors. While in college, Temema worked for Atlantic Records, and Visionary Music Group before jumping into her own management company. Since then her clients have achieved 5B+ YouTube views, a #7 debut Spotify Album, highlights in Youtube’s Black Creator Class of 2023, TikTok’s biggest POV star, and one of NYFW’s creators with the highest brand return of 2023.  Not only that, songs, records, and projects Temima has been a part of have garnered 25 million streams and viral campaigns with more than 2 million recreates on TikTok. Her company has also partnered with top brands including YouTube, Meta, Disney Music Group, BOSS, Neutrogena, HBO, Netflix, Target, Universal Music Group, and NYX Cosmetics.  During the interview we spoke about how she got started managing social influencers, the strategy behind short form a

My guest this week is composer and producer Dren McDonald who has done everything from experimental indie rock to video game music to string quartet chamber music to film and VR animation soundtracks. He has worked with game studios and publishers such as Valve Corporation, Ubisoft, Glu Mobile, DeNA/Hasbro, Romero Games, Zynga, Tapulous, and others, and he’s been nominated for awards for his soundtrack, music and sound design work 16 times and has won 5 times. Dren also created music and audio designs for AR and VR experiences at Facebook, and taught at University of California, Santa Cruz and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. He has released several original game soundtrack releases on Nerdtracks Recordings, as well as instrumental recordings for Appearing Records. During the interview we spoke about how he got into video games, directing voice overs for games, how sound design is different for games than film, working on AR audio for Facebook, his new album built around hundreds of guit

My guest this week is musician Doug Legacy, who’s  one of the founding members of the the Zydeco Party Band, which won an Emmy for being the house band for The Late Mr. Pete Show. The band also provide music for Gilmore Girls, How I Met Your Mother, and The Bucket List starring Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, and Sean Hayes. Doug has also worked as a steel drummer for Rod Stewart, played accordion for Paul McCartney, played piano for Delbert McClinton, and sang background vocals for Brian Wilson and Todd Rundgren. He has puppeteered background characters on Muppets Tonight and his band were featured as the house band for the show as well, and he’s played a pirate at Disneyland playing sea shanties on accordion and penny whistles. During the interview we spoke about who makes the best steel drums, the difference between German and Italian accordions, playing a pirate at Disneyland, playing with Paul McCartney and singing with Todd Rundgren, and much more. I spoke with Doug via Zoom from his studio

My guests this week are Ritch Esra and Eric Knight of Music Business Television. MUBU TV takes music business education out of the classroom using interviews with music heavyweights to help artists empower their careers. Ritch is a former A&R executive at Arista and co-founder of the Music Business Registry, the music industries leading contact directories for personnel in A&R, Music Publishing, Film/Television Music, Music Law and Artist Management. Erick Knight is a musician, teacher and entrepreneur who’s new venture Symbiotic Nation aims to reinvent the entertainment industry by becoming its version of Google. During the interview, we spoke about how labels struggle to break their own artists, the depth of knowledge that artists need to be effective today, the music business journey, the latest trends in the music business, the idea behind MUBU TV, and much more.  I spoke with Ritch and Eric via Zoom. On the intro I’ll take a look at the Metaverse might be further away than we’ve been told,

My guest this week is Dr. Martin Clancy, who’s a musician, academic, and events producer focusing on AI ethics.  Martin completed his PhD on AI's financial and ethical implications in 2021 at Trinity College Dublin, and is the editor of Artificial Intelligence and The Music Ecosystem, a new book on trans-disciplinary AI ethics and human creativity. Martin is also a Certified Ableton Live 11 Trainer who founded the Irish rock group Tua Nua and, as a solo artist, had a series of top 40 hits in the US Billboard Dance Charts. His music is featured in the 2022 Sinead O'Conner Nothing Compares to You Documentary, and recent releases by his melodic techno group Valleraphon have appeared in Beatport Charts. During the interview, we spoke about having unexpected success as a solo artist, being a certified Ableton trainer, the practical use for AI in music, how AI affects copyright, how difficult it is to legislate AI, and much more.  I spoke with Martin via Zoom from his studio in Ireland. On the intro

My guest this week is Jennifer Freed, who founded Trevanna Post in NY after working as a Production Accountant on major motion pictures on both coasts & internationally. Trevanna Post has been the gold standard for Post Production Accounting for more than 26 years, and has grown from a 2 person office in NYC’s historic Brill Building to a firm with offices in NY, Los Angeles and London, staffed by over 50 people. The company has worked with every major, mini-major and independent studio on over 800 film and television shows.  Trevanna Tracks was born out of Jennifer’s unique perspective on the need for more efficient collaboration between those responsible for getting music licenses negotiated, paid and delivered. Jennifer’s access to veteran Film and TV industry experts enabled her to create this new software platform for researching, budgeting, tracking, paying and delivering music licenses. During the interview, we spoke about how she got into film accounting, how film and TV shows set their budget f

My guest this week is Chris Dunnett, who’s helped artists like The Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Luke Bryan and Iron Maiden sell their merch products. Chris knows what sells, why it sells and what doesn’t, and he’s put together his Rock Your Merch bootcamp to make sure that artists and bands make their merch stand out and not make some common mistakes. During the interview, Chris and I spoke about working in Taylor Swift’s warehouse, what most artists don’t get about merch, how to market your merch, how merch has changed through the years, the most important thing you can do to sell merch, and much more.  I spoke with Chris via Zoom from his studio in Nashville. On the intro I’ll take a look at how most songs online are never played, and a new life for a famous console. var podscribeEmbedVars = { epId: 85321857, backgroundColor: 'white', font: undefined, fontColor: undefined, speakerFontColor: undefined, height: '600

My guest this week is the On-Demand songwriter and mastering engineer Mitchell Dyer, who’s on a mission to help other songwriters eliminate their mental blocks and turn their songwriting struggles into a revenue-generating career.  With nearly two decades of songwriting and mastering experience, thousands of artists songs reviewed, and hundreds of songs personally recorded, Mitch has helped dozens of artists break out of their own mental jail.   During the interview, we spoke about what causes songwriters to get stuck, how imposter syndrome can cause writers block, the importance of challenging the listener, learning how to master, and much more.  I spoke with Mitch via Zoom from his studio in Utah. On the intro I’ll take a look at how AM/FM radio is changing, and what you need to know to set up your subwoofer. var podscribeEmbedVars = { epId: 85284044, backgroundColor: 'white', font: undefined, fontColor: undefined, speakerFontColor:

My guest this week is the Head of Partner Marketing & Strategy for Video & Sound Products at Sony Corporation of America Jordy Freed. A talented sax player who considered becoming a professional musician, the Philly native got his start as a music publicist for DL Media, held marketing and PR roles at Blue Note, and made a quick foray into advertising at the top firm Grey. Upon returning to Blue Note in 2016, he partnered with Sony on the creation of NYC’s Sony Hall, which was the first venue to feature Sony’s immersive music experience, 360RA. This led to an in-house position at Sony, where he became the first U.S. employee on their Brand & Business Development team.  In this role, he’s overseen collaborations with Doja Cat, Pink, Lil Nas X, Pharrell Williams, and Alicia Keys, struck deals to reimagine the David Bowie catalog in 360RA, led the company’s partnership with Amazon Music, and much more. He now leads marketing and business development for 360RA, as well as global branding activities for a ho

My guests this week are Robina Ritchie-Barker and Scott Barker, who’s TrackStage sync music management app is taking the sync world by storm. TrackStage not only helps you get your songs and cut-downs get organized in one place, but it helps you keep track of contracts, split sheets, licenses, reversion dates, pitches and deadlines. Plus it streamlines and manages all of your important metadata as well. The app lets you spend more time creating and less time administering the business side of your sync music career, while helping you do a better job of it at the same time. During the interview, we spoke about the frustrations with the many sync tasks that was the genesis for TrackStage, how difficult it is to keep on top of all the admin work involved with sync, targeting and pitching publishers, and much more.  I spoke with Robina and Scott via Zoom from their office in Vancouver. On the intro I’ll take a look at Tidal’s new royalty program getting canceled, and the costs of studio furniture.

My guest this week again is legendary engineer/producer Ken Scott, who was one of the five engineers for The Beatles, producer/engineer for four of the most revered David Bowie albums, and engineered or produced seminal albums for Elton John, Supertramp, Duran Duran, America, Missing Persons and many more. Ken was also instrumental in giving the sound of progressive jazz a harder edge with his work with Jeff Beck, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Stanley Clarke, and Billy Cobham. As I said during the Part 1 last week, I was lucky enough to work with Ken on his memoir Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust, we even did a project in the studio together, so I didn’t want to cover old ground again during the interview. In Part 2 of the 2 part interview, we spoke about the acts he turned down that went on to become huge, the influence George Martin had on him, working with Bowie, watching Elton write "Rocket Man," how today is like the pre-Beatles era, and much more.  I spoke with Ken via Zoom from his home studio in t

My guest this week is legendary engineer/producer Ken Scott, who has a list of accomplishments and credits that are almost too long to list. After getting his start at Abbey Road Studios as a teenager, Ken went on to become one of the five engineers for The Beatles, as well as for solo projects for John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.  Ken was the producer/engineer for four of the most revered David Bowie albums, along with hit albums for Elton John, Supertramp, Duran Duran, America, Missing Persons and many more. He was also instrumental in giving the sound of progressive jazz a harder edge with his work with Jeff Beck, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Stanley Clarke, and Billy Cobham. I was lucky enough to work with Ken on his memoir Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust that outlined his illustrious career. We even did a project in the studio together so I got to know him pretty well. A lot of the typical questions that Ken would get we already covered in the book, so I tried to go in a slightly diffe

My guest this week is Kelli Richards, who’s been a trusted Advisor to legendary musicians, tech executives, leaders and innovators. During her 25 years as a consultant she’s worked with artists like Paul McCartney, Todd Rundgren, Stewart Copeland, Prince, Michael Jackson and even Apple Computer founder Steve Jobs. While she was still in high school, Kelli approached Steve at a local cafe in Cupertino, and he accepted her request for him to be her mentor, which started a relationship that lasted over 30 years until his passing.  She put herself through college by working at GPI Publications, (the home of Guitar Player, Keyboard & Bass Magazines), and then moved to Hollywood where she  landed a job as an A&R exec at EMI Music. Kelli eventually headed back to Apple, and was in charge of the company’s early forays in music, as she was largely responsible for making Apple computers the go-to computer for creatives everywhere. Since Apple, she has worked with a range of disruptive, innovative start-ups,

My guest this week is Steve Rosen, who’s an esteemed rock journalist who’s written for Guitar World, Guitar Player, Rolling Stone, Playboy, Classic Rock, among others, as well as books on Jeff Beck, Free/Bad Company, Black Sabbath, Bruce Springsteen, and Prince. His latest book is titled Tonechaser - Understanding Edward: My 26-Year Journey With Edward Van Halen, and looks at his long friendship with the guitar god from before he was famous until his death. Steve spent many hours with Edward at his own Hollywood Hills guesthouse, up at Van Halen’s 5150 studio, on airplanes, in cars, and even jamming with Ed on several occasions. During the interview we spoke about meeting Edward Van Halen before he was famous, jamming with the master, how he was misunderstood, his multiple personalities, going with him to NAMM shows, and much more. I spoke with Steve via Zoom from his home  in Los Angeles. On the intro I’ll take a look at how cassettes are making a comeback again, and MI and audio manufacturin

My guest this week is Emily White, who’s a partner in the talent management company Collective Entertainment and the Founder of #iVoted Festival. She’s also the author of the Amazon #1 best-selling How to Build a Sustainable Music Career and Collect All Revenue Streams and hosts the book’s accompanying podcast of the same name, which is the #1 Music Business podcast globally. Having early experiences at WBCN in Boston, MTV, and concert promoter Don Law, Emily became a core member of the Dresden Doll’s media team before getting into management.  During the interview we spoke about being a tour manager, making yourself indispensable to your clients, how talent management has changed, getting caught up in the latest trends, and much more. I spoke with Emily via Zoom from her office. On the intro I’ll take a look at the country that has made music piracy legal, and the new Google music-creation AI called MusicLM. var podscribeEmbedVars = { epId: 84721298, backgr

My guest this week is Kevin Paul, who started in the music business as a DJ, but then discovered sound engineering and immediately knew that was his true calling. Starting at Soho Studios in London, he later moved to the Kink’s own Konk Studios. At Konk, he worked alongside a bevy of successful producers and engineers, as well as bands such as The Kinks, Galliano, Terrorvision, UFO and Elastica. After working on archiving the Depeche Mode back catalogue in 1994, he was offered an engineering role at Mute Records’ in-house studio, which eventually lead to a position as Head Engineer. Since 2008, Kevin has been in charge of mixing and remixing the exclusive performances at the coveted iTunes Festival UK and Germany events. He has mixed over 100 artists to date including David Bowie, Adele, Ed Sheeran, Alicia Keys, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Calvin Harris, Foo Fighters, Jack White, Linkin Park, Florence & The Machine, Deadmau5, David Guetta, Norah Jones, Oasis, Mumford & Sons, Paul Weller and many more.

My guest this week is Chris SD, who’s an award-winning music producer with 5 Juno awards and 7 nominations. He was also nominated as Engineer Of The Year in 2012. With his extensive industry contacts and experience Chris has helped artists land record deals, find management and booking agents, and license music to TV and film. He started Sync Songwriter to help musicians who live anywhere get their music licensed through one of the best music licensing courses in the business called “The Art Of The Song Pitch”. In the program, he teaches his 5 step process to get music synced successfully. Not only do his  students learn the best ways to get their music heard by the gatekeepers, they also get to meet and pitch their music live online to top music supervisors in the course. During the interview we spoke about what’s changed in sync licensing, how to know if your music is ready for placement, if you need to master your songs for sync, if you can record at home and get your music into TV and film, the bigg

My guest this week is Max Goldberg, who’s a co-founder and CEO of the music discovery app HotDrop. HotDrop is a platform that connects undiscovered artists with superfans. Founded by a team of Gen-Z music addicts and artists, HotDrop addresses the current generational shift underway in music discovery and consumption. The service’s 30-second snippets enable rapid discovery, are easily shared with other music fans, thus yielding high virality for emerging artists. HotDrop allows users to swipe through various short form audio snippets with supplemental links and info provided by indie artists themselves. Within two days of its initial launch, the HotDrop app had more than 25,000 downloads and ranked 7th on the App Store. During the interview we spoke about the problems with music discovery on major music platforms, misconceptions about music on TikTok, how very short listens can still lead to recommendations to friends, the communal listening experience, and much more. I spoke with Max via Zoom from h

My guest this week is Holly Knight, who’s songs made up a good part of the soundtrack to the MTV eighties with mega-hits for Tina Turner (“The Best”), Pat Benatar (“Love Is A Battlefield”), and Patty Smyth (“The Warrior”). Holly has also worked with legends like Rod Stewart, Kiss, Heart and Aerosmith, has thirteen ASCAP Awards, her songs have won several Grammys, and in 2013 she was inducted into the songwriters Hall of Fame. Her songs have appeared in almost two dozen films and theater productions, as well as television shows like The Simpsons, 30 Rock, South Park, The Tonight Show Staring Jimmy Fallon, Stranger Things, The Voice and Saturday Night Live, among many others. Holly just released a new memoir about her life in music called “I Am The Warrior.” During the interview we spoke about getting into songwriting, the secret to song demos, how to know when a song is well-written, her view on collaborations, and much more. I spoke with Holly from her home studio in Los Angeles via zoom. On