The Man Behind the Musicians

Music industry executives are known for being loud-mouthed and unpleasant, waving around big cigars and even bigger checks. That stereotype meets its antithesis in Peter Edge, executive vice president of A &R – artists and repertoire, or talent scouting and development to those not in the music business – at J Records. Rather than a gruff yell, he is characterized by a sweet English lilt and a gentle demeanor to match.“In my job, you have to be aggressive – but not rude. There is a ‘record guy,’ and I’m sure there are some people out there who fit your image of the ‘record guy,'” Mr. Edge explained, “but I’m not one of them.”The 40-year-old British transplant is something of a royal figure in the music world, having discovered and developed such chart-topping, critically acclaimed superstars as Dido, Alicia Keys, and Angie Stone. His latest find? Mario. Mr. Edge’s ear for fresh talent has some calling him a likely successor to the top boss at J, the legendary Clive Davis.Born in England near Coventry, Mr. Edge was a hard-core music lover from the start. As a young boy, his older sister used to play him Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye. “I loved all those soul records, they really spoke to me.”After college, Mr. Edge became a DJ for a music show called “Switch.” From there, he moved on to Chrysalis Records, where he founded his own hip-hop imprint, Cool Tempo. As the head of Cool Tempo, Mr. Edge signed a lot of early hip-hop artists, such as Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh. “These artists couldn’t get a record deal at the time, no one was interested in hip-hop really,” he said. Mr. Edge’s risk-taking proved fortuitous – Doug E. Fresh’s classic track, “The Show/La-Di-Da-Di,” was an international no. 1 in 1985.In 1993, Mr. Edge came to America and signed on as the senior director of A &R at Warner Brothers. Mr. Davis, who was then at Arista, recognizes a good talent scout as easily as he does good talent. He poached Mr. Edge, who then had the opportunity to work with the likes of Whitney Houston and Santana before signing Dido and Alicia Keys to the label. When Mr. Davis left Arista in 2000 to found J Records, Mr. Edge went too, with Ms. Keys and Dido in tow.These days, Mr. Edge sees approximately 20 aspiring artists each week. How does he find the keepers in a vast sea of talented, bright young things?“I’m always looking for a unique proposition. When I met Alicia and I saw her, everything about her, you know the quality she had, I just thought she was really unique, I had never met anybody who did just what she did and I always look for that…Also, I’m really attracted to people who have an abundance of talent because I’m just in awe of that, being a music fan, you know.”Not only does Mr. Edge have to assess these artists at face value, but he must also act the sorcerer of sorts, and visualize their potential. Everything is subject to revision – including artists’ appearance, their band mates, and even their name.“You have to look at what you’re really dealing with here, in terms of level of talent, marketability, the uniqueness in the marketplace, and a vision for a few years ahead of what they could actually be with some development and nurturing,” he said.“Nurturing” is a word that Mr. Edge throws around a lot. When pressed to expand on his use of the term, Mr. Edge explained, “‘Nurturing’ means bringing to fruition the artist’s creative talents, when they play you a song, you think, ‘well, that’s good, but have you ever thought about improving your guitar skills, what about singing these types of songs, what if we brought this vibe to it?'”Indeed, as an A &R executive, Mr. Edge is responsible for hiring producers and seeking out songwriters, overseeing every step of the artist’s road to the top of the charts, and keeping them there.“This is definitely an all-consuming, 24/7-type role, type of life,” Mr. Edge said. “I get up early, and I’m listening to stuff, and once I’m in the office, its nonstop on the phone.” From the mountains of Post-It notes that plaster Mr. Edge’s desk, it’s clear that he is a very popular man. “I’m calling producers, figuring out songs, working out collaborations. I have people coming in for meetings all day, people coming into talk about new projects, new artists, to go over material – I’m here till 9 or 10 at night and then I’ll go to the studio one night, a concert the next, a showcase. It kind of goes until about midnight, or later.”From his early days as a freewheeling record-label owner to his current perch in a windowed office overlooking Fifth Avenue, Mr. Edge has watched the music industry undergo a dramatic shift. He explained that smaller labels, once independent, are now owned by corporate giants that continue to expand through mergers and acquisitions.“I think this makes the companies more cost-conscious. You’re not allowed to take big risks – you have a lot of people to answer to every time you make a move.” Mr. Edge stopped himself and reconsiders, “At the same time, I would say, this is like it was before the corporatization of labels – you’ve always had to pick your chances. But do you get as many shots? Maybe not. But do you still have to pick your shots? Yeah. The stakes are just higher.”With so much time and effort going into each album release, then, how is there so much terrible music out there? “Marketing is ruling music,” Mr. Edge said, “so you get people that have some quirky angle and people will buy into it, they’re just selling a piece of product.” Mr. Edge added, “All these marketing-driven products, they get people to pick up records, but not just pure music-lovers, not people who heard a song on the radio or attended a concert – like back in the old days. This is great, but this doesn’t make for the highest quality, it doesn’t raise the bar in any way, it just pushes more product in the marketplace. But at the end of the day, this is a business.”So, does he ever want to move back to London and re-live the life of the independent music man? “There are moments when I kind of despair sometimes, when I know something’s good and it’s not given a shot.” That said, for the most part he realizes how lucky he is. “The kind of artists I work with, they definitely all have a level of quality and musicianship which I am very proud of. I don’t believe I’m involved in anything bogus.”In the end, for Mr. Edge, while it may sound corny, it really does all come back to the music. “I’m really just heavily, heavily into music. You know, I saw the Ray Charles movie the other day and I just made myself a Ray Charles playlist, and it’s all about that, you know? That’s what turns me on.” He added, “I’m sort of like just a music freak.”

The Man Behind the Musicians

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