Discover
UPRAWR Podcast

50 Episodes
Reverse
Today’s guest is Mark Orr, the head of LAB Records, which he’s been running since 2005. In recent years, LAB has found major success with artists like The K’s, South Arcade, and many more. We spoke with Mark about how he discovered and signed South Arcade, what it felt like to achieve LAB’s very first number one album with The K’s, and what the future holds for the label. From the sounds of it, this is just the beginning & Mark has some incredibly exciting years ahead. There’s a lot to take away in this episode, from how DIY labels compare to majors, to what it really takes to succeed in that world. Let’s get into it. Just search UPARWR podcast anywhere you listen to them! Follow us to see Behind The Scenes: Jack - https://www.instagram.com/jack_uprawr/ Joe - https://www.instagram.com/joe_davis77/
Welcome back to the Uprawr Podcast! Today’s guest is Mat Welsh, guitarist for one of the UK’s biggest rock bands, While She Sleeps. Alongside playing guitar, Mat also manages the band and takes care of the business side of things. We spoke to Mat about how While She Sleeps first started, the tipping point that turned it into a full-time career, and why staying DIY has been so important to their success. He also opens up about the struggles of stepping back and letting someone else take over management, as well as the reasons behind the band’s decision to move away from working with record labels. We also speak on how the Collab with Oli Sykes came about and how while she sleeps butted heads with Bring Me The Horizon back in the day If you’re in a band and want to know what it really takes to go full-time, you NEED to hear this one.
Today’s guest is Tim Bailey, currently Head of Label for International Affairs at Frontiers Music Group. Tim has had a long and varied career in the music industry, starting out as a promoter for over 15 years before eventually moving to the label side by joining Earache Records. We spoke with Tim about how he first became a promoter, why he dedicated 15 years to it, and the many challenges that come with the role. He also shared what led him to leave promoting behind, his transition into the label world, and what it was like working on records with artists such as Those Damn Crows (who scored a Number One album during his time at Earache) We also explored Tim’s journey with sobriety, and how alcohol once dictated his life before he turned things around. Follow us to see Behind The Scenes:Jack - https://www.instagram.com/jack_uprawr/Joe - https://www.instagram.com/joe_davis77/
Today’s guest is Nelly Liger-Edinger, a driving force behind rock and metal’s presence on national radio. Nelly works at The Noise Cartel, one of the biggest PR companies in heavy music and she's the reason you’ve heard bands like Architects, Parkway Drive, Ghost and many more on BBC Radio 1. We talk to Nelly about how she got her start in music from teaching at a university in France to writing for publications like Rock Sound, Metal Hammer, and Terrorizer. That path eventually led her into the world of PR and radio plugging, where she’s worked full rosters for major labels like Epitaph Records & finding her first bit of success on radio 1 with falling in reverse! She also speaks about working with Architects for over a decade and how that band helped to shape her career Nelly is one of the most passionate people we’ve ever spoke too and its infectious so let's get into it
Today’s guest is Dan Shepard, Studio Manager on the graphic design team at Live Nation and the Creative Lead for Download Festival. Yep, most of those iconic Download posters? He designed them. Ever wondered what it takes to be a professional graphic designer in the music industry? Or how the politics of festival posters work, like why some band logos are huge and others tiny? We talk about: How he got started in the industry, Landing his job at Live Nation, Designing artwork for Download Festival aswell as Black Sabbath’s final show (yep, that was him!) And even a near-death experience on the way to play Download himself! If you’re into music, design, or just interesting stories then this one’s for you.
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast! Today’s guest is Lais martins Waring who currently works for LD Communcations one of the biggest PR companies in the world! We spoke to Lais about how she got started in music, how she ended up working at LD communications and what the job entails. We talk about what it’s like working on Download Festival & how you go about getting creators like TPD TV involved as well as some of the trickier parts of the job. Lais has some incredible stories and if you’ve ever wanted to be the person that knows everyone then this might just be the job for you! Follow us to see Behind The Scenes:Jack - https://www.instagram.com/jack_uprawr/Joe - https://www.instagram.com/joe_davis77/
Welcome back to the Uprawr Podcast! Today’s guest is Eric Tobin, Executive Vice President of Business Development & A&R at Hopeless Records — a label that’s been pivotal in the careers of All Time Low, Neck Deep, and even Avenged Sevenfold. Eric shares the story of how he moved to California with no plan, landed a job at Hopeless Records without any prior industry experience, and went on to spend over 20 years helping shape some of the biggest bands in the scene. If you’ve ever wondered how record labels really work, how bands get signed, or how to start a career in the music industry, then this episode is for you
Welcome back to the Uprawr Podcast! Today’s guest is Emma Davis who is an agent at One Fiinix, working with the likes of Ed Sheeran! This one is special as it’s our first agent we’ve had on the podcast, now we can finally ask what's the difference between a promoter & an agent?? We spoke to Emma about how she got started in the industry, how she was booking big shows at only 15 years old and how she figured out that being an agent was a career path she wanted to follow. We also talk about what it’s like working on something as big as an Ed Sheeran Tour & how she started working with RØRY. This one’s for all the indie promoters & people wanting to know what an agent is, so let’s get into it!
Today’s guest is Jenny Cotter who works for Live nation and is also part of the download festival booking team! Jenny’s had quite a career in music with starting off in PR before getting into Live events and working her way up We spoke to Jenny about how she got started in the industry, how she ended up working at live nation & what it’s been like joining the download festival team. She also talks to us about downloads decision to book sleep token and how crazy the rise of that band has been over the past few years and whether it was a risky booking! If you're in a band or just interested in the live side of music, then you don’t want to miss this one!
Welcome back to the Uprawr Podcast! Today’s guest is Josh Terry owner of “Work Shop management” that has bands like Mayday Parade & Amberlin signed to it. Josh also co-created “Sad Summer”, in the US, a touring festival that came about after the warped tour finished. Sad Summer has had some massive years with All Time Low even headlining the festival one summer We spoke to josh about how he got started in music & how he's been able to develop acts over the past 15 years whilst somehow still having time to create a festival. Very interesting story so let’s get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr Podcast! Today’s guest is Kevin Lyman who started the Vans Warped Tour, one of the most famous touring festivals in the world (could even be the most famous). Kevin started warped back in the 90s and ever since has created a hub for Alternative kids to get together every summer. Some of the biggest bands in the world were first discovered on warped like Blink, Fall out boy & My chemical romance We spoke to Kevin about how he got started in the industry and how he was a promoter for almost 15 years before warped even started Aswell as how the early years of the festival ended up shaping his career/life. If you’ve ever wanted to be involved in the music industry (or your in a band) then Kevin is one of the most interesting people you could listen to so as always, let’s get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr Podcast! Today’s guest is Mark Walker who is currently managing acts like RØRY & Noahfinnce with his company Free Focus. Mark started free Focus after spending a decade as a promoter at Kilimanjaro where he accidently stumbled onto a “Youtuber” Event called Summer In The City and knew he had to get involved in what seemed like an untapped market at the time. Free Focus now has over 30 influencers (a word he hates) signed to the company and focuses on anyone with an online presence to help them push their careers further. We spoke to Mark about his time being a promoter and then becoming an agent with live nation & Kilimanjaro. If you’ve ever been interested in being a promoter (we’ve got some bad news for you) or an Agent then this is a MUST watch and guarantee you’ll learn something interesting! So, let’s get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast! Today's guest is Patty who is the lead singer for the band “As It Is” Patty has had a very unique experience when it comes to becoming a musician as he started off making covers on youtube garnering millions of views and almost 500,000 subscribers! He knew from a very early age that he wanted to be in a band and As It Is quickly gained a ton of traction once they formed leading to a very very busy few years for him and the band which ultimately took some tolls on them. In this episode we find out why he left youtube, how as it is formed and how his career has taken some turns over the years. This is a truly unqiue experience only patty can tell, so as always let's get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast! Today's guest is RØRY who’s just released her debut album at the age of 40 and has amassed a huge following over the past couple of years. Rox has one of the most interesting stories we’ve ever heard with giving up on music in her 20s feeling like the industry was a soulless, toxic place to writing genuine hits (we’re talking radio hits) that cleared her debt of almost 40k. Rox decided to give music one more go at the age of 36 although she felt like she was “too old” to break into the scene, well fast forward only 4 years and she’s on the cover of Rocksound releasing her debut album and hitting a massive UK tour in march to which she's sold over 12,000 tickets. This one's a rollercoaster so let's get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast! today's guest is Niall Crisp who currently works at raw power management, one of the biggest management companies in the UK (Bring me the horizon, Don Broco, bullet for my valentine). Niall currently manages Bullet for my valentine full time and talks to us about what his job entails, how he got into the industry and ultimately how he got to work at Raw power. We also speak to him about working on Bring me The Horizons breakout album “That’s the spirit” Aswell as one of his first jobs being with while she sleeps. Niall has a great insight into the industry and we promise you’ll learn something from this episode. So, Let's get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast, today's guest is Steph Van Spronsen who’s worked with bands like falling in Reverse, Rammstein & has worked on some of the biggest festivals in the world! We speak to Steph about starting off at the noise cartel and being tasked to get people like Ronnie Radke into the country to then moving onto Live nation where she was booking bands for download festival! Stephs had some of the biggest ups and downs you can have in a career but has managed to come out on top. Let's get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast, today's guest is Gary Lancaster who's worked at or with every label you’ve ever heard of! Gary started off at warner with ADA working with labels like hopeless, rise, fearless and so much more. He’s worked on campaigns from motley crue to papa roach and also worked on the lil peep record were he tragically passed before the campaign had finished. We speak to Gary about all of the jobs his had in music, what it was like working with some of the biggest artists on the planet and also some of the hurdles his had in his career. So, Let's get straight into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast! Today's guest is Alyx Holcombe who is currently working at Kerrang Radio Aswell as Radio 1 where she has two shows, the rock introducing show and the indie show. Alyx has been involved in radio for years and started her own punk show where she would platform new artists giving them the spotlight. If you’ve ever wondered how radio works behind the scenes or how you can get your tracks played this one is for you! So, let’s get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast! Today's guest is Chris Turner who is currently the drummer for the band “oceans ate Alaska”. Chris is known for being one of the best drummers on the planet with companies like Drumeo featuring him, not to mention millions of people have watched his playthroughs. We speak to Chris about why and when he started drumming, how he joined oceans ate Alaska, starting his own solo career and also starting his own YouTube channel. Whether you're a fan of drumming or not this has something for everyone, so let’s get into it
Welcome back to the Uprawr podcast, today's guest is Danny Corr who currently works at roadrunner records one of the biggest labels in the world. He’s done marketing campaigns for the likes of slipknot, green day & the Red Hot Chillis! We speak about how different it is running the campaigns for massive bands compared to smaller ones and how ambitious they are when doing these campaigns. Danny has worked at the absolute top level of the industry and has an insight into the industry that most people would dream about. So, Let's get straight into it