In this episode, Stephen Budd — British music executive, artist & producer manager, festival creator, and cultural entrepreneur - shares what he’s learned from four decades inside the music industry, and why the future belongs to artists who build real momentum, real relationships, and real community.

From his first paid gig as a 15-year-old roadie at Motörhead’s first ever gig, to pressing DIY 7” singles and walking into Rough Trade, to managing Tony Visconti and helping shape events like The Great Escape, Stephen breaks down the practical reality of building careers - not through “hacks,” but through tenacity, timing, and fan connection.

He also delivers straight-talking “hot takes” on AI-generated music flooding DSPs, what streaming platforms should do about monetisation, the social media paradox for musicians, and what record labels are actually for in 2026.

This conversation is hosted by Mark Adams, CEO, Founder of Blinding Talent and former Channel 4 Music boss with over 20 years music industry experience.

They explore:

⬛ Early hustle - roadie life, punk-era survival, learning every job on the road

⬛ DIY label beginnings - pressing 7” singles, Rough Trade, and old-school discovery routes

⬛ Direct-to-fan before DMs - the 15,000-fan phone call story and why it still works

⬛ Producer power - Tony Visconti, studios, and pioneering producer management

⬛ The Great Escape - why it worked, how booking really happens, and what artists need

⬛ Momentum & metrics - signals bookers look for (team, shows, buzz, and credibility)

⬛ AI & streaming - why “bots shouldn’t earn money” and what DSPs must change

⬛ Labels today - when they help, when to go independent, and scaling internationally

⬛ The next 10 years - grassroots venues, copyright battles, and deeper fan relationships

⏱ Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:07 First paid gig — roadie at Motörhead’s first ever gig

03:00 DIY to “industry” — starting a label at 19

04:09 Rough Trade moment — 500 copies sold in one meeting

07:51 Direct-to-fan marketing — flyers, data capture, and breaking a record

12:06 Tony Visconti — knocking on the door and building a partnership

15:22 Producer management — studios, overheads, and finding new clients

16:00 Arthur Baker & Junior Vasquez — New York mission + remix era economics

18:07 SuperVision — new management model at the dawn of the internet

20:30 ChannelFly / Barfly — merging businesses and entering live venues

23:52 The Great Escape — why it became the UK’s essential showcase

28:29 Getting booked — agents, gatekeeping, and what matters

31:03 Key metrics — what bookers look for (shows, buzz, team, real momentum)

35:01 AI hot take — flooding DSPs, monetisation, and the “bots shouldn’t earn money” argument

38:17 Social media — necessary, dangerous, and how to make it feel authentic

41:29 Labels — what they’re actually for now

43:44 Advice to younger Stephen — work only with music you truly love

45:33 The next 10 years — venues, copyright, and direct fan-to-artist revenue

49:30 What’s coming — “robot street teams” and scalable intimacy

50:38 Closing

Follow Mark Adams:

🔗 LinkedIn: / markadamsai

Follow Blinding Talent:

🌐 Website: https://www.blindingtalent.com

💼 LinkedIn: / blindingtalent

📸 Instagram: / blindingtalentinsta

🎵 TikTok: / blindingtalent

📺 YouTube: / @blindingtalent

🎧 Please rate, like & subscribe!

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Mental Health Expert Lauren Reading-Gloversmith - former music publicist and artist manager turned person-centred experiential counsellor - shares what she’s learned from a decade on the frontline of alternative music, and why support for creatives shouldn’t begin only when you’re in crisis.

From discovering her local scene as a teenager (“grayscale to colour”), to promoting and managing artists, to retraining as a counsellor during COVID, Lauren breaks down the real pressures behind the industry: identity confusion, burnout, comparison culture, and the always-on demands of social media.

She also unpacks the emerging role of AI in mental health - what it might help with, what it can’t replace, and why safeguarding and human relationship still matter.

This conversation is hosted by Mark Adams, Founder of Blinding Talent, a leading UK management and marketing agency.

They explore:

⬛ DIY roots - finding the scene, putting on gigs & learning by doing

⬛ PR → management - why “industry connector” is the real job

⬛ Burnout & early warning signs - emotional, physical, relational & creative shifts

⬛ Therapy as self-care - not just for crisis moments

⬛ Identity & boundaries - onstage/offstage roles and lifestyle careers

⬛ Social media pressure - authenticity vs obligation (and TikTok fatigue)

⬛ AI & counselling - tools, risks, ethics and safeguarding

⬛ The next 10 years - keeping wellbeing and humanity at the centre

⏱ Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:06 Meet Lauren - finding the alternative scene

04:08 First gigs & the community feeling

05:50 Putting on shows & DIY promotion

08:45 From “let me in” to PR

10:43 From publicity to management

13:45 COVID, trauma & discovering therapy

16:06 Speak To Lauren - counselling for creatives

17:43 Mental health in music: what’s changed

20:43 Early signs to watch for (your “mental garden”)

22:52 Common misconceptions about counselling

25:23 Individuality, community & connection

33:26 Social media - good, bad, and pressure on artists

41:06 AI - benefits, dangers, and ethics

45:02 Is the industry taking mental health seriously?

46:28 The future - wellbeing, VR and human contact

51:12 Closing thoughts

Speak To Lauren:

🌐 Website: https://www.speaktolauren.com/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/speak_to_lauren

📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/speaktolauren

Lauren offers a free 20-minute exploratory call.

Further support (UK):

In an emergency, call 999 or go to A&E. If you need urgent mental health support, call NHS 111 or visit 111.nhs.uk. Call Samaritans on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258.

Follow Mark Adams:

🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markadamsai/

Follow Blinding Talent:

🌐 Website: https://www.blindingtalent.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/blindingtalent

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blindingtalentinsta/

🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@blindingtalent

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BlindingTalent

🎧 Please rate, like & subscribe!

Please rate, like and subscribe it really helps us get bigger and better guests.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Jo — PR veteran turned artist manager for Pendulum, Knife Party, TesseracT, TRASH BOAT, Saint Agnes and more - breaks down the truth about modern artist development in a world of burnout, algorithm-chasing, and 200,000 new songs a day.

From gig-obsessed teenager to navigating EDM’s U.S. explosion, to guiding Pendulum’s comeback through a pandemic, to building her own management company UNHOLY - Jo shares the real mechanics of longevity: branding that’s actually you, fan ecosystems built on intention not virality, and live shows that create impact instead of just competence.

She unpacks the difference between growth and “going viral,” why the live world still fails women, and how artist managers survive the emotional, operational, and financial pressures of modern music.

This conversation is hosted by Mark Adams, CEO of Blinding Talent — brand expert, strategist, and former Director of Music Programming across Bauer, Emap, and Channel 4.

They explore:

⬛ The early spark - music magazines, gigs & the path from journalism to PR

⬛ Pendulum’s return - pandemic chaos, rebuilding momentum & selling out Ally Pally

⬛ Artist management reality - boundaries, burnout & why no one should start in management

⬛ Branding beyond buzzwords - authenticity, extraction & what artists get wrong

⬛ Familiarity & fan psychology - why great brands feel “inevitable”

⬛ Live shows that convert - technology, theatre & leaving a mark as a support act

⬛ The hidden bias of live crews - microaggressions, credibility & why allyship matters

⬛ The 10% rule - tastemakers, community & why real breakthrough happens offline

⬛ Data that matters - core fans, superfans & why 500 people can power a career

⬛ The trap of virality - growth vs. spikes, emotional resilience & artist expectations

⬛ Streaming economics - value erosion, royalties & what must change

⬛ AI’s real future - tools not replacements, humanity as the competitive edge

⬛ The next 10 years - micro-communities, patron models & scaling intimacy

⏱ Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

00:49 Meet Joe — journalism dreams to global dance PR

01:17 Discovering the magic of curation & live culture

03:01 Early PR years — Swedish House Mafia, Tiësto, Marshmello & EDM’s boom

05:09 The U.S. festival shock — scale, spectacle & glitter everywhere

07:01 From PR to management — learning the whole machine

08:59 Pendulum’s pandemic return — chaos → sold-out arenas

12:06 Artist management loneliness, identity & rebuilding a roster

15:46 What new managers must learn before managing

17:28 Branding myths — authenticity, consistency & extraction

22:30 Familiarity bias — why great branding feels like déjà vu

25:05 Community, tribes & the fractured culture of 2025

27:04 The collapse of gatekeeping — TikTok, algorithms & equality of access

28:46 The biggest artist mistake — chasing virality over growth

30:54 Algorithms, expectations & why numbers don’t define success

33:09 Old metrics vs new metrics — what “success” means now

35:04 Live innovation — DJs, rock bands & creating unforgettable shows

37:14 How emerging artists stand out on support slots

39:40 Gender in live music — bias, microaggressions & real lived experience

43:52 Why allyship is the real accelerator of culture change

47:14 Breaking through in 2025 — finding your pocket, people & purpose

49:34 The 10% that matters — influencing influencers

51:12 Data, funnels & why 500 fans can fuel a career

54:03 Rethinking monetisation — the real cost of undervaluing music

57:01 AI realities — humanity vs soulless replication

59:40 The decade ahead — micro-communities, subscriptions & sustainability

1:03:00 Closing thoughts

Follow Mark Adams:

🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/markadamsai

Follow Blinding Talent:

🌐 Website: https://www.blindingtalent.com

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/blindingtalent

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blindingtalentinsta/

🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@blindingtalent

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BlindingTalent

🎧 Please rate, like & subscribe!

Please rate, like and subscribe it really helps us get bigger and better guests.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.