How many signings does an average A&R guy get in a year?
My experience has been about two per year. Some years you might have one, and some years you might have three. I think the average is two, but a lot of times you only get one chance. Then your superiors might tell you to go elsewhere if you didn’t do well on your first outing. I know as I was developing my taste and developing as an A&R person during my time at Interscope, I don’t think I chose in the most careful way the projects that I worked on, and I eventually ended up being asked to leave. I totally understand why now. At the time I was still growing and developing my taste. Even at Columbia, there have been successes and there have been failures. Luckily enough, I have what I consider to be the greatest boss around (Tim Devine, Sr. VP and GM of Columbia ed.) because he is tolerant of that, and he tries to calm me down when I get excited about something. He tries to make me really convince him before we start working with anyone that I bring in. I guess I’m fortunate in that way.
