When Randy Frisch established LoveCat Music in 1999, he envisioned an independent music publishing company that licensed songs of all genres, from all over the world, that were available on a one-stop license basis. Today, LoveCat has licensed songs for hit films like Deadpool and Split as well as hundreds of television series, including Stranger Things, Gilmore Girls, The Good Wife and more.
“My inspirations included the great independents like Island and Virgin that had high-quality music across many genres. I wanted to reproduce that diversity on a smaller scale,” Frisch says. “I was a fan of rock, but also of popular music from around the world. One of our first clients was (the HBO series) Sex and the City. They were looking for Latin music, so we took off in that direction and licensed a lot of songs in that show.”
The company prides itself on signing developing, new artists and pushing not just American popular music, but Latin, German, Russian and other world music. Frisch says the company researches by reading trade publications, watching television to keep up with new shows and staying in touch with studios. When negotiating on film and television music placements, Frisch says “less is more.” “If someone is looking for music, it’s tempting to send them a lot of songs, but you should give them a few great choices rather than sending everything, because no one has the time for that,” he says. “Sometimes an older song works as well as a new one. Shows aren’t only looking for new music. It’s about what fits and what’s right. Also, Latin music isn’t just for Latin shows. Country music isn’t just for country shows. Shows are open to a variety of music.”
Challenges of the job include interpreting the client’s music needs and maintaining relationships with clients, he says. “You have to be hassle-free. To deliver on what you offered, meaning if you pitch a song, and the client bites, you must be able to deliver. The worst that can happen is a client wants a song and you say, ‘Oh, no, actually that’s not available,’” he says. “It may seem obvious, but that’s a relationship killer.”
Web: LoveCatMusic.com
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