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.

Welcome to the Blinding Talent Music Industry Podcast – Best of 2025 🎧

This episode rewinds the biggest “did they really just say that?” moments of the year—raw confessions, wild stories, honest truths and practical insights that shaped conversations across the industry.

A full year of legends, disruptors and future-shapers dropping their guard and revealing how the business actually works.

Hosted by Mark Adams, CEO of Blinding Talent, brand expert and industry leader with 20+ years at Bauer, Emap and Channel 4, working with major artists and global platforms including YouTube and Spotify.

This Best Of explores:

⬛ Kurt Cobain’s death, empathy in journalism & Eddie Vedder’s most emotional interview

⬛ MTV, Seattle & the bands who held each other—and the media—together

⬛ Spice Girls, Debbie Harry & Alanis: how 90s women rewired confidence and expression

⬛ “Queen of Metal”: women in heavy music and the OGs today’s presenters stand on

⬛ Sleep Token: anonymity, branding and why great songs come first

⬛ From broken arm → Metallica’s stage: fandom turning into career moments

⬛ AI as drum machine 2.0: tool vs threat in mixing, mastering & Atmos

⬛ Duty of care: managers, mental health and confidence wobbles

⬛ “Put your phone down”: social media as dangerously brilliant and toxic

⬛ Direct-to-fan 2.0: Open Stage, data capture & owning your audience

⬛ ChatGPT & sheets: predicting ticket sales and supporting artists, not replacing them

⬛ AI artists & virtual stars: switching talent “off” and the ethics of synthetic personalities

⬛ Sync 101: why supervisors search YouTube and how tags/moods get you placed

⬛ 100+ syncs later: discovery, cross-pollination & why TV beats big-budget ads

⬛ Streaming fraud & bot farms: fake plays, stolen royalties & why education matters

⬛ Adele, Lady Gaga, Girls Aloud & Boyzone: showcases, risk-taking & “Top Trumps 10s”

⬛ Heritage vs relevant: ageism, longevity & why great songs still cut through

⬛ Kylie, Padam & queer fandom: authenticity, identity & loyalty

⬛ TikTok, Gen Z & storytelling: why emotion beats trends

⏱ Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Intro – Why a Best of 2025

01:02 Kurt Cobain, Eddie Vedder & the interview that changed everything

04:25 Band support & fan loyalty

06:02 Spice Girls, Debbie Harry & 90s empowerment

09:05 Queen of Metal & women in heavy music

11:10 The phone call that led to MTV

13:22 Discovering Sleep Token

17:05 Metallica cassettes → stage moments

20:18 AI as tool, not replacement

24:05 AI vs human engineers

27:16 Sobriety & industry addiction

31:10 Duty of care & check-ins

34:02 Social media & mental health

37:40 Direct-to-fan & Open Stage

41:03 ChatGPT & revenue projections

45:00 Virtual AI talent ethics

48:15 Sync basics & YouTube

52:02 100 syncs later

55:30 Streaming fraud

59:05 Adele, Gaga & Girls Aloud

1:03:12 Boyzone & solo success

1:07:25 Kylie, Padam & ageism

1:10:40 Queer fandom & authenticity

1:14:22 TikTok & emotion-led storytelling

1:18:05 Young voices in the room

1:21:00 Closing thoughts & community

Follow Mark Adams:

LinkedIn – /markadamsai

Follow Blinding Talent:

⬛ Learn more – www.blindingtalent.com

⬛ LinkedIn – /blindingtalent

⬛ Instagram – /blindingtalentinsta

⬛ TikTok – /blindingtalent

⬛ YouTube – @BlindingTalent

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

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

Class, NOT Race, is Music’s Biggest Gatekeeper

In this episode, Roman Tagoe - radio producer turned Director of Streaming at Chrysalis - pulls back the curtain on what actually moves the needle in music: audience-first storytelling over vanity metrics, intent over raw streams, and patient community-building over playlist sugar rushes.

From producing shows at BBC Radio 1 & 6 Music, to leading DSP strategy at Deezer and Napster, and now steering streaming for one of the UK’s most storied indie labels, Roman Tagoe shares how class, access, curation, and AI are reshaping the music industry (for better and worse).

Hosted by Mark Adams, CEO of Blinding Talent, brand expert, and industry leader with 20 years’ experience at Radio and TV (Channel 4) - working with global artists and brands including YouTube and Spotify.

⬛ “It’s class, not race” - access, privilege & getting in the room

⬛ MiniDiscs, Mr. Brightside & the student-radio break that changed everything

⬛ 6 Music to Radio 1 - how broadcast crafts story, pace & audience-first thinking

⬛ Playlists ≠ careers - building heat and community outside DSPs

⬛ Independent vs major - access, advantage & why the race isn’t fair

⬛ Catalog that converts - Clash, Kate Bush, Paul Hardcastle & TikTok funnels

⬛ Content that works - authenticity, consistency & native storytelling

⬛ Label culture in 2025 - artist freedom, RAYE’s reset & hot takes

⬛ AI futures - bots, deepfakes & “Velvet Sundown”: make or ruin streaming?

00:49 Meet Roman & his 20-year journey across radio, DSPs & labels

01:17 Tape decks to Zane Lowe — falling in love with curation

03:58 Mr. Brightside & the MiniDisc that led to the first UK Killers interview

06:24 Early 6 Music - learning story, pace & audience-first formats

09:55 Broadcast lessons for TikTok & Reels (hooks, narrative, payoff)

13:05 Radio 1 handover from Zane Lowe - pinch-me moments

16:20 Race, class & the room - being “the only Black person” and why class bites harder

27:36 Case study: songwriter Gia Ford - in-studio moments that land

30:06 What great artists share - work ethic, songs, and vulnerability

36:33 How streaming teams really work now (and why NMF isn’t the win you think)

41:59 Build heat off-platform - socials, live, press → then streaming follows

44:49 Metrics that matter - saves, streams/listener, 28-day engagement

51:01 Catalog prompts to fandom - Stranger Things, The Clash & conversion

53:33 “New music” that’s old - how trends resurface (Paul Hardcastle’s Rainforest)

57:27 Label culture - RAYE’s blueprint & independence done right

59:46 If Roman had a magic wand - unbundling power & backing the art

1:01:04 AI’s fork in the road - bots, fake bands & the future of streaming

Follow Mark Adams:

🔗 LinkedIn

Follow Blinding Talent:

🌐 Website

💼 LinkedIn

📸 Instagram

🎵 TikTok

📺 YouTube

🎧 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.