Episode 16 - Peter Rafelson (Songwriter For Madonna)

Episode 17 - Niki & The Dove (Swedish Indie Artists)

Niki &The Dove are a Swedish indie pop/electronic duo comprised of Malin Dahlström and Gustaf Karlöf. They broke through in 2012 after placing 5th in BBC’s Sound of Music poll and their first album received widespread press coverage. I was able to speak with them about their initial success, being signed to one of Sweden’s biggest indie labels and what the last 15 years has been for them.

Episode 16 - Peter Rafelson (Songwriter For Madonna)

Peter Rafelson's music career spans four decades of being a songwriter, producer, studio owner and more. Penning Madonna's "Open Your Heart" served as the entrypoint to mainstream success, and he's since gone on to host recording sessions for the likes of Taylor Swift and Beyonce. I had a chat with Peter about his career, how his biggest hit was made, and what he's up to today.

Episode 15 - Damizza (Former Program Director at Power 106)

Though hiphop went mainstream in the 90s, it wasn't until the early 2000s that gangsta rap dominated all other sub-genres and effectively monopolized the landscape. This was in no small part due to support from radio stations like Power 106 in LA and Hot97 in New York. Damion "Damizza" Young had influence over both and was the Senior Director of Programming at the former. By keeping artists like Jay Z, Eminem, Ja Rule, Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre in constant rotation, he helped establish their careers and mainstream appeal. Damizza and I talked about his career spanning from the mid 90s to his current comeback, including his time running radio stations and working with A-listers.

Episode 14 - Evan Bogart (CEO of Seeker Music)

Evan Bogart went from Interscope intern in the 90s that helped Eminem get signed, to a songwriter in the 2000s that penned hits for Rihanna and Beyonce, to the co-founder of a publishing company in the 2020s. He's currently the CEO of Seeker Music, which owns catalogs from artists like Run The Jewel, Jon Bellion, and Mark Morrison. I had a chat with Evan about his progression in the music industry and the kind of work Seeker is doing to carve out a space for itself in the business.

Episode 13 - Gabe Bloch (Chief Strategy Officer at Pony Canyon)

As one of the few Western executives with both work experience and language fluency in China and Japan, Gabe Bloch occupies a unique space in bridging the Asian and American music industries. He’s currently the Cheif Strategy officer for Pony Canyon USA, one of most well-known indie labels in Japan, and is helping to break their artists. Gabe and I covered his background in Asia, his thoughts on the Japanese music industry and how their artists are gaining traction abroad. We also looked at how labels like Pony Canyon is using anime to fuel the popularity of their artists.