Zaytoven Quotes

I will be developing artists for my new label. The rest is in God's Hands.

I've always wanted to push someone who's not really known but has mad talent. I don't know if I'm going to do a publishing company or a record label, but I'm interested in pushing artists in any sense.

People talk about the pop part - they don't talk about me being an independent artist. I made it look easy, that's the problem!

I always thought that if record companies didn't understand me, fine - I'd go and do it by myself.

I'm gonna be making records anyway, even if I had to sell 'em out of the trunk of my car. I'm that kind of musician and singer.

Artist development is something that I've been passionate about from my days at Uptown and Motown Records.

When I got into the music industry, I wasn't focused on being the most famous artist or even getting a major record deal. It was just to make music on my own terms or create my own image, do my own hair, do my own makeup.

We've managed to have a long career that is still quite vibrant, yet we've never had to kow-tow to record companies who said we weren't commercial enough.

There are people who are genetically made to start record labels, and I'm not one of those people. People just have it in their blood and are good at it. Corey Rusk from Touch and Go and Ian MacKaye. These are people who have made their own labels.

The truth is an artist like me who doesn't get the type of promotion that we see more commercial artists receive, and especially in this climate of the music business, you have to be creative about how you promote yourself.

I know it is common nowadays for artists to start labels but this is a thoroughly constructed vehicle for inspired talent. This is a market that we've been living, breathing and eating for our entire lives - one where a huge void currently exists. Favored Nations is a long-term commitment.

We don't sign an artist to fill a void, ever. I'll never find a Taylor Swift. You can't find a new Madonna, you cannot find a Prince, a Bob Marley, a John Lennon. You won't find another Kanye West. We simply deal with people as they walk in, and we say we either love them or we don't.

I started my own record label.

A lot of things encouraged me to start my label. I think it's very important for an artist to know how many records they've sold and where they've sold. I know that I have never been treated the way I'm supposed to be treated - like an artist. That's why I do things for myself. I feel like I'm a free man.

I built a reputation as a songwriter in the industry before my own hits. People were used to coming to me for songs. There were songs like 'Clown' and 'Mountains' that were my songs that I wanted to keep. But the record labels saw me as a songwriter. It was hard to get people to believe in me as an artist.

It's hard to come across someone who can look past an artist who is larger and just see them for the talent they are and have them be willing to invest what's necessary to make them a star.

I'm developing artists for my new record label, my son's band, Intangible, being one of them.

I am passionate about finding undiscovered and talented artists. I want to help those artists get to the next level and provide existing artists with a new way to reach fans. I wanted to partner with the Cutting Edge Group because they share my vision and have a proven track record in innovation in the music business.

I built a label at the same time I built a career.

Ever since I was a little kid, I wanted to start a record label.

I don't have a record deal, I'm not looking for one, I don't have a manager, I'm not promoting anything.

My first album, I had to write everything. Nobody was going to send me stuff just because I had a little success.

To me, as A&R people and as managers, we're in the business of finding talent. It's no different than working with these engineers who just want to make good products.

I don't have a manager who's secretly on Interscope. I'm the complete opposite of an industry plant.

I started out writing and producing as a way for me to get the confidence to put out my own record and to learn and to really be a student of the industry.