on the many occasions when an act failed to break through, how did you go about letting them down (dropping them)? I would imagine that it must have been a thankless task at the best of times. Did you warn your newly signed artists before signing them, how fickle and ephemeral the business is?

Not being a very thick-skinned person myself, I would dread facing up to the task of shattering their dreams.

you should be asking about how fickle and ephemeral A&R men were/are

(not JK of course..people say he was nice)

I never had much problem; we were very singles orientated - if it turned into a career, as with 10cc, that was the cherry on the cake. Then they usually dumped me (all artistes are cunts) rather than the other way around.

So, by signing up an artist on a piecemeal basis (a contract covering just one single maybe?) you were able to test the waters to see how things went, and renew/upgrade the deal based on the outcome. I suppose this would leave the road open for both parties to either part company or continue with the relationship.

I doubt that they're all cunts though - spoiled and fawned upon maybe...

But weren't some of you muses misleadingly told they could become megastars, to which you countered in the Vile Pervert satire that it was their fault for believing you? This is where their dreams got shattered, and it certainly doesn't show you up in a good light Ken.

Carefully selective, proportionate, balanced, and discrete JK wrote "(all artists are cunts)".

Er, all artists including the artists JK, Dickens, Le Carre, Mozart, Da Vinci, et al ?

Never told anybody they could become megastars BJ. And contracts often had clauses allowing extensions if success. And yes SGP, especially JK.

So really what Ken meant to say was, "we're all cunts!"

If you never told anybody you could "make them into a megastar" then what was it "their fault for believing you" about?

I have no idea what "their fault for believing me" was... explain the reference.

Bearded Jack wrote:
So, by signing up an artist on a piecemeal basis (a contract covering just one single maybe?) you were able to test the waters to see how things went, and renew/upgrade the deal based on the outcome. I suppose this would leave the road open for both parties to either part company or continue with the relationship.

I doubt that they're all cunts though - spoiled and fawned upon maybe...

But weren't some of you muses misleadingly told they could become megastars, to which you countered in the Vile Pervert satire that it was their fault for believing you? This is where their dreams got shattered, and it certainly doesn't show you up in a good light Ken.


I'm not sure why the record company owners should be responsible for the performers dreams. It doesn't apply in other industries. You hire someone to do a job, and then you may or may not keep them on.
As long as the contracts aren't broken I cant see what is wrong, unless I am missing something?

the one thing X-Factor, Voice etc is showing is that there are a lot of people who can sing really well, look nice or have other talents we like but becoming a 'star' depends on so many other factors' timing, luck and so on.

It was somewhere near the end of the Vile Pervert film...and I certainly didn't dream it!

I don't think I ever went into the music side of my life in VPTM; it was about the false allegations and miscarriages of justice. But no; I never gave anyone the impression they would definitely become stars; indeed I normally would tell them they wouldn't stand a chance.

And what would you abnormally tell them?

Bearded Jack wrote:
And what would you abnormally tell them?

Anything for an argument!

My wife's nieces were taken on by Universal a couple of years ago. Paid £100 a week, played at various events, a few pilot recordings - all to test waters. A year later, they were just dropped!