The New A&R Issue #40

TiVo killed the radio star

By Joelle Caputa
Published: August 1st, 2009 | 12:00am

The most impactful character to hit film and television screens has appeared on every network and in every country. Its roles have evoked tears of sadness and delight for decades, but only recently has it drawn audiences to Google the next day.

Alexandra Patsavas is credited with being the first to nurture this character. Just days after Patsavas placed Snow Patrol’s “Chasing Cars” in a 2006 episode of Grey’s Anatomy, it became the #1 downloaded song on iTunes.

“The business has changed,” says Patsavas. “Supervisors are more on the tip of discovery and use pop music less.” As founder of Chop Shop Music Supervision in South Pasadena, California, Patsavas sometimes goes through 100 songs — mostly from unknown and emerging artists — before finding one that “fits like a glove” for a scene. Her resume boasts The O.C., Gossip Girl, Grey’s Anatomy, and Private Practice alongside big screen productions such as John Tucker Must Die. Her influence has made her a sought-after music supervisor by indie bands and filled her mailbox with about 500 submissions a week.

“Alexandra Patsavas has really changed the role of music supervisor to include A&R, too,” says songstress April Smith. “She’s done amazing things for music while setting the bar pretty high for other music supervisors.”

Smith’s music has been featured on MTV shows The Hills and Newport Harbor, as well as Trojan’s “Evolve” promo and the upcoming Rumer Willis flick, Wild Cherry. “Getting song placements is great because you can make a bit of money and get your music out to lots of people,” she explains.

Devonna, Vice President of Plaid Jacket Inc, handpicked Smith for Wild Cherry’s soundtrack after discovering her on MySpace. “I can easily spend 80 hours a week searching for the right music,” she says. “Music is an incredibly important part of the film … songs can enhance a scene or overpower it.”

It’s also an integral tastemaker, according to Audiosocket Music’s Head of A&R and Artist Relations, Christen Greene. “The saying is, ‘TV is the new radio,’ is it not? From iTunes and iPod commercials to the TV show House, music supers are really working to get current, great music on the screen to represent their brand and products.”

Jason Eldredge, DJ at 89.9 KCRW in Santa Monica and Music Supervisor for Logo’s Curl Girls, chose indie California girl act Von Iva to create the theme for the lesbian reality show.

“We went through numerous artists including some obvious choices like Le Tigre and Gossip,” he says. “I felt Von Iva’s music really embodied the free and edgy spirit of the series. They were kind enough to compose a brand new track for us to use specifically as the theme and even performed live on the show.”

According to lead vocalist Jillian Iva; “TV and films are a major source of what’s cool and current. It can really help more indie acts be heard in places where they could never afford to go play.”

While hour-long dramas typically use 10-15 songs per episode, Eldredge discloses that reality shows use the highest amount of songs per episode; “You could have anywhere up to 50 cues in a single 20-minute episode.”

SHIROCK is one act that has experienced firsthand the boost a reality TV spot can provide. The Nashville band’s music has backed multiple episodes of The Hills, substantially boosting its global audience. Keyboardist and co-songwriter Pap believes consumers lean to film and TV for new music selections because “the Internet is overrun with mediocrity. Other than hearing about a new artist from a friend they trust, there aren’t any ‘filters’ that keep out the bad stuff for people.”

One of these ‘filters’ is MTV Music Supervisor and Reflection Music Management President, Carrie Hughes, whose clients also include Nickelodeon and BBC Productions. She reveals that MTV’s From G’s to Gents uses a whopping 100+ songs per episode. That’s a lot of demos to sort through, but there have been rewards: Hughes was the first person to license the Fray before the band was even signed.

Like many networks, MTV prefers to use indie bands. “No one has a previous relationship with the song, so it allows the scene to be what it is without taking away the focus,” Hughes explains, adding: “There are so many artists that myself and many of my colleagues have licensed that then get signed to a label. I think, in some ways, music supervisors give labels and publishers the validation they need to know that these artists have a marketable product.”

“It’s more evident than ever that music supervisors are breaking bands these days,” sums up Smith. “People know this and they don’t just watch shows as viewers anymore. They are listening to see what new artists are being discovered.”