Today we’d like to introduce you to Rusty Harmon.
Hi Rusty, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My story really has two phases. The first began when I was in college at NC State University. I worked at the college radio station which eventually led me to meet my first mentor, Dick Hodgin. Dick was an artist manager, producer, and DIY guru who really instructed me on band development at the earliest beginnings of my career. I eventually met the band Hootie and the Blowfish and became their manager in 1989. I ended up managing the band through their first four album releases. We sold about 25 million records, traveled the world, had a lot of success, and really established what would be a much longer than expected management career. I ended up managing artists for more than 30 years, and truly enjoyed myself as an artist manager. The successful artists certainly make the job easy. However, when things don’t go as planned, it can be an extremely unfulfilling job.
As a manager, I have always loved the marketing, set up, and execution of a record release. That led me to phase 2 of my career. For the last 10 years or so I have been on the label side of things. We have run Vere Music now for five years. Vere Music focuses on marketing, distribution, and artist development for a variety of artists. The artists on our label are multi-genre, and at different levels of success in their career. We’ve had multiplatinum artists on our roster and we’ve had baby bands on our roster, and everything in between. We get to utilize a lot of the tricks of the trade that I learned from Management when it comes to creating unique opportunities around a release cycle. I also get to work closely with my friends at Warner Music through their independent distribution arm, ADA.
Vere has been rewarding on many different levels. But it is not lost on me that the success of this label has coincided with my Faith journey and sobriety. I have been a believer all of my life but I certainly strayed. Living out your dreams with a Rock-n-Roll band on the road can have that effect. Almost eight years ago I became sober and, to say it is a game changer is an understatement. I am a better Christian, a better husband, father, employee, and an overall better person. I’m healthier than ever, wake up each and every day excited about my faith and my career. I love our label, the artists on our label, and our team.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I think the longer that you live the more you realize that the roads that lead you to where you are truly the most content are not always the smoothest. The music industry is wonderful community to be involved in. I have made friendships that will last a lifetime. But like most creative industries, you can find yourself surrounded by people with incredibly strong personalities. Those personalities can be polarizing, both positively and negatively. In the past, I tended to to be more combative with people with differing opinions. I have learned that patience, kindness, and humility creates far more solutions than being combative.
Another challenge for those of us that have been in the music industry for more than 25 years has been navigating the transformation from physical product to digital product. I know a lot of people that met the digital age with resistance. For some reason, I’ve always embraced it and I’ve truly become a fan of how effectively you can market a record digitally and all of the tools and resources an artist has at their fingertips, literally.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Vere Music is a Distribution/Marketing/Label company that focuses on building out marketing strategies for the release cycle of an artist. We pitch releasees directly to the DSP’s through our label rep at ADA, Warner Music’s independent distribution arm. We differ from so many other distributors because of our attention to artist development and communication. As an artist manager for more than 30 years, we build in strategies to optimize brand partnerships, touring, content creation, advertising, sync licensing, and more. We are aggressively hands on, meeting weekly with each client to update marketing drivers and and any delivery assets that are due.
Vere is a multi genre label, having released Rock, Country, Americana, Folk, EDM, Pop, and more. But we have recently hit our stride in the Christian Community, working closely with CCM and Worship artists, managers, and labels. We have built out labels for noted producers (Tedd T), managers (Brickhouse Entertainment), and Universities (Lipscomb University).
I feel strongly that Vere can work with any genre artist at any stage in their career. We have built out label teams on six figure budgets and we have released records on a shoestring budget. We welcome the opportunity to speak with any artist at any level to see if we may be a good fit for that artist. Also, anyone interested in starting a label without staffing up, we are a great fit. Think about managers that have multiple artists on their roster that do not have label deals but want to get music out more effectively than DistroKid. Vere can become the General Manager, Product Manager, Marketing Director, and Distributor, for your label, all for a fraction of the cost of building out a label.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
I think the greatest quality about Nashville is that there is truly something for everyone. You can have all the amenities of a big city, but you can also get away to any of the rural areas for some small town charm. I personally live in Franklin, but travel to Nashville daily. I can still go through back roads and see farming communities to avoid the traffic.
Of course, you can’t say anything about Nashville without talking about the live music community. You are never more than a stones throw away from a writers round, a honky-tonk, or a great live music venue featuring nationally and world renowned artists.
The things I like least about Nashville are the same things that most everyone that calls Nashville home dislikes. The growth has been positive for so many things. But I do not feel that our city has the infrastructure to grow as quickly as we have. Of course, that means more traffic, price increases on housing, and most other daily living amenities. I am hopeful our city planners will catch up with the growth very soon.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://veremusic.com
- Instagram: veremusicco
