 photo by steed media service
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A&R, Compound Entertainment
Askia
Fountain, A&R for superstar Ne-Yo’s Compound Entertainment,
gets about 500 e-mails a day, and he doesn’t mind the
correspondence at all. As the crucial link between the starry-eyed
aspiring artists who dream of making it big, and the record label that
wants to help them realize their goals, Fountain understands
communication is a major part of his job.
“I get a lot of music and have to answer all types of
questions,” he says of his influx of e-mails and phone calls.
Working
12 to 14 hours a day — half of which are spent in the office and
the other half in the studio or in clubs, Fountain’s
time-management skills are key to his success. Formerly, he worked at
Def Jam and Russell Simmon’s Music Group, before deciding to
return to Atlanta to work with Compound. He’s been with the
company for a year and a half, and says that finding viable talent is a
task in and of itself.
“Being able to
find the next new thing [is the most difficult part of my job],”
he says. “It’s hard to find it, and then when you do, you
have to make sure that you commit and make sure that it turns over and
relates to the marketplace and is able to sell.”
Despite
the difficulties inherent to the job, Fountain enjoys playing an
instrumental role in the lives of his artists.
“There
are a lot of perks,” he says. “I get to go everywhere there
is to go in the world, just to do music. And it’s great being
able to help someone else live out their dream because when they live
theirs out, I live mine out.” –j.h.
