This is where you’ll find all the different pieces that make up my professional life. It’s not always for money, but let’s pretend…

Birmingham City University, North City Campus.

This is my teaching
I’m a university lecturer, and that means I teach classes. Most of what I teach has to do with the music industry, the internet and radio. I bring my professional background in media and the music industries to the teaching that I do, but I also infuse it with academic theory. I’ve taught a range of different courses, including a module on Creative Enterprise for an MA in Events and Exhibition Management, classes on podcasting, and setting up a record label.

This semester, I’m teaching Radio Documentaries, Music Online, Music Industry Skills and a theory module about the Music Business in the undergraduate Media programme at Birmingham City University.

I guest lecture at other universities whenever possible, and have had the good luck to be asked to teach at a number of other prestigious institutions as a result… but Birmingham City’s where the real Music Industries and Radio Studies stuff is going on…

This is my writing
I do a lot of writing. Leaving all the blogging aside for a moment, I’ve worked as a music journalist for many years and as a columnist for a business magazine. I’ve written reviews, articles, chapters… and I’m working on developing a couple of books of my own — one about how to set up a great website for your band or small business for nearly free (and with no technical expertise), and one about how music businesses can use the internet more strategically and effectively.

Most recently, I co-wrote a book, commissioned by UNESCO, about new technologies for community and public broadcasters in developing countries; contributed a couple of chapters on blogging and podcasting to the Alternative Media Handbook due for publication by Routledge at the end of the year; and co-wrote a policy paper with Russell Brown about new technologies for New Zealand On Air.

This is my speaking
Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of travelling around the country giving presentations about music business online. The e-book I wrote about The 20 Things You Must Know About Music Online has now been developed into a series of seminars and workshops, and I get a great deal of satisfaction out of helping independent musicians and music businesses take their online activities to the next level — and being able to do so face-to-face.

Recently, I spoke at the Network and Knowledge Event held by Veronica Holding in Hilversum, the Netherlands, and in October this year, I’ll be at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York in October, followed by the International Association for the Study of Popular Music conference in Dunedin, New Zealand in November.

I have presented a series of workshops around the UK for the Musicians Union, and will be speaking at a seminar called Building a Business on Free in London for the Association for Independent Music, the Creative Industries Development Agency and Music Tank.

This is my research
I’ve presented at international conferences, written academic journal articles and worked on funded research projects within the university. My Masters dissertation was about Digital Radio in New Zealand, and my PhD (currently underway) concerns music business online. My research includes investigations into digital culture, music radio, community radio, broadcasting technology, music business, new media, podcasting and virtual reality.

I have recently begun a project with the BBC New Media and Technology department, in conjunction with colleagues of mine at UCE, as well as researchers from the University of Cardiff and London Metropolitan. We are investigating the ways in which audiences use new technologies to engage with radio. For my part, I’ll be examining music radio through digital platforms (mobile, digital TV, DAB, internet, etc.). The research will seek to make recommendations to the BBC for new projects and prototypes for development.

In August, I travelled the UK, visiting 14 cities in three weeks, interviewing musicians and music industry professionals to learn more about what they do, how they make money at it, what the characteristics of the local scene are, how they fit into the wider musical economy — and what they find difficult about that. That was a bit of commercial research for a website that provides services to musicians, and I am in the process of writing that up.

This is my record label
I’m establishing a new company to try out some of the ideas I have about music online. Although it’s not a record label in the traditional sense (the term ‘production company’ has been mooted, but that doesn’t really fit either), it does try to fulfill some of the same functions of marketing and distribution of music.

I’m setting it up with Craig Hamilton from Friends of the Stars. While it might seem odd to pair a jazz broadcaster with a folk and country musician on a record label venture, it does reflect the fact that the label will be diverse as far as genre is concerned — but absolutely fanatical about quality. We both have very lofty ideals about the calibre of music we will champion — and in the areas we are unfamiliar, we each absolutely trust the tastes of the other.

The label is about reissues as much as it is about new releases. We’ll license and release great New Zealand music in the UK and Great British music in the world. It’s about using the online environment to create value… and is about connoisseur vinyl as much as it is about mp3s — and everything in between.

Early days at the moment, but I’ll let you know when the website’s online, and when you can start buying music — or, just as often, downloading it for free.

This is my advice
I regularly meet and consult with music industry and radio professionals in the area of online strategies for their organisations. I have worked with commercial, public and community radio stations as well as record labels, music retailers, promoters, distributors, managers, DJs and independent artists. I have even worked with public organisations in the area of funding creative industries.

I am consulting on a couple of projects that are being considered by the Arts Council in the current funding round, and am always interested in lending my support to a project that I believe is worthwhile, if I think my guidance can be useful.

One of my favourite things to do is to sit down with a musician, band, music entrepreneur or broadcaster, get out a large piece of paper and map out where things are at now, and then chart a course for a successful future.

This is my radio work
My background is in radio production and I have 15 years experience as a sound engineer, programme maker and presenter.

I’ve made documentaries, children’s programmes, radio drama serials, specialist music programming — and I was the host of a weekly nationwide jazz programme in New Zealand for 6 years.

I have helped start three radio stations, was a founder of New Zealand’s Society of Low Power FM Broadcasters, I was co-presenter/producer for a podcast that was ranked in the Guardian’s ‘best-of’ list and I am currently working on the development of a new online community radio station for Moseley. Again, early days yet — but there are some very smart and dedicated people working on this right now.

This is my music
I was the co-director of an independent record label in New Zealand and I have produced jazz albums, hip hop singles and rock demos. I do a spot of DJ-ing (jazz, funk, soul) around town and played at the Shambala music festival over the summer.

I have worked as a live sound engineer for touring bands, collaborated with platinum-selling major label artists (even co-wrote a song that made it to number 14 on the list of most played songs of the year on the national alternative charts), had a number one song on the 95bFM top 10 (20 years ago, when almost everyone I knew had also had a number one song on the bFM top 10) — and have produced remixes, which I enjoy immensely, but almost never get asked to do twice — for the very simple reason that dancing to a remix of mine is completely out of the question.

I have worked behind the scenes with some of the biggest names in the music business (U2, Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Massive Attack…) — though mostly they didn’t notice. In those instances, I was just one of the drivers.