Spotlight on Suzanne Doyle …
Suzanne Doyle portrait (by Ruth Medjber)
We’ve given June’s AwakenHub event the title of “Hustling 101”. The ability to hustle is a key component of the startup founder’s kit bag and we imagine surviving in the cut-throat environment of the music industry must require the highest “hustle” quotient of all. We have four super speakers joining us and one is Dublin based freelance Music & Creative Consultant Suzanne Doyle. Suzanne is also one of my friends (we were introduced some years ago in the green room at a Dublin tech conference by none other than Mike Butcher) so this week in advance of our event I took the opportunity to ask her a few questions about the highs and lows of her long and varied career working in the music industry and working with everyone from U2 to David Bowie to Kate Moss to Imelda May and Finbar Furey and more recently Declan O’Rourke. Enjoy the read & the photos!
Q1 You’ve worked with a lot of famous people over the years Suzanne, most are alive but a few are sadly no longer with us. These days you describe yourself as a Music & Creative Consultant – but what was your path into the world of the international music industry & perhaps tell us a bit about some of the colourful characters you’ve worked with along the way.
My entry into the music world is as random as it gets! My name was added to a list of interviewees for a temp job in the busy U2 Management Office back in early 1987, as they were releasing their beautiful single 'With Or Without You' from 'The Joshua Tree' album. It was my Secondary School Geography teacher, Mr Dermot Scully who gave my name to one of the women in the office when she mentioned how busy they were - thankfully, he thought of me. He has since passed on, but I am forever grateful to him for this. I took the bus into Windmill Lane Studios Dublin for the interview, dressed head to toe in my mother’s green clothes - like an Aer Lingus flight attendant! Before I knew it I got the position, and started a few days later, in their bright red office (it was the ‘80s remember!). I was hugely nervous, feeling very much like an outsider with little or no relationship with music going in, but after one week working as a PA to the band's day to day Manager, I was hooked. It felt like home!
One from the archives … (photo credit BP Fallon)
Before I knew it, I was sent out 'on the road' with the band, touring Europe, looking after ticketing and hospitality for their guests each night. It was the most incredible experience, and I didn’t take one second of it for granted - absorbing as much as I could, while getting glimpses of the world that most 19 year olds would only dream of.
There were many colourful characters along the way, and quite a few famous faces too, but I actually think another job I did a few years later, at 'MTV Europe' based in London, was where I really got a chance to spread my wings & develop other career skills, when I represented Independent Record Labels at the weekly MTV Playlist meeting. Looking back, I realise it was quite a big deal, and could be compared to the ‘Spotify' of today - if you were lucky enough to get your music playlisted, it opened your song to a vast new audience across Europe helping increase fans & ultimately sales in the form of CDs or tickets to gigs. Nowadays Spotify does a similar thing. I look back at those MTV years as my ‘University’ years with a sprinkling of superstar singers, bands and models thrown in - I worked with the likes of David Bowie, Lenny Kravitz, Bjork, Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss and so many others at various events in Europe.
Q2 It’s so much more than music though isn’t it? Kevin Godley (10CC) says of you “The two words I most associate with Suzanne are music and commitment. Music is Suzanne’s fuel, and commitment to promoting its worth is her life’s work”. Tell us about the commitment element of your career and what qualities that level of commitment and focus have required you to have.
I don’t think it’s any secret that only a small percentage of people working in music earn good money from it, so it’s probably fair to say, you continue working in the industry because you love, and are passionate about it - it is not for everyone, and quite often your work will go unpaid especially if you are working with new artists with no fanbase. For me personally, I really have to believe & feel connected to the music, or the events or whatever project I am working on, but always in the hope that it will positively enrich people’s lives in some shape or form - which is why I continue to do it. I have actually tried to leave over the years, on the hunt for ‘a real job’, taking little detours into Tech world or Television, and have worked with a Food Consultant or as PR for an Art Gallery, but somehow I always end up working back with the music tribe! I think I ‘get' them, and perhaps they ‘get’ me...
Q3 We’re guessing it isn’t all parties & glam in your world. What’s the worst job you’ve ever had to do?
This last year has been one of the most challenging for so many industries, and live music is no exception. We’ve all had to try new ways of getting music out there with live-streaming, and we’re super grateful for the tech at our fingertips, so parties, gigs and glam are a distant memory from the past. However, I can’t help smiling as I reflect about the glam events like 'Cannes Film Festival' or the UK 'Brit Awards' back in the days of the Blur vs Oasis battles…lots of fun!. But equally the joy of being in a stuffed sweaty venue rammed up to the front trying to get a glimpse of a hot new band you knew deep down would one day explode onto the global stage - I feel so lucky to have experienced both - and hopefully I will still continue to do so when the world is a safer place again for International travel like ‘Eurosonic’ in The Netherlands or 'The Great Escape’ in the UK.
In between music jobs, I have taken on other work, and the worst job that comes to mind was when I lived in Australia, and I worked in telesales for the 'Guide Dog Association of Victoria'. I even tried door to door sales, which I absolutely hated. It was at that point I approached some music people in Sydney, and am forever grateful as I got an intern job at a small Independent Record Label ‘rooArt’ owned by INXS Management which had been set up to help promote Australian bands - once again I felt like I belonged, and had come to a ‘home from home’. Come to think of it, it ties in well with the theme of this event ‘Hustling 101' as this was probably a pretty good example of ‘hustling’ in my career!
Suzanne & her lovely mum at Vicar Street studios with Finbar Furey
Q4 And like many of the artists you’ve worked with, you’ve also completely reinvented yourself, probably a few times over. How have you decided where to go next with your career path?
When my son was little, I wanted to spend more time with him, so I literally 'changed my life to have a life'. Leaving a secure job, I opted for the more risky, freelance route, and Suzanne Doyle Consultancy was born. It’s been quite the roller coaster I must admit, with some hugely worrying times, wondering where the next paid project or job would come from, but happy to say, more ups than downs, with some incredible experiences along the way, and it has been worth the extra stress as I was around for those precious younger years with my son now aged 23, and my daughter now 16.
Q5 Our theme for this month’s AwakenHub event is “Hustling 101”. What percentage of your working life do you spend hustling and give us an example of an average day – if there is such a thing?
Hustling is an interesting word, as it can conjure up negative imagery. For the purposes of the AwakenHub event, I see it more as a combination of hard graft and networking, with focused, gentle persuasion along the way which is every day! There really is no average day, but there is definitely the discipline of sitting at the laptop, trying to dream up ideas or leads out of the air, and see if they develop roots and sprout into something desirable to a wider audience. The most recent for me being the release campaign for Irish Singer/Songwriter Declan O’Rourke’s seventh album, ‘Arrivals’ released to critical acclaim in April of this year, and when you see a surprising comment from someone like Pete Townshend from The Who, “It is a gem. Fabulous guitar and singing. Just love this Arrivals album’.
Suzanne at the RTE studios in 2016 working as a Music Booker for the Late Late Show
Q6 Any advice or tips for readers of the AwakenHub blog who fancy having a go at following in your shoes?
That’s a tricky one, as there isn’t really a 1, 2, 3 and hey presto you arrive! However, if anyone is interested in working in the business of music, I would highly recommend they have a secondary skill they can earn money from, while they research and learn as much as possible about the industry before they make the jump e.g. Music Bloggers/Podcasts, networking at Industry events. Always be open to meeting and engaging people from other industries - you never know when they will all connect up together - look at how we met Mary! Since Lockdown, there are even more accessible streamed events from all over the world, where you can listen and learn on elements of the Music Industry. I always pick up new ideas, or get reminded about old ones, from each and every webinar or panel I tune in for. I am excited to be an elected member of a new trade group AIM Ireland which is the collective voice of the independent music industry in Ireland, and is formalising in the next month or so, https://www.aimireland.ie Our mission is to promote growth, awareness and opportunities for the Independent music industry at home and overseas, so if someone is serious about working in this industry, that is one to keep an eye on.
• Suzanne Doyle is an Artist Manager and Music Consultant. See suzannedoyle.com for more information.
Thanks for joining us today on the blog Suzanne and sharing your stories & advice. We’re looking forward to hearing from you & our other speakers Valerie Pierce, Ciara Crossan & Marah Curtin & the event will be hosted by AwakenHub co-founder Clare McGee. We still have a few tickets left so it isn’t too late to join the conversation.