GRP’s Larry Rosen – HuffPost 9.26.12
Mike Ragogna: What advice do you have for new artists?
Larry Rosen: You know, you’ve got to look at the people that came before. I think understanding Duke Ellington and John Coltrane will give you a better insight into where all this should be going and where it’s going to go, because the other influences you have, which are in your life everyday — what you’re hearing on the radio, what you’re seeing on the net, what’s on YouTube — that’s the most current element, but you’ve got to understand the roots of where this all comes from. Then when you go from there, the advice that I have for any artists — and I can tell you this from putting on my record company hat — I always looked for individuality. I remember I had managers that would come and call me up and say, “Look, I have the greatest guitar player, you’ve got to hear him. This guy sounds just like George Benson,” and I’d say, “Why would I want to hear this person, then? There is a George Benson. I want to hear somebody who doesn’t sound like anybody. That’s what I want to hear.” So an individual voice is really a very important thing in music.
MR: When you look at the state of music right now, what do you think?
LR: I think it’s incredibly exciting. I think it’s an exciting time, because the world has gotten so small that the exposure to so many different kinds of rhythms and colors in music are available to everybody. When I see young people and what they’re doing today, they’re really bringing things together. We talked about “fusion” and “smooth jazz.” That’s really coming full circle. There are so many musicians bringing together so many elements that I think are incredibly creative endeavors. I only see a great future for music. I’ve got to tell you, I have people that come to me all the time and say, “Well the music business is nothing like it used to be,” and I say, “Of course it’s not like it used to be!” Everything is moving forward. But it’s not going away, that’s for sure. It’s getting more exciting from my perspective. That’s the way I look at the world.