John Waite – HuffPost 2.23.11

Mike Ragogna: Considering all the changes that have happened over the last few years including record stores disappearing, do you have any advice for new artists?

John Waite: Yeah, just make music. Back in the stone age–when it was guys sitting around the campfire at night singing songs about hunting and finding some food–there was no A&R guy sitting there saying it doesn’t have a hook. If I was a young kid now, I would just be writing songs. I would be writing from the heart and I would be committing it to virtual tape and making records and putting them out. Basically, that’s what I’ve just done. I made a record away from the record label and then licensed it to them. It’s true that all of the shops are closing down. Anybody that wants to find music now can go to iTunes or any of the other sites and get an artist’s catalog immediately in very high quality. They still make CDs with audio files, but it’s more like something you would listen to through an incredible stereo system. I think it’s a level playing field for the artist, there is no such thing as not having a deal. It’s about being a troubadour again, it’s about making your way through the world through music. If you have to go and ask the A&R guy for $50,000 to make a record, there is something wrong with you. You can make a great record for $5,000, you can. My live album cost $6,000. Who is kidding who, anybody can do this. You don’t have to go into somebody’s office and ask for the money to do it, you don’t have to compromise. Art is back in the driver’s seat, and I think that’s a wonderful thing.