Rob Cavallo: Record producer & Senior VP of A&R for Reprise Records

Rob Cavallo is a record producer and senior VP of A&R for Reprise Records.  He worked with many artists including Jewel and Alanis Morrissette just to name a few.  Rob success in producing came from working on albums for bands like “Green Day”.  He started his career from the bottom and worked his way to the top.  He learned the business working under successful A&R personnel in the industry.  This is exactly why I believe that getting the right internship can help sky rocket your career.  It’s not about getting paid with money but about getting paid with more knowledge.  Rob discussed the importance of learning the language of music in order to be able to talk to your artists.  It’s all about gaining the artists respect so they’re able to trust their careers in your hands.  This is definitely something you must learn from experienced personnel in the industry.  Rob believes in following your passion and not doing something because everybody else wants it from you.  I agree with him because passion is something that can take you very far in any career.  You can see and feel someone’s passion when it’s strong enough.  For example, Rob Cavallo said to sign a band you must know exactly why your love that band.  You must be able to explain why this particular band can sell records.  If you can’t explain why you love them then how can you explain why everybody else will. 

New artists must understand that emotion in your music is what sells records.  We (listeners) should be able to feel your pain or which ever emotion you may be trying to bring out.  Mr. Cavallo points out the fact that creativity comes first but you must also know why you’re making the record.  This is a hard business to get into and you must be strong enough to survive it.  It’s all about acting the part now in order to be what you want to be in the future.  For example, Rob says if you want to be a producer start now by making 20 beats a day.  We should also know who our influencers are so we can do better than them.  Rob talks about, as an A&R person the hardest thing to do is when you have to tell your artists their not cutting it.  The entertainment world is not as easy as people may think; you must have the strength to make it.