Music Biz Pros: Press Play
Published 28 August, 2020
Since the early 90s, Sean Simmons has paved his way through the Victorian music industry. After working in radio, sponsorship, event curation and as a booking agent for Premier, Mushroom, Sean decided to take the leap and start Press Play, his own booking agency for local and international artists.
With Press Play officially launching this week, we’re celebrating another Victorian music champion through our Music Biz Pros series. We spoke to Sean about his career in the industry, how Press Play is adapting during and post COVID-19 and what’s in store for the future.
Please tell me a bit about yourself (how did you start in the music industry, where have you worked previously)
I’ve been playing in bands and recording albums ever since I was in school but in 1992 I walked into PBS FM’s St. Kilda studios offering to volunteer in any way possible. By the end of that year I was presenting my own show and before too long began working in the sponsorship department.
I left PBS in 2002 to help 4ZZZ start up their promotions and sponsorship dept. and relocated to Brisbane for 2 years before coming back to join RRR FM on their sponsorship team. After 17 years in public radio I decided on a change and accepted a job at Premier Artists, Mushroom where I worked the next 7 years. I learned my craft as a booking agent, curated the odd festival and began branching out to touring international artists before leaving in 2019 to start Press Play.
You’ve recently launched Press Play, a new national agency. Please tell us a bit about Press Play
Press Play began operating on a very casual basis in 2015 only touring 2-3 international acts. The first tour was Kid Congo & the Pink Monkey Birds (who we’ve now toured 4 times). After leaving Premier Artists at the end of 2019, I expanded it into a booking agency for local acts as well as the internationals. We work closely with our artists focussing on their ongoing career development looking after all aspects of live touring. The roster now boasts 20 local acts including Cash Savage & the Last Drinks, Died Pretty, Freya Josephine Hollick, Mick Harvey, Cookin’ on 3 Burners & Black Cab and 15 international artists including Lydia Lunch, Swans, Mudhoney and others.
Why did you decide to start Press Play?
After seven years at Premier, I felt I had learned enough and made enough contacts to give it a try on my own. I am really appreciative of the knowledge I gained working there. There is a wealth of experience behind the walls of Mushroom and whilst there I did my best to absorb as much of it as I could. I detected a gap in the industry for the kind of music I wanted to represent which had been shaped by my 17 years in community radio. I’ve seen the music industry change a lot in the 25 years that I’ve been involved in it with a huge shift in the last 5 years and I wanted to create an agency that evolved with it.
How will Press Play be adapting to the post COVID-19 music industry?
A huge positive that has come out of the Covid-19 crisis is that the industry seems to communicate within itself better than ever. For an industry that can often work autonomously and independently of others, I’ve noticed that the we are working more closely than ever to achieve an outcome that is favourable for all of us. I saw something similar as we approached the SLAM rally and banded together for the greater good of our venues a decade ago. To navigate through Covid-19 and beyond will require a degree of innovation and inspiration. It will require an ability to be flexible in our thinking and be open to re-invention, but most of all it will require effective communication among our own.
What advice would you give to anyone wanting to launch a music business, especially during a challenging time?
As I approached leaving Premier to begin Press Play I did it with an element of trepidation which is natural for any big move, however by the time I left I felt that I had built up enough resilience and had prepared myself and the business for almost any curve ball that could be thrown. While it’s almost impossible to predict a pandemic, I’m thankful for the preparation I undertook to launch my own business. This crisis has been challenging to say the least but I know that there will be light at the end and once we’re through it I will feel that the business can survive just about anything. If you’re going to do something like this it’s important to be invested in the long term and try not to get too emotional in the short term about the things that can’t be helped.
To learn more about Press Play visit: https://pressplaypresents.com