If you ask Jesse Kirshbaum, the founder and CEO of New York-based New Universal Entertainment (NUE) Agency, how he got his start in the music industry, he’ll probably recount the time he danced in a Puff Daddy music video. However it’s not his dance moves that catapulted his career. He credits that knowing how to hustle and adding value to any situation has helped him thrive in this notoriously competitive business.
“The music business is rapidly reinventing itself. It’s still a business that requires a lot of ambition and hustle,” says Kirshbaum. “Nothing is given to you when you’re starting out, so you need to be able to differentiate yourself from the pack.”
But while it may sound like a lot of hard work, Kirsbaum says that there’s always fun perks to working in this industry. He still gets excited when he describes the recent shows he’s attended (for work, obviously): Lady Gaga at the Roseland Ballroom, Nas at the Tribeca Film Festival, and Childish Gambino at the Hammerstein. It’s these experiences that continue to fuel his passion for music.
Read ahead to learn more about his entrepreneurial journey for this Member Spotlight feature.
I got my first start in high school, dancing in a Puff Daddy video. I was in love in with hip hop, and once I got the opportunity to experience “It’s All About the Benjamins” live. As a freshman in college, I interned at Billboard and Sony Music in London. But before I graduated, I worked under Bill Jemas, who was President at Marvel. This was around the time they were preparing to focus their brand in the movie business. It was the only place that paid me as an intern. I loved the vibe, but it just wasn’t exciting and dynamic as the music industry.
There isn’t a simple way to identify the best talents who aren’t big headliners yet. I wish I could say it’s an algorithm that I put into a computer, but it’s really a combination of a lot of things, like the artist’s team, vision, and the potential scalability of the music I hear. The best way to jump start a relationship with talent is by generating opportunities from Day One.
Nue Agency is a creative music agency, representing high-profile artists like Wale and Asher Roth. I also started this company with my brother and business partner, Alex, so it’s a family-owned business. We’ve been first to recognize and sign so many amazing artists and treat tech companies in a similar vein. Through SoundCTRL and FlashFWD we’ve been able to work with so many amazing music tech companies early on in their careers. We are actually working on some interesting technology that will hopefully take this division of the company to new heights.
Before I started Nue Agency, I lived in LA and worked in video games and mobile. It was a very different vibe than my previous experience in the music business. People in tech were excited about their projects, smart, and open to collaborating. When I moved back to New York, the vibrant tech scene blew me away. There were NY Tech Meetups and NY Video Meetups, but there wasn’t anything targeting the music and tech space. I wanted to explore ways to bridge that gap, which is why we started SoundCTRL.
One of the main perks of working in this business is that I get to be surrounded by music all the time. Our agency alone does around 100 bookings a month, so I probably attend at least two shows a week. I go to so many shows that I enjoy seeing artists in different types of venues, but I still get a kick out of seeing an act on the roof of the Soho House. Also the Central Park Summer Stage. And the Brooklyn Bowl is always a rocking and rolling good time. See what I did there?
For those who want to break into this industry, my advice is to get in where you fit in and start by adding value. Don’t get caught with the glamorous parts of the industry, it’s still about sales and execution. If you understand these principles and know how to add value in any situation, your emails will come back with replies and doors will open.
Photographs by Lauren Kallen