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The
company was co-founded and is currently headed by
President and CEO Mark Hill. Himself a veteran
musician, producer, music business consultant, and
artist manager, Hill has some 30 years experience on
the inside of the music business. His observations
about business practices, performing standards, the
changing climate within the industry; as well as
what acts are able to survive and how; led him to
create the label in 1998. |
Mark Hill, CEO |
Hill was determined to create a label that would
serve as an alternative to the strictures of the
hit-driven commercial music marketplace and
encompass a range of musical genres. "I started
thinking about doing my own company because I saw
how the industry was going, it was too synthetic in
the music not real or organic. I felt that the
industry was making a huge mistake," he recalls.
"Rap music is cool, it adds a new artistic Boom to
the industry, but I always thought it should have
real musicians, real instruments behind it to keep
the organic sound with it that would have made it
real unique." Artists like JZ and a few others
have started to do that, where people can come see
real music and an artistic show.
As a working musician, producer and music arranger
himself, Hill is firm in his support of a talent
pool that plays real instruments and sings naturally
without gimmicks or mechanical aids. Raw talent, he
believes, is the key to building loyal audiences not
only nationally but around the world.
"A lot of groups have to survive on live
performance," says Hill of the current musical
climate, where some of the most talented artists can
build a fan base through touring without necessarily
having a big-charting record and many of the current
crop of hit-makers are studio creations that must
later learn basic stagecraft. |
Music
is an art form, a sensory experience that connects the
musician to their instrument and their art to society at
large. That simple, honest connection between the creator
and the listener is the core of the musical experience. The
fostering of that very connection that forms the basic
foundation of N Focus Entertainment, full-service record
company that is ready to roll with a new crop of exciting
artists.
NFE is an independent entity based in the in the
up-and-coming artistic haven of Orange County, California.
It’s focus is indeed on an organic, creative vision and a
back-to-basics business approach that has already met with
success. Supporting a full range of artistic expression --
including rock, alternative, pop, folk, Latin, and urban --
NFE is committed to celebrating and promoting acts that
demonstrate a strong live performance standard as well as a
distinctive creative voice.
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Gary
Arishon, Marketing |
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David
Yepiz, New Media |
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Christopher Drizen, Asst. A&R |
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HISTORY
Hill's belief in real musicianship led him to found NFE with
an emphasis on real organic music, R&B and Pop. He
explains, adding that he was inspired by his by his brother
Clyde Hill, an artist manager and promoter who had met with
success managing Canadian rock acts--including a fledgling
Nickelback, Noise Therapy, Jar, and YTT because they can
tour and go out and make some money and sell product through
awareness.
The company's first signings were the San Diego rock band 34
Below, which was managed by a friend of Hill's, Floyd Rose;
a Canadian band called Gladyss Patches that was one of his
brother's clients; and Canadian singer-songwriter Steely.
Through EMI Music Distribution, NFE released 34 Below's
debut set “Is It You?” as well as Gladyss Patches' debut “A
Wish This Simple” in late 2001.
The label followed up with the release of Steely's first
album, Mood Shifts, in 2002. A track from the album, "Simple
Girl," turned into an Adult Contemporary hit, charting
nationally and being featured on some of MTV's edgy reality
shows.
Hill says that the reason these rock acts are eager to work
with N Focus Entertainment is the level of industry
experience Hill has, paired with his sense of honesty and
integrity. "I tell them the truth about it.”
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