Episode 495 – Manager Nichole Barsalona, Copyright Claims, And Guitar Center Executive Shuffle

My guest today is Nichole Barsalona, who’s the director of Everyday Rebellion Entertainment artist management and the president of the non-profit Women In Music organization.  Nichole grew up around music as her father Frank was a pioneering agent later inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His clients included The Who, Led Zeppelin, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Tom Petty and U2, among many others. Her mother June was a journalist who traveled from the U.K. at the age of 18 to cover The Beatles’ first U.S. tour and later worked as a music publicist. Nichole started her career at Steven Van Zandt's multi-media company, Renegade Nation, where a week-long temp gig turned into the most formative years of her career. She eventually served as Chief of Staff and Director of Communications at Renegade Nation, and Road Manager to Van Zandt on tours with Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band. During the interview we spoke about how she observed her father’s influence on the music business as she was growing up, how we’re at a turning point for music promotion, the importance of meet and greets, the most sought-after person on a management team today, her role in Women In Music, and much more. I spoke with Nicole from her office in Boston. On the intro I’ll take a look at the status of claims that the Copyright Claims Board reviewed last month, and big changes in the executive suite of Guitar Center.