For the latest episode of Ask The Label Manager we catch up with Adrian Myd to learn about his unique vision behind Making You Dance and Magician on Duty.

1. Thanks for joining us and giving us some insight into your life and daily label manager duties. So let’s start with the obvious, what label or labels do you manage and where are you based?

Hello, thank you for having me. I am based in Miami, Florida, USA and I am the founder & label manager of Making You Dance Records & Magician On Duty.

2. Where does the name from your label(s) comes from? Is there a story behind how it/they came to be?

I launched Making You Dance back in October 2013, and the name came up when I was blogging for several online blogs. Magician On Duty popped up in my head when I was writing a press release for a podcast.

3. Does your label(s) have a distinct sound? How would describe the labels vision and sound?

Absolutely, this was the reason why I launched my 2nd label Magician On Duty, as I didn’t want to dilute/confuse our listeners. With Making You Dance, I am concentrating in releasing peak time melodic deep tech/techno, and Magician On Duty is more downtempo/electronica outside the box.

4. We would guess you probably receive a lot of demos, how many would say you receive in any given week and what percentage would you actually consider releasable and do you reply to every submission?

I receive around 10 to 15 demos a week for both labels. The percentage will probably be around % 10

5. How long is the wait from when you sign a project to when it will actually get released?

Usually about 2 to 3 months for Originals, and if there are remixers involved, maybe more.

6. Who would you say are your core label artists? And do you think it’s important for a label to build a roster around a few key artists and develop a distinct sound in the process.

For Making You Dance: Pauke Schaumburg, Lorenzo Calvio, Ivan Masa, Martin Kremser, The White Shadow (FR).

For Magician On Duty: Ioanis, Don Son, Savvas.

I think it’s crucial for a record label to build everlasting relationship with all the artists. I personally treat all my artists like family.

7. What is your thought process behind remixer selection on a given project and how many is too many in your opinion?

I always like to ask my artists what are their top 5 favourite artists or top 5 possible remixers for their work. I add one or two favourite ones and then we are starting contacting them. Out of 5 or 6 , most probably at least two of them are available for remixing. Obviously a very important aspect of this project is the sound. It needs to match the original release.

I think two remixers for any given release is more than enough. Less is more, in my opinion.

8. Do you sell merchandise and if so what do you sell, where is it available? and do you think it’s important to have merchandise?

I am not selling any merchandise as of right now, but when I feel that the brand has reached a certain level of visibility, I will most likely create something interesting for our fans. Is it important? Absolutely!

9. Where would you say the majority of your fans are based? And does that correlate to where the majority of your sales come from?

Most of our fans are from Europe, particularly from Germany. Our highest sales come from Germany too.

10. What has been the most successful track or release on the label? Both from a sales perspective but also support or live / radio play form established DJs?

For Making You Dance: The White Shadow (FR)’s remix of “Moment” by Alex Justino, Danke & Monobloq. It peaked at #10 in Beatport’s Top 100 Electronica/Downtempo Chart (highest sales)

With support from the likes of: BLANCAh, Jamie Stevens, Madmotormiquel, Marc Poppcke, Martin Kremser, Mashk, Me & Her,Ran Salman , Sascha Cawa, Stas Drive

Also Cheap Picasso’s Rezo EP which peaked at #4 in Beatport’s Top 100 Electronica/Downtempo Releases

For Magician On Duty: Our latest VA called “ You Are Music, We Are One” which peaked at #11 In Beatport’s Top 100 Releases for Electronica/Downtempo and also #25 in the Top 100 Deep House Releases

With support from the likes of:
Acid Pauli, Ali Farahani, Dandara, Hraach, Jose Maria Ramon, Kimball Collins, Milo Häfliger, Timboletti, Zone+ & Usif, Eelke Kleijn, Jamie Stevens, Madmotormiquel, Mariano Mellino, Nick Warren, Sascha Cawa, Upercent, Valentin Huedo

11. What artists would you love to have on the label?

For Making You Dance: Jonas Rathsman, Alex Boman, Florian Kruse, Manuel Tur, Jimi Jules

For Magician On Duty: Leafer Legov, Pezzner, Roderic, Bengal (SF) Namatjira, Mielsen

12. Where do you see the label in 5 years? And are you pleased with where the label is now since its inception?

I see the labels having a very strong identity & a very talented rooster of artists. Also hosting branded events around the world. I am a big fan of organizing branded events that have special decorations, costumes and different elements that focuses on overall costumer experience.

13. Living off the earning of a small digital imprint is unlikely, how do you supplement your income? Do you have a job outside of electronic music?

I have been working in the hospitality industry for the past 15 years and I am fortunate and blessed to work with an upper management that fully supports my passion for music.

14. Do you pay advances or remix fees? And is it reasonable to do so in your situation?

In certain situations, yes. I think it’s reasonable to pay such fee ONLY for an artist that have very strong (proven) productions skills, and must be a touring artist.

15. Who is your distributor and have you been with them for the entire existence of the label?

Both labels were launched with Symphonic Distributor out of Wesley Chapel, Florida, United States

16. Are you or have you done label nights and if so how have they contributed to the label’s growth?

Yes, I already hosted several label showcases for Magician On Duty and yes they have contributed favourably to the overall image and reach of the label.

17. What’s your favourite thing about running a label?

The Goosebumps that I get when I receive an amazing demo. There is no other feeling like it.

The fact that I get to meet and interact with different artists from around the world. I am very sociable and I always like to make new friends.

18. What advice would you give to anyone trying to get a release on the label? How do you suggest they approach the demo submission process?

There are couple of things that are very important to me. First of, I always check if the email was intended specifically for me. A lot of artists are doing a mass email and it makes me think that the artist didn’t really take the time to actually find out more about my label. A proper short introduction is always welcomed and being nice and friendly always gets my attention right away. Private links will always have a priority.

19. What if a demo is good but needs refining? Do you have time to help the artist and give them some tips?

Great question… personally, I love to take the time to guide the artist to a more refined version of their work. I will never instruct an artist to change the sound or the elements of the track, I only give advices In terms of arrangement ( some artists send tracks with an improper intro or outro to the track, making it very hard for other djs to mix it in with other tracks), intensity and only if it lacks major elements like a baseline, percussions or a lead.

20. Who does the labels mastering? and do you ever have tracks mixed down by an engineer for better results?

My mastering for both labels is done by Robert Trifunović.

He is a sound engineer based in Slovenia.

21. This is tough but if you had to pick your five favourite releases or tracks on the label what would they be?

Both labels top 5:

1. DaR & DoR – The Remixes EP (https://www.beatport.com/release/the-remixes-ep/1890583 )
2. Palliate – Calling EP (https://www.beatport.com/release/calling-ep/1624269 )
3. Savvas – Illusion of Reality EP (https://www.beatport.com/release/illusion-of-reality/1909569 )
4. You Are Music, We Are One VA (https://www.beatport.com/release/you-are-music-we-are-one-va/1975014 )
5. Martin Kremser – Suspiros Del Mar EP (https://www.beatport.com/release/suspiros-del-mar/1906095 )

22. Lastly, what advice do you have for someone just starting a label?

If it doesn’t give you Goose bumps, do not sign it!

You can check out the Making You Dance catalog: here