If you haven’t figured out by now, we’re a little different. Most companies brag about how much they made, but we’re far more proud of what we spent in our first year of operation.  Dig:  Last year we paid out more than 56% of our gross earnings to regional artists, mostly for music licenses.  True to our mission, Cincinnati artists benefited from new opportunities we worked hard to create. Here’s what we did:

• Partnered with the Cincinnati Museum Center for Pharohfest and introduced 4 great local bands to new young audiences.
• Worked with the Cincinnati Art Museum for ROAR, featuring Lions Rampant.
• At MPMF 2009, we coordinated daytime programming, hosted our debut ANP showcase, and had a community-wide merch table (the ANP SceneStore).
• Sponsored Kentucky Struts’ Todd Lipscomb to play at a benefit for the Cincinnati chapter of the American Red Cross
• Introduced local artists to the advertising community through the AdClub Cincinnati’s annual Media Auction.
• Launched a new performance/recording laboratory, holding our first UltraSession featuring The Guitars.

Unlike some out of town competitors glomming onto Cincy bands, we’ve never touched an artist’s publishing, or put our hands in their pockets before reaching into our own.  We invested real cash in every release, and pioneered musicated merch… affordable download-based releases delivered as buttons, t-shirts and posters.  Our projects:

• Partnered with  The Mockbee to stage the “Full Release” party, celebrating 4 new titles on one night,
• Worked with local labels Shake It and Phratry on their titles.
• Released the Sundresses, Motel and supported their Sandwich tour
• Released mallory’s long-awaited followup “Before it Grows”
• Released Fists of Love eponymous debut EP

In short, we’ve worked overtime to make music easier, cooler and more affordable.

But we were most excited by our wins in licensing.  Our plan was to enter the licensing market with a strong regional catalog this summer. Last November, months ahead of schedule, we were pitching standout local artists against big name stars like Phoenix and Tegan & Sara, for commercial placements.

After this surprise, we rushed the lawyers to finish the paperwork, and as the ink was still flowing, we closed our biggest deal: An original composition for an advertising agency in Chicago landed in a major advertising campaign.  By the time our one-year anniversary rolled around, we had paid out over $17,000 in licensing and session fees to local artists.  No other company in town can make that claim.  See why we believe in win-win scenarios?

But we saved the best for last…while we were very fortunate last year, we enter our second year more organized, experienced and prepared.  Last year the best opportunities found us.  This year, we’re hunting the opportunities and our success has left us hungry for more.  Our library is growing daily, as are our contacts in advertising and the creative community.  Our schedule is stuffed with as many releases as we can support, which is driving our push into music promotion. We never stop…we’re here to connect bands and fans.

A lot of companies talk about being artist friendly, but often those relationships are one-way.  You’re expected to give away your music and sell your soul cheap.  We think that’s crazy, and are working hard to change it, by offering the region’s best artists a real partnership, where resources flow both ways.  We’re proud to put money where our heart is: back in the pockets of the people who make the music we love.

So thanks and cheers to the Cincinnati music scene.  We thank our community for it’s warm welcome and we’re working hard to build even more opportunity. Viva 2010!