An Old, Wise Fish

I’m Todd L. Burns, and welcome to Music Journalism Insider, a newsletter about music journalism. I highlight some of the best stuff I hear, read, and watch every week; publish news about the industry; and interview writers, scholars, and editors about their work. My goal is to share knowledge, celebrate great work, and expand the idea of what music journalism is—and where it happens. Questions, comments, concerns? You can reach me anytime at music.journalism.insider@gmail.com. And if you’re not already subscribed to the newsletter, you can do so at musicjournalisminsider.com.

Today in the newsletter: Interviews with Jocelle Koh from Asian Pop Weekly, classical music journalist Esteban Meneses, and TikTokker Sonnybabie. Plus! Reading recommendations, a documentary about the theremin, and more! But first…

Disintegration Loops (2022)

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Reading List

• Rock’s Backpages celebrates writing by and about Lester Bangs
• Jude Rogers explains what it’s like to be a female music writer
• Caryn Rose reflects on concert-going in 2022
• T.M. Brown reports on a recently unearthed trove of Fire Island cassette tapes
• Mira Kaplan writes about the importance of audio preservation
• Alexandra Topping and Aamna Mohdin investigate claims of misconduct by DJ Tim Westwood
• Gunseli Yalcinkaya reveals how memes became electronic music’s cultural currency
• Ko Bragg says funk music taught them how to be an environmentalist [h/t Varyer]
• Alexis Landau describes the world of World War II artist exiles who made their way to Hollywood
• Stephen Low and Diamond Rodrigue on parents who make music [h/t Music REDEF]

Q&A: Jocelle Koh

Jocelle Koh is the founder of Asian Pop Weekly, and also works as Label Distribution Leader for Singapore/Malaysia at Believe Digital. But more generally, Jocelle likes to think of herself as a “gap bridger and music industry professional.” Asian Pop Weekly began in 2010, arising out of the utter lack of English language resources for music of its kind. Today, it’s one of the most successful Asian music websites of its kind. In this excerpt from our interview, Jocelle explains what role mentors have had in her career thus far.

Western perspectives on Asian music in media and communications is a very niche area, so basically everyone in the same space was also just learning as they went. But I had some great mentors and supporters who appreciated what I was trying to do, and gave me the freedom to do so, and I think that ability to negotiate has given me some unique perspectives that we try to incorporate into our pieces today.

I draw a lot of influence from academic approaches in my journalism actually, so I had some great lecturers both in Australia and Taiwan whose support meant a lot to me. The ability to question and critique the structures around the music industry, and to realise that so many things are social constructs that can be negotiated if you change your mindset: Those were two of the most important things they taught me. It gave me the tools to carve some semblance of a roadmap to tackle the weighty goals I wanted to achieve, when everyone else around me told me it was just impossible. The wider social impact of the work I do was also something ingrained in me through our conversations, and it has helped me to anchor myself and to keep going even when things seemed difficult.

I also had some mentors in the music industry who were amongst the few who had explored or found some success in bringing Asian music overseas, and I’m very grateful for how forthcoming they’ve been in sharing their insights with me.

Read the full interview with Jocelle here.

A Cause Worth Supporting

From Jocelle Koh:

A cause I’ve supported in the past is Music Declares Emergency, a campaign supported by artists all around the world who are advocating for the climate crisis and how we can take action. Music is such a powerful way to have a message heard, and that direct intersection between music and the environment really resonated with me. Climate change is so real that you can literally feel it no matter where you are in the world, so I think now is the time to take action. You can sign their petition, get a t-shirt to share the message, donate or get involved in your own way!

Check out all of the causes highlighted by folks I’ve interviewed.

Podcasts!

• Don’t Alert The Stans talks with Gerrick Kennedy about diversity in journalism and his new book on Whitney Houston
• Phil Freeman discusses his new book on Inquiry
• Chris Deville from Stereogum talks new records with the Endless Scroll crew
• The Rodeo Magazine editor Liv Cowle discusses her career on She Will Rock You
• The Spindle Podcast is a new show all about 7-inch records

Q&A: Esteban Meneses

Esteban Meneses is a classical music journalist and critic who will be among the new fellows at this year’s Rubin Institute for Music Criticism. Esteban currently contributes to Classical Voice America and I Care if You Listen, among other publications. In this excerpt from our interview, Esteban offers a tip for folks looking to get involved with music journalism.

Sometimes I read about music journalists and it’s not unusual to find out that many of them got into music journalism or criticism by accident—excellent critics like Anthony Tommasini, who just retired from The New York Times, or Alex Ross, from The New Yorker, or Anne Midgette, formerly of The Washington Post. I don’t know if anyone decides early on to become a music journalist, let alone a music critic. You might have a degree in journalism, and a lot of experience, but I think that more than a journalism degree—or a music degree, for that matter—what you need the most is a strong interest in reading and writing about music. I highly doubt that anyone puts themselves through a music program, much less conservatory, to become a music journalist.

With that, what I would tell someone starting in music journalism is the same that any budding writer might hear from an old, wise fish (which I definitely am not): Keep at it, somehow, and keep practicing. But if you think you’re going to be able to make a living from the beginning, you’re in the wrong business. Keep a blog or look for an unedited, unpaid website you can contribute to, write for your college student paper, and make contact with more experienced writers once you have a little bit of experience and writing samples. Then you can start working with editors for paid opportunities. That’s what I did.

Read the full interview with Esteban here.

Bits, Bobs, Pt. 1

• Greil Marcus is starting a Substack
• Microcosm has two new music-themed cookbooks
• Music journalist Jedd Beaudoin recently lost his house in a fire and needs support
• Rachel Karten interviews a social media manager about the many hats they wear

Stuff You Gotta Watch

Stuff You Gotta Watch celebrates music journalism in video form. This week’s column is by Ana Leorne.

Back in the 1920s, the very notion that music could be electronic was revolutionary. Enter Leon Theremin and his game-changing invention, which would not only enjoy an enduring presence in music for decades to come, but also inspire other musical devices such as Robert Moog’s first commercial synthesizer.

Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey tells a story that crosses borders, generations, approaches, and styles. Although it is certainly not the only instrument to achieve this transversality, the Theremin possesses a different, somewhat mystical, aura that comes from being played without any physical contact from the musician. In short, the result looks and sounds like magic.

Two stories are told in parallel: one is the gradual revolution brought about by the theremin in pop, classical, and contemporary music; the other is its creator’s complicated personal and professional life, which includes his forced work in a sharashka and cooperation with the KGB in the construction of espionage tools. Featuring theremin virtuoso Clara Rockmore, electronic music pioneer Robert Moog, Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren, and many more, this fascinating documentary also includes what is among the last filmed footage of Leon Theremin himself.

Read One Or Two Of These In My Day…

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How Do You Do, Fellow TikTokers?

• Black creators chat about what’s happened since last year’s “TikTok dance strike”
• @cultureunfiltered remembers the ringtone era
• @songpsych unpacks the complexity of “Happy Birthday”
• @sonnybabie talks about ghostwriting in hip-hop
• @markmallman explains why 8-tracks were the worst music format ever

Trivia Time

What year did Pitchfork start naming releases “Best New Music”?

Bits, Bobs, Pt. 2

• Anna Codrea-Rado explains what she’s learned since becoming a published author
• Music journalist Charles Holmes reveals his internet habits
• The owner of The Chicago Reader has stepped down
• The shortlist for the 2022 Ralph J. Gleason Music Book Award has been announced

If Only It Worked Like That

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Q&A: Sonnybabie

Sonnybabie is a TikTok music critic who primarily focuses on hip-hop. Each day, without fail, he puts together three videos that offer opinion and analysis on the state of the scene. In addition to his TikTok, Sonnybabie is also working on becoming an engineer / producer / mixer. In this excerpt from our interview, Sonnybabie described his typical day-to-day.

Day-to-day is always the same. Work all day, maybe during and after work, do some research, then make TikToks right when I’m off. But I like to keep it off the dome as much as possible, I know it’s subject to making more mistakes but I don’t like my content to be too robotic. After TikToks, I work out and do some school work (if during semester) and when I’m home or throughout the day, listen to submissions of music that people send me or surf. On Fridays and Saturdays I do live streams, where I do segments like Hot or Not where I judge people’s music on live and if good, they go on the Hunting Human playlist or I do battlezone, where submissions are pinned against each other and viewers along with myself vote which track was better.

How do you organize your work?

The way I organize is almost pretty much not at all. I always do topics and artists that I am feeling at the time, and if I do something different I will do more research and write down certain notes. But most of it is off the dome. But I always stick to the schedule “3 tik toks a day, every day,” and do live every weekend around the same time. Like TV.

What’s one tip that you’d give a music journalist starting out right now?

A tip that I would give to music journalists starting out is never step back. You will make mistakes, you will get roasted, everything you say and do is stupid and everyone hates you. But that’s your job, so once you say something, stand by it. Don’t be stubborn but just know you will get people that disagree with you.

Read the full interview with Sonnybabie here.

Academic Stuff

• New issues: Intégral: The Journal of Applied Musical Thought, Music & Letters, Sound Studies, Journal of Singing, Rock Music Studies, and Music Education Research
• Jane Jones has tips for writing a book
• The Department of Music and Theater at Manhattan College is launching a new music journal, Sound Studies Review
• Ijeoma Opara discusses constructive ways to deal with the theft of ideas
• The Eurovisions conference will start May 10
• The Elder Conservatorium of Music is launching a Musicology and Ethnomusicology hub on May 5
• Call for Papers: Musical Retrofuturism in the 21st Century (Abstracts due to musicalretrofuturism [at] gmail.com by May 31)

The Closing Credits

Thanks for reading! In case you’ve missed them, I’ve published a number of special features in the newsletter, including articles about music journalism history, what music journalism will be like in 2221, and much more. You can check out all of that here.

I also do a recurring column in the newsletter called Notes On Process. The premise is simple: I share a Google Doc with a music journalist where we go into depth on one of their pieces. It hopefully provides an insight into how music writers do their work. You can check out all editions of Notes On Process here.

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Trivia Time Answer

2003 was the year that “Best New Music” was introduced on the site.

A Final Note

Thanks for reading! I make playlists from time to time. Check them out if you’re interested! And, full disclosure, my day job is at uDiscover Music, a branded content online magazine owned by Universal Music. This newsletter is not affiliated or sponsored in any way by Universal, and any links that relate to the work of my department will be clearly marked.

Feel free to reach out to me via email at music.journalism.insider@gmail.com. On Twitter, it’s @JournalismMusic. Until next time…