What Makes a Star?
by Margareta Sjolund “When I attended my first Mensa meeting I expected everyone to be very rich and successful but I was surprised at how diverse the group was. I thought everyone would be company directors and CEOs but actually people came from all walks of life.” This story comes from a Singaporean manager who was a member of Mensa — the international society for people with a high IQ. Mensa’s only membership criteria is being in the top 2% of IQ. A high IQ ensures people have a high degree of cognitive intelligence – but does not necessarily ensure success in life. In fact it turns out that while IQ is a pretty good predictor of school results, IQ alone is not a very good predictor of success in business. Do you remember the smartest kid in your high school? Where are they now? Some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world did not even graduate from university — yet they had something else… For decades people have been trying to identify and measure what it is that mak
CD sales are just a small part of it. We take a look at other ways artists are getting their names out there and making money … Part 3: The Future: What will the music industry be like in a year? Five years? We spoke with experts — they don’t know either but have some fascinating theories … So, if the tried-and-true Billboard charts can’t really be relied on to tell us who is the hottest artist at any given moment — what can? “I’m a firm believer that an artist’s cultural impact and their popularity has never been the same,” said Steve Stoute, a former executive at Sony Music and Interscope Records and founder of Translation, a company that specializes in pairing huge stars with huge brands, such as Jay-Z and Reebok (for the highly successful S. Carter Collection) and Justin Timberlake and McDonald’s. In a year when album sales took yet another double-digit dip — the seventh straight decline in as many years while a billion songs a month were downloaded, mostly illegally — Stoute s
shows you how the music business can make a star. Each day of this exclusive institute has a theme that teaches you about the music business, challenges your ideas, and gives you the tools to use your thinking. You’ll also participate in field trips and interact with industry professionals. Applicants do not need to be musicians to apply. Meet people who play different roles in making a star: performer, A&R scout, producer, record label executive, and manager. Work with professionals from the STARPOLISH company, whose guiding principle is “Helping Artists Help Themselves.
