Hot Seat: Making It In The Music Industry… with Sarah Hamilton, Ditto Music

TMNhas revived Hot Seat to offer our young industry subscribers an insight into what it takes to make it in the music business.

Ahead of Melbourne's eighth annual Face The Music conference,TMNchats to conference panelistSarah Hamilton, who runs the Australian office of global online distributor Ditto Music. Hamilton also co-founded One of One,awebsite whichprofiles and celebrates women in the Australian music industry.

What are your main pressure points that you focus on within your role?

We help artists get their music distributed online, and also assist with release strategy, marketing and a bunch of other things. I believe that education is important, so helping our artists and labels through the process is important to us. I also pitch and push our Aussie artists to the stores, and try to organise opportunities for them, along with setting up partnerships, project managing global campaigns and timing of release plans.

Do you have a rule of thumb that you’ve adhered to since entering the music industry?

Be authentic and act with integrity. This applies to any part of the music industry – whether you're making music, promoting it, distributing it – whatever. Make sure you stand by your words, and that you're just being yourself – whatever that may be.

Do you have any advice for those who want to enter the music industry?

Do it for love, and work with great people. You can't enjoy your job all of the time, but if you love it most of the time and you can have fun with it, you'll want to stay and learn and grow. Never stop learning things and listening to people.

You’re set to speak at Face The Music in November, which industry issues do you hope are touched on during the course of the conference?

I'm always interested in all things digital, in particular, different strategies and techniques and creative things artists and labels are doing both in their music, but also in getting their music heard. I love hearing about stuff that works, and breaks new ground. I'm interested in the new, latest things that are happening in the digital world, and what opportunities are out there that I can pass on to our bands.

If you could go back, what advice would you give your teenage self?

Don't be fearful. Just go for it and if you make a mistake, no one really cares. You'll learn from it and at least you had a crack.

Face The Music takes place at the Arts Centre, Melbourne on November 13 and 14.Passes are available atfacethemusic.com.auand member discounts are available from Music Victoria, AAM, APRA, AIR, Collarts, AIM and The Push.