We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Simon Jay a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Simon thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

The most meaningful projects I’ve been able to work on have been developing artists. We call it “going from bedroom to stadium.” There are certain fundamentals to growing an artist, and surprisingly enough, most of them don’t really have to do with music.

A few of these things are: learning how to have taste, learning how to express your taste, having a message or mission statement, having a good emotional barometer, learning how to find partnerships that work on many different levels, and the most important is how to tie all of these together as a brand.

There are so many talented artists out there that don’t have the resources to create a cash-positive, self-sustaining brand to their music that can gain fans and advance them forward in their career. A big part of our mission statement is growing their artistry in this fashion. We like to say we “influence the influencers.”

Simon, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I started music when I was 4 years old. I’ve said this before, but learning music at the same time you’re learning how to speak really influenced the way I see music. I see music as another language and a way of communicating. We all compose every day, we compose words together to order a coffee, or to talk to a friend, or even to write down tasks for the day. Music is just the art of applying those same principles into the lexicon of music.

Chapters’ mission statement is to create the highest music, whether it be for artists or film/TV. On the business side, we create a cash-positive, self-sustaining brand.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

The biggest tool I learned in my journey as a creative is to ask higher quality questions. The higher quality questions you ask, the higher quality answers you’ll find. For instance, there’s a big difference between the question “how can I make money in music” vs. “how can I earn a sustainable living in music”. You’ll come up with way better answers to your problems if you can pinpoint the exact problem that you have. So learning how to dive deep into questioning is the greatest resource I have, whether it be on the creative, business, or personal side.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Society can best support artists by interacting with them on a regular business. If you love their merch drop, buy it. If you hate their new song, remix it. A big part of art is sparking conversations.    

Contact Info:

• Website: www.chaptersmusic.com
• Instagram: @simon_chapters
• Twitter: @simon_chapters

Image Credits
John Galbraith, Shades Of Bren