Today we’d like to introduce you to Johnny Miller.
Hi Johnny, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I started playing in bands when I was 13, writing songs as early as eight years old. I used to sit and read the linear notes of albums (which I stole from my older sisters) the lyrics, producers, and all that stuff. I couldn’t get enough knowledge of music. My sisters took me to my first concert when I was seven which was Steppenwolf. I had many influences but my favorites were Zeppelin, The Stones, Floyd, and the Beatles. Though I listened to Johnny Cash, George Jones, Keith Whitley as well.
After a two years stint in the Army when I was 16 while still in high school, I moved from the small town of Fremont, Ohio to California.
Didn’t know anyone just drove out here in a 78 Pontiac Trans Am 400 dollars in my pocket and the clothes on my back, once I got here I never looked back. I formed my band here where I was the lead singer and main writer (Casteel) those were great years, the sunset strip, the 80’s.
But I won’t bore you or should I say frighten you with some of those stories.
My first wife and I had a son so I got out of the business for a while, I also have a daughter but once the music is in your blood, you can’t stay away long. After we parted ways, I was signed to a country record deal and headed to Nashville to write and record with some of the best. Though I wasn’t a great country entertainer, twirling the mic around wasn’t really a country thing I guess… I was a great writer and signed a publishing deal where I was thrown into the mix of some of the best writers in Nashville. I got married again, then divorced, then married again, but nothing stuck, music was my mistress and it’s all I really could think about. I opened a publishing company signed some great writers and was heavily involved in securing cuts for many of them with big artists, as well as developing and getting artists signed to deals.
I then went to work for Sony and mainly worked contract negotiations and some A&R, I went on to work for Capitol and a few smaller labels before embarking on tour management, then booking and promotion and then back to the labels.
In 2017, I opened TruPitch Entertainment and currently have six artists on my roster I manage.
I guess thats it in a nutshell. My family never quite got it you know. I should have stayed in my small town and worked at a factory, that just wasn’t me. Through the good and the bad, I wouldn’t change a thing.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Nothing good in life comes easy, but if you really want it bad enough no matter what that is, you have to take the good with the bad, make mistakes, learn from them, don’t take things personally, knowledge is power, so study your craft, trust in your instincts, be true to yourself, and associate yourself with people who are successful.
In the music business, you’re going to hear a lot more no’s than you do yes’s so have thick skin, and most of all it should be fun.
My journey was full of ups and downs but I wouldn’t trade the bad or the good times for anything because music is my passion and my life nothing will ever come between that, treat it like a business because that’s what it is.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
So basically they say I’m a manager, lol you know what an entertainment manager really is? Your an accountant, a babysitter, a counselor, a psychiatrist, a mob boss… I consider myself more of a developer, I know talent when I see or hear it, I know a hit song within the first 30 seconds, I know not to get emotionally involved with my clients, it’s business period! I am an old school A&R guy, I find the talent, develop the brand, assist in the budgets, find the right producers, the right songs, find investors, and know the marketing game pretty well. You have to in this day and age it’s ever-changing. There is so much talent out there and over 98% will never make it for one reason or another. So if I decide to work with someone, I really have to believe in them and that I can take them to the next level.
I don’t name drop. I believe what you done in your past is only good in your past, my artists don’t give a crap about what I’ve done for others, it’s what I can do now in the present, for them today.
I don’t rest on past glory or accomplishments, too many people do that, this is why they become irrelevant in this business they refuse to learn new technics, new skills, study what the trends are, what people are listening to, and incorporate that into their own brand of business.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Wow, if I had a nickel, well I guess then I would have 5 cents… The only advice I can give to artists is be thick-skinned, hone your craft, work relentlessly, talk less, listen more, learn from the people who have had success, have a game plan, a backup plan, and never put your eggs in one basket. This goes for people who want to break in on the business side as well, find mentors, learn from them. Don’t be in a big hurry because success is not an overnight thing. I learned a lot about relationships through this business, I learned when to shut up and when to speak, I made countless bad judgment calls, invested so much time and money, as well as put my faith in certain people who ultimately failed me. But I kept on going and I didn’t let any of it make me bitter or distrust people. Everyone is to be trusted until they give you reason not to, then you have to cut those ties.
Always be grateful, always be caring, always be professional, but also be strong, don’t take any crap, and be real, that’s the biggest thing, be authentic to yourself, your brand, whatever it is, be real!
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.trupitch.com
- Instagram: @trupitchentertainment
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/trupitchentertainment
