Press Room

JULY 2007

Industry Profile
By Jane Cohen and Bob Grossweiner

ENCORE - Anni Lam is the founder of Parc Landon, a Houston and Los Angeles based music, sports and entertainment professional services middle agency that specializes in bringing Asian musical artists to the United States and booking U.S. artists in major Asian markets, including Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Macau, Taipei, Tokyo, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Manila, Dubai and Seoul as well as Las Vegas. It also books concerts for casinos in Macau, Las Vegas, Reno, southern California and Atlantic City.

Anni is business-savvy and unusually creative. As a media entrepreneur, she created an Internet music channel, Hong Kong Vintage Pop Radio (HKVP) for Chinese-Americans 25 to 40 years of age in 2002 to help connect Chinese-Americans with entertainment from their home country. "When I started HKVP Radio, I was hoping to reignite the golden era of Cantonese pop and serve an untapped market in the United States - Chinese-Americans," she explains. As a business consultant, she has helped entertainment establishments such as the House of Blues market their shows to Asian Americans. She also manages Asian artist Johnny Hi-Fi.

"The events we book occur in 2,000-seat theatres up to 20,000-seat arenas," Anni notes. "We specialize in booking Hong Kong and Taiwanese pop singers and work closely with the casino's talent buying department and Far East marketing to ensure that the shows cater to the local taste and allure casino VIPs and high rollers." Anni also books U.S. and U.K. gold and platinum artists in Asia-based venues.

In March 2007, veteran booking executive Jay Jacobs joined Parc Landon as Anni's business partner as senior vice president and head of Music. He works out of the Los Angeles office. Jay was the former SVP and head of Music for William Morris Agency and ICM, and signed and represented The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys, Diana Ross, Donna Summers, Crosby, Stills and Nash, and many more.

Anni started in the entertainment business 10 years ago when she was 16 by helping her concert promoter dad after school. "I would take the bus from New Jersey to Manhattan to work, organizing press conferences, having meetings with producers, doing production, schmoozing with the Chinese mafia," she reminisces. "My dad appointed me to handle those tasks and to work side by side with producers."

Previously, Anni was a marketing and brand analyst in New York. Her past clients include Elsevier Science, MTV Networks, MTV Video Music Awards, Sony Music, Conde Nast Publications' Glamour Magazine, fashion ad agencies and online retailers. She was also an executive producer at Premier Entertainment Productions in New York, producing concerts and special music events.

Experience & Advice
On a recent tour through China and Asia, I offended a family member of an artist that I manage. It caused a ton of arguments between the artist and me, almost resulting in a representation break-up--luckily that didn't happen. It was petty on my part and could have easily been avoided. I learned that in any business, not just the one that I'm in, it's not always all about business, it's about the people. People always come first.

What is today's Asian music scene like in the U.S.?
The Asian music scene in the US is limited. The Vietnamese community has set up record companies and distribution in the States to release music here in Vietnamese, but so far the Chinese, Japanese or the Korean haven't. The Vietnamese tend to be passionate and supportive of their own music culture and will buy products whereas as the other Asian cultures just aren't that interested. Asian Americans - the second generation 20 and 30-somethings who are born here --are trying to build up the Asian American music scene, comprised of budding artists and musicians in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. They dream to be the first legitimate Asians, not the likes of William Hung--American Idol reject--to break into the US market. They release all genres of English-based music, from rock to rap to folk and R&B. Some of the artists are really talented, but they're realizing that the labels won't give them a chance.

What is today's Asian music scene like in Asia?
With the exception of Japan, music in Asia is not as varied as it is in the US. Pop is still the dominating genre of music. Although there are some pockets of diversity, such as West Coast hip hop in Taiwan or rock in Beijing, most of the general Asian public only know household names. The Internet helps, but unfortunately there are still many kids in Korea or China who don't know who Justin Timberlake or Christina Aguilera are.

The Asians are much more advanced than the Americans when it comes to technology. No one sells CDs in Korea anymore-it's all by mobile downloading--and they all have better and newer cell phones that do much more than ours do. Now we just need iTunes in all the other countries besides Japan.

Who are some of the Asian artists you've brought over?
I've mostly worked with adult contemporary singers - Jenny Tseng, Sally Yeh, Veronica Yip. We're now trying to sign a major Asian pop star to cross over to Hollywood as an actor. We're seeing a lot of major Asian stars - on the platinum level - who are getting tired of the conditions in Asia -- slavery, non-standardized commissions that rip off the artist, lack of representation law, lack of skillful managers--and are trying to head to the U.S. - where supposedly the grass is greener on the other side.

What American artists have you worked with in Asia?
All of the American artists we're working with have active offers on the table right now - I can't disclose them - but they are Billboard Top 200 chart-makers as well as platinum artists. Asian fans are only interested in household names.

As head of Entertainment Financing at Parc Landon Financial, what are your responsibilities?
Reviewing real estate opportunities. Entertainment financing for us means real estate properties that have entertainment usage. We currently represent two of the most respected music venue developers, Beijing Starcity and the Shanghai Sunrise Group. They already have buildings on the ground, but they're looking for money to expand into other cities. We represent them by raising investment capital on their behalf, connecting the developer to money. We also review scripts for films in need of financing and represent government-backed groups in Singapore and Thailand that also own music venues and other entertainment-related property such as cinemas, bowling alleys, opera houses, karaoke clubs and dance clubs. With each client we try to differentiate our offering where we're not just trying to sell them shows, but we're trying to further their business in the real estate category too.

How are your investments distributed within the entertainment industry in the U.S. and in Asia?
Our investment projects are all China-based. We're committed to helping to launch and mature the China live music market. We know that the future, the money and the opportunities all lie in Asia.

Who are some of the promoters you've worked with?
Arena-level promoters in Asia who are directly competing with Live Nation, Midas, etc. We also have great friendships with the top clubs in the region, such as The Luxy in Taiwan and The Star Live in Beijing. A lot of these promoters own entertainment property and their own venues. Concert promotion wasn't their first line of business, but they're developing that aspect of the business because of natural progression - content creation for their properties. Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Korea, Malaysia and China are important markets for us where we have exclusive relationships with established promoters. We also have friendships with the executives at AEG Live, so we try to do something in Asia together.

How much time do you devote to artist management?
The booking business still takes up the largest part of my day, but gradually we're moving into the artist management business in Asia. We're getting ready to sign a major Asian pop star for first quarter 2008. We're hoping to carry over the principles and professionalism that we've here in the U.S. to a wide region in Asia, where no one has ever been formally trained on artist representation. They also don't have many books, resources or seminars where artists can learn about the business side of music - to get even a basic idea on how to protect themselves. There's too much unscrupulous activity going on in Asia, in particular in Korea where the pop music business equates to slavery. Across the board, artists are getting hurt, from indie to multi-platinum stars, but they can't fire their representation because it's the companies that own the stars' lives.

Walk through the process of booking an artist from China to the U.S, and an American artist to Asia
When we consider an artist from Asia to perform in the U.S., the markets are limited to casinos in Atlantic City, southern California and Las Vegas. This is the major problem in the Asian touring business in the U.S.: shows cannot survive outside of the casino environment. The problem started about a decade and a half ago when casinos got into the concert business. We used to see major Chinese concerts at Lincoln Center, Beacon Theatre and Madison Square Garden in NYC. Gradually the casinos took over. They would lure the promoters to take the show to their property in a four-wall situation by guaranteeing tickets and waiving or handling expenses such as venue rental fees and hotel rooms, etc. Casinos would give out free tickets to all of their VIP guests. Then everything started becoming a free for all. I'm Chinese so I'm allowed to say this: the Chinese won't pay if they don't have to, and if you give tickets out for free - even just once - then expect to give it away for free forever. It was the start of a trend that would drive the business into the ground.

Other than casinos using these artists as promotional tools, there are no other Chinese concerts in America today. And on the flip side, Chinese artists price themselves in a way that only makes sense for them to do the shows at casinos. Unless they were willing to tour the real way, no one else with the exception of Chang Cheng Yue in Taiwan -- House of Blues promoted his "Kill Kitty" tour in 2004 -- is brave enough. So, when we book Asian artists in the U.S., we only look at the casino markets. Casinos are getting smarter about it, too. In the past they would write the money off as a marketing expense and make it all back on the casino floor. Nowadays they really try to make it back at the box office. It's not a spending spree anymore. The Asian concert business has died in the metropolitan cities but will never die in the casinos. I book Jenny Tseng at the casinos here, and in Atlantic City she is ranked #2 for all-time for artists who help the casinos win big on the casino floor after Frank Sinatra, who was #1.

Booking American artists in Asia requires us to be exceptionally knowledgeable about the kind of music that works in each country. It's not an exact science that can be described on paper, but when we look at an artist, we've a good gauge of where he or she is able to be booked in those countries.. For instance, West Coast rap works really well in Taiwan, pop will always beat out R&B in most countries and rock dominates in Beijing. Household names are what people want. China, Singapore and Malaysia are particularly sensitive about how the artists represent themselves - clothing and lyrics have to fit government guidelines and in China's case, it needs to be approved in advance. We tell artists to absolutely stay away from any public or media comments about politics, religion and the like while they are there. It doesn't take a whole lot to get banned.

Booking American artists in Asia is all about timing - usually the agents will want to piece together four or more shows in the Asia region to maximize the artists' time there and to justify the costs. In many ways it's a difficult territory to book because artists and managers usually go to Asia after all the other markets - U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia - have been taken care of, and Asia tends to be the afterthought, except Japan. Also, artists and their representatives need to be more mindful about the fees that they're asking for.

In our office we have a chart on the wall titled "Cost of Living Index," ranking the cost of living for every major international city. Talent fees, I believe, should be scaled to that index. This isn't about the currency exchange; it's about the relative cost of living. I can get a lengthy cab ride in Beijing for US $2 and a feast for $4 but that same money only gets me gum in Japan. The average middle-class household in China makes 5000RMB per month, which is about US $650. The way some of these shows are priced force concert tickets to be more than $100, making them unaffordable for the majority of people. But, if the artist doesn't want to perform there for a reduced fee, then I guess that's enough said.

Before the whole booking process begins, there's something that we do that not a whole lot of other U.S. middle agents do: I go to Asia many times a year specifically to meet and greet with the promoters or venue owners I'm working with, even before we start representing them - Hong Kong, Taipei, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, etc. For instance, right now I'm booking myself a 14-day, seven-city business tour for August. In Asia it really does come down to relationships, the guanxi that you have with people that makes all the difference in the world. You can't cold call Asians like you can do here in the States. I'm Asian. I speak the native language, and I understand all the cultural nuances. I know how to talk to these promoters and know the troubles that they're facing. We'll take a year, two years, to get to know them. They appreciate that we take the time to understand their business and to help them grow. What they give us in return is their business, their friendship, as well as their loyalty.

First concert attended
Alan Tam at the Hong Kong Coliseum, 1985

First concert worked and year
Veronica Yip, Trump Marina Atlantic City, as associate producer, 1997

First industry job
Working for my dad who was a concert promoter. I was 16.

Career highlights
Building Parc Landon. Building the career of Johnny Hi-Fi, the artist that I manage. I just secured a mobile distribution deal with China's biggest, state-owned label CRC, where Johnny Hi-Fi's tracks will be downloadable by hundreds of millions of teens in China via mobile as well as preloading - new cell phones will come preloaded with his music. It took a self-funded $30,000 indie band tour plus subsequent solo trips to Beijing in order to make the deal happen.

Career disappointment
Career has been too short to name any disappointments.

Greatest challenge
Booking an Asian 80's pop diva to do a 2,500 capacity casino show in Southern California. The artist was trying to skimp on paying a production staff and brought only two handlers and a producer from hell. The artist never read the contract she signed and later asked for a bunch of extras that never existed on her rider. The impossible balance that I had to achieve was keeping both the artist and the casino happy. But in the end, the artist didn't like the way the casino didn't accommodate with her excess demands, and subsequently went on to trash the casino's name in front of the audience during the concert, leaving the casino executives seething. After the show, the artist demanded an all-day limousine to take her shopping on Rodeo Drive. The casino refused, and it was up to the casino agent--me--to foot the bill to make the artist happy. I got her the car service, and she took off with friends before the limo even arrived. The greatest challenge was trying to figure out whose side I was on: the artist's or the casinos. My ongoing challenge is to try to get back the casino as a repeat client, something that I'm still trying to accomplish.

Best business decision
Signing on my business partner Jay Jacobs. He is a 35-year veteran in the concert business, having been the SVP and head of Music at William Morris and ICM. His presence in the company has elevated the way Parc Landon does business. Shortly after his arrival, we changed all of our representation policies, making promoters jump through hoops to prove their credibility. It subsequently resulted in more offers than we have ever gotten then when I didn't enforce policies.

Best advice you received
From my mom: Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
From Jay Jacobs: Get everything in writing.

I've also learned to never sign an artist whose music you're not passion about or whom you don't believe in. When you're forced to work with an artist or music you don't believe in, every task seems like a dreadful uphill battle. It causes stress for yourself and lowers team morale when they don't share the belief either.

Most memorable industry experience
Three weeks ago, I walked into the offices of CAA - by far the most powerful agency in this universe - to meet and greet with the top international music agents we've been corresponding with on behalf of our clients. It took me half an hour to get upstairs: the office was in the midst of a fire drill and all the agents were standing outside on the terrace. There must have been a hundred people there.. That was when I had my first glance of what could be Parc Landon's future in Asia. In my mind, I was rehearsing what my partner Jay Jacobs instructed me to do. He advised me that these agents were all very busy people and may not have the luxury of time to sit down for lengthy discussions. He said all I needed was five minutes - don't even sit, he said - to say hi, how are you, thank you for the support, take care - then give them their chocolate and bid them goodbye.

When I finally got upstairs, I was greeted warmly by two agents, both of whom sat down with me for lengthy discussions about our offers. When I finally left CAA, I got all choked up and couldn't speak. I immediately realized that the meeting was a significant milestone for my 26-year old self and the company - to have been shown the respect that CAA has shown us, and to have stepped inside the offices of a company I greatly admire.

My meeting William Morris and ICM for the first time were equally memorable. Everyone has treated us like friends, with respect, and that is in no small part due to Jay for protecting his reputation all of his life and for teaching me to do the same.

What friends would be surprised to learn about you
Most of them have an idea about what I do, but they don't know what I really do. Amongst industry friends, I like to move positions quietly and then come out with a big news explosion every so often. They would be surprised to learn that I do this on purpose.

Industry pet peeve
Liars and talkers that can't deliver that waste time.

If I wasn't doing this, I would be...
...building a waterfront six-star resort, and my ultimate dream, and traveling the world.

Industry mentors
Jay Jacobs, my partner, and also my father, the eternal optimist and entrepreneur.