ACCES 2019 interview: IDOL and Ditto Music

JESS WHITE: Can you please introduce yourself and the digital distributor you work with?

THIBAUT MULLINGS (IDOL): My name is Thibaut Mullings and I run IDOL’s operations in African markets from our Johannesburg office. Founded in 2006, IDOL has a unique approach in the global digital market, driven by its passion for independent music and its innovative spirit. IDOL is a 100% independent and self-financed company, and its global expansion saw its fifth office being opened in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2017, after Paris, London, Berlin and New York.

Our curated roaster gathers 500 distribution partners, among them mainly labels: Skepta’s Boy Better Know Records, Four Tet’s Text Records or Local Action in the UK; Spoek Mathambo’s Teka Records or Black Major in South Africa; No Format, Syllart, Cantos or Glitterbeat Records in France; Carpark or Highnote in the US…

We do more and more deals with self-produced artists, and African content has been a long-time strength for us with renowned artists across our catalogue: South Africa’s DJ Lag and Batuk, Fokn Bois from Ghana, Oumou Sangaré (Mali), DJ Arafat and Magic System (Ivory Coast), Blick Bassy and Richard Bona (Cameroon), Congolese legends Koffi Olomide, Papa Wemba, Ferre Gola and Fally Ipupa as well as Tshegue…

WENDY VERWEY BEKKER (DITTO): I’m Wendy and I’m the regional head of Africa at Ditto Music. We’re a professional online music distributor and provider of label services, known as Ditto Plus. We work with independent artists, management teams and labels to develop sustainable careers and businesses. Some of the great acts we work with include Sarkodie, who our CEO Lee Parsons will be interviewing about his amazing career so far at ACCESS 2019, and Chance the Rapper, who released his Billboard charting debut The Big Day earlier this year.

JESS WHITE: Why choose IDOL? What makes IDOL different to other digital distributors?

THIBAUT MULLINGS: IDOL’s highly selective boutique approach enables us to invest more time with each partner and work in a deeper way. We have a 13-year-old digital distribution experience, we developed additional services over time, like social media and digital marketing or physical distribution, so that our high-quality service can be tailored to our partners’ needs and challenges.

Our physical presence across the globe along with a reasonably sized staff makes IDOL one of the most flexible, reliable and efficient digital partners for content producers who want to explore and embrace the opportunities of a digital world without borders.

WENDY VERWEY BEKKER: Ditto is a family and was started by artists (founders Lee and Matt Parsons were in a band). The organisation is fiercely independent, operates by its values and advocates for artists taking control of their own careers. Our subscription self-service platform is one of the most straightforward and easy-to-use platforms, and our delivery to Apple is faster than our competitors.

On the Ditto Plus side, we try to assist the artist and their team to grow their career and advise where they feel they need assistance. Our team is made up of experienced professionals from all areas of the music business, so we’re able to plug these skills into independent artists’ careers, while providing services like digital and physical distribution, playlist pitching, synch pitching, PR and promotional services. We also invest in opportunities for our family of artists, such as being a part of the Ditto-sponsored stages at The Great Escape or Reeperbahn Festival and having free access to our recording studio on London.

JESS WHITE: When should an artist take the step from a self-managed process, i.e. Tune Core, CD Baby etc., to working with a distributor offering additional artist and label services to get their music online?

THIBAUT MULLINGS: DIY distribution solutions like Tunecore or CD Baby can be a good solution for young artists who are not appealing to labels or distributors just yet: a simple way to have their new music available on main platforms. Most of the time, there will be no real marketing services proposed by the DIY distribution solutions, so, paradoxically, a lot needs to come from the artist and his or her team in order to build an audience on streaming services or DSPs to get results.

As soon as the artist starts having media exposure - playing shows on a regular basis, building a significant audience around social profiles, investing into promotion, social media marketing and asset and content production - then he or she should be looking into working with a digital partner who speaks to streaming services/DSPs on a daily basis and can use and push all those arguments to get better exposure and playlist support, and eventually grow digital revenues.

WENDY VERWEY BEKKER: That depends on the size of the team they have, the level of success they’re achieving and the pressure points they’re facing. As an artist’s career grows, the workload increases, and it needs to be done by someone if the artist is to maintain their trajectory. There should be more opportunities than the current team can proactively handle for any business or artist to make the decision to hire more staff or bring a professional service provider on board.

JESS WHITE: What do you look for when signing new artists to your catalogue?

THIBAUT MULLINGS: First and foremost, it's key that we like and understand the music so that we can make a difference when it hits the market. When we are considering a new distribution partner, we pay attention to a good understanding of the digital space (social networks), a solid team (e.g. management, tour agent), a good vision and organisation (delivery deadlines, release timelines). If the idea is for a digital distributor like IDOL to work directly with an artist without a label being involved, the artist must have an entrepreneurial spirit, and enough creative, technical and business skills across his or her team. This way the dynamic between a digital distributor offering artist and label services and the artist’s team can be maximised.

WENDY VERWEY BEKKER: Excellent music, a strong work ethic, good management and a story to tell. I also reach out to artists currently using our subscription service that may want to take their careers to the next level and join Ditto Plus.

JESS WHITE: Who do you target to meet at trade events such as ACCES?

THIBAUT MULLINGS: We are looking for independent artists, management agencies and labels across the continent to add to our curated roster of distribution partners. One of our strengths since the beginning has been to maintain an extended network across the industry that we can share with our partners. So it is also crucial for us to meet with music professionals from other segments of the industry: PR agencies, booking agents, publishing companies, music supervisors, music venues and festivals. We attended the previous editions of ACCES and we know it is the best African networking platform to date, bringing artists and labels from the continent and the diaspora together with the rest of the music industry.

WENDY VERWEY BEKKER: Independent artists, managers and record labels, as well as peers in the industry.

JESS WHTE: What strategies can an artist use to attract your interest?

THIBAUT MULLINGS: In order to start a discussion, we need finalised audio content (2-3 tracks), some context (bio, artist’s entourage), and an idea of the visual space the project gravitates around (music video, artwor). We are very open and it won’t require crazy strategies to get in touch: if you are an artist and think you can provide most of the abovementioned, you can just contact me on Instagram @tibomullings or drop me an email here at [email protected].

WENDY VERWEY BEKKER: Enjoy what you’re doing and be part of the cultural movement happening around you. It’s good to have a vision of where you want to be, and a plan of how you’ll get there. Feel free to approach me direct (I’m on social media).