An interview with Sarah Russell of Dead Pretty Bookings
Sarah Russell is an independent artist manager and booker based in Naarm/Melbourne. Starting her agency Dead Pretty Bookings this year, Sarah has grown her DIY network into a four-artist strong indie agency.
Celebrating Dead Pretty’s early success, Dead Pretty’s artists and friends will be playing a massive gig this Saturday at the Evelyn Hotel in Fitzroy.
“The entire ethos of Dead Pretty Bookings is that everything is DIY, community-rooted and independent. ”
Tell us about your origins in artist management and booking. What inspired this career, and how did Dead Pretty come about?
I have always had an infatuation with the music industry and music as a whole ever since I was a kid. I’ve always loved music and I didn't know I wanted it to be my career until I was originally going to university for graphic design, and sort of had a realisation that I wanted to study the music business because I loved music, and I was so involved with the local scene and it’s been such a passion for me that I wanted to make it my career.
During my degree of studying Entertainment Management, one of the units was to manage an artist of our choosing for 12 weeks. I had already been involved with the local music scene for a few years, and I had known of Blondehouse through friends in the Geelong scene. They played a show in Fitzroy back in January and there I loosely pitched the idea of management. A few weeks and meetings later, I started managing them and over time we grew really happy with the work we were doing together.
A couple months into working with Blondehouse, a friend of mine in the industry referred Convenience Store to me to do some work together, and I became their booking agent. After a couple of months working with both bands, my experience and network was growing, and after some advice from friends, I decided to create an agency that could showcase all my work in the industry. I originally wasn’t planning on turning it into an official business, moreso a “portfolio” of my work, but it made more sense to turn it into a legitimate agency.
Since then I have added two more bands to the roster, and Dead Pretty has been operating for close to six months.
What have you and Dead Pretty done to help your agency and artists stand out? What are the core tenets of Dead Pretty Bookings?
The entire ethos of Dead Pretty Bookings is that everything is DIY, community-rooted and independent. Myself and all of the artists I work with, are completely independent and have worked themselves from the ground up. We all share a true passion and love for local independent music and I think that shines through in the events we put on and the rollout campaigns that we do.
The biggest thing for me when it comes to picking an artist that I work with, is that I have to feel a connection to the music and see that their vision aligns with mine. It's a true artist first, one-on-one personal relationship and true friendships form within work that we do and I think that's what helps us stand out.
What does independence mean to you? Have you considered working with larger labels or agencies?
Independence to me is the distinction between working in this industry for monetary gain or a true love and passion for music and the artists.
Like any other person who works in the same field as me, I have considered working for larger companies. They can bring job security and a stable income, but I have certain morals and values that I cannot sacrifice. I was about to work full-time at one of the biggest music companies in the country, but I did not feel comfortable with having my brand, artists and identity absorbed by a larger company.
When I weigh up my options and think about longevity, I will always choose what is best for me, the artists, and what stays true to my beliefs.
What are your goals within the music industry?
My overall goal for Dead Pretty Bookings is to make this my full-time job and main source of income. When breaking it down to specifics, the dream is to get my roster on awesome festival lineups, national tours and eventually touring internationally.
We always put intention and strategy behind everything we do, and our shared values are at the forefront of every decision we make. I would love to leave a lasting impression and impact on Melbourne music, and continue to help put incredible artists on bigger and bigger stages.
What is Melbourne’s local music scene missing? What do you think punters, bookers, artists and everyone involved in the scene can do to promote a healthier community?
Melbourne is known throughout the wider Australian music scene for being somewhat “clique-y”. Various scenes like to stick to themselves, which can often prevent inclusivity and growth within the local scene. We have such an incredible community of music and artists, and it should be shared around with everyone who is interested.
Oftentimes bands will play on the same lineup of friends over and over, which does work, but can halt expansion. Just giving those people that first step into playing a show is the best way to go, because we all start somewhere.
On a more positive note, what in the scene has you most excited at the moment?
There’s levels of collaboration between audiences, artists, promoters, and everyone else in the industry that feels really exciting. After COVID, the local scene in Melbourne was struggling to feel as alive and flourishing as it does now.
More and more Australian bands are making waves not only domestically, but internationally, and the amount of experimentation and diversity I’m seeing at live shows and in releases is so inspiring to see and reinforces my love for this scene.
Do you have plans to expand, whether in terms of more artists or even other bookers/managers?
I’m currently at capacity with taking on any official signings of bands at the minute, but I am always open to chatting with people who reach out and doing one-off consult sessions, or just simply having a yarn and giving some advice.
Once I get more of a rigorous routine, I’d be down to take on a few more artists on the roster. In terms of expanding the agency, a big goal of mine is to eventually move to establishing a formal company and hiring staff whether that's assistant agents or interns, and eventually having an office space and operating as a private company. But in the meantime, I’m happy doing everything myself and working one-on-one with all of my networks in the industry.
Do you have plans to make Dead Pretty Festival an annual event?
100%. I’d love to make Dead Pretty Fest a yearly showcase and celebration of everything that's happening within the world of Dead Pretty. I think I will book it towards the end of each year right before the massive Summer festival period, and treat it as a yearly wrap-up.