VIA PRESS RELEASE | George Howard is not an author. He is much more than that, and his third and newest book, Everything In Its Right Place is a natural byproduct of George Howard’s ongoing work in Blockchain Technology and his blockchain column in Forbes magazine. George Howard is an Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music and Brown University and holds MBA and JD degrees. His most recent appointment makes Howard the CIO of Los Angeles music rights company, Riptide Music.
Howard’s career has been defined by a passionate drive to leverage technology in order to create dramatic value. He has consistently demonstrated a keen ability to not only discern the technologies that represent opportunity but to also implement them in a manner that maximizes impact and ROI. An artist by nature, a JD/MBA by training, and an entrepreneur, academic, and professor in practice, Mr. Howard has started, run, and advised some of the largest and most significant companies in the world. He is the co-founder of Music Audience Exchange, served as president of Rykodisc, and formerly managed superstar Carly Simon.
Upon recently being made CIO at Riptide music Howard offered, “At this stage in my career, I only get involved with companies that I think have a strong chance of break-out success, and I haven’t been this excited about a company in a long time.”
Via his consulting firm, GHS, Howard has advised a wide range of companies – from the Fortune 500 (Intel, CVS/pharmacy) to the Ivy League (Brown University); as well as non-profits (Easter Seals, Landmark); countless innovative startups; as well as renowned Grammy and Oscar-winning artists, such as Carly Simon and Mark Isham – on creating value around technological change.
Authoring a book based on all his interviews with artists and music-rights activists on their experience and belief in blockchain technology was a natural progression for the professor, turned record label head, turned tech startup entrepreneur, to the blockchain guru.
Not only has Howard run large operations, but he’s been at the helm of true startups and entrepreneurial launches from the beginning, from running the first CD-only label (Rykodisc), to driving disintermediation in the distribution industry via co-founding one of the world’s largest independent digital music distributors (Tunecore), to defining and implementing the then-nascent Social Media technology for Fortune 500 companies and Ivy League Universities.
All of the above is a byproduct of his personal mission: help artists create sustainable careers on their own terms and by being adequately compensated for their creative works no matter the format. He is guided by the deeply-rooted belief that art is an empathy machine, and, thus, more art equals less war.
As the founder of GHS, a strategic consulting firm that advises a wide range of clients on how to integrate technology with strategy in order to increase brand awareness and revenue through innovation, social media, digital platforms, and strategic partnerships. A partial list of clients includes Intel, National Public Radio, CVS Pharmacy, Alticor/Amway, Brown University, Paste Magazine, SpokenLayer, SingFit, The Landmark School, and BigchainDB.
In his own words on blockchain, marketing, and music, George stated, “Having worked in the music industry as long as I have, I don’t want to necessarily just bring war stories. You’ve got to back it up with some good science and theory. One of the challenges is with new media. The tools are new. So, I try to balance those with some real, time-tested marketing strategies. You begin to realize that it’s all sort of been done before, but now we have an opportunity to re-contextualize things. I do try to find a balance of things, but the music business is changing every second.”
On teaching, “When I started teaching, it was the first time I understood what people meant when they said they loved their job. It was terribly exciting to me, and I realized I’ve been put on this planet to try, in whatever capacity I have, to help creative people grow their careers so they can be sustainable on their own terms.”
“It’s something that I’m passionate about and that I’ve been doing a long time, and I really love it, but I’ll tell you, I think I learn more from them than they learn from me. Teaching inspires me; it motivates me. Knowing that I have the amazing opportunity to stand in front of people who have justifiably high expectations, that’s good motivation to make sure that I’m bringing something to the party. And what I get back is that they view things through a lens that I can’t have anymore.
Other publications of the author include An Insider’s Guide to the Record Industry and Music Publishing 101.
Everything In Its Right Place: How Blockchain Technology will Transform The Music Industry will be available March 15 at SXSW and in fine stores.
