Erick Charles of Fueled By Ramen: Record Label Success in a DIY World

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Erick Charles is the Senior Director of Field Operations for Fueled by Ramen and Roadrunner Records. He got his start in the music industry while studying marketing at the University of Florida. While living in Gainesville and playing in bands himself, he became friends with employees at Fueled By Ramen, which was only a few years old at the point. He started out helping fulfill mail-order, which turned into growing the street team.

FBR moved to Tampa for a couple years and quickly exploded with bands like Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Panic! At The Disco, Gym Class Heroes, and many more. FBR entered into a partnership with Atlantic Records which would take Erick to New York City for seven years. In 2014, he moved to Nashville, TN to open up an office for the label there. Erick continues to oversee Field and Festival Marketing for FBR and also Roadrunner Records. He develops creative marketing ideas for every artist on both label that are executed onsite at festivals, concert tours, and special events throughout the entire year.  

This interview was part of a four episode series I conducted in Nashville, TN. I first met Erick during my ventures at Live Nation through his girlfriend Tara Curtis, who I hope to also get on a future episode. In this interview, Erick shares some very creative ideas on promoting your artist, things to keep in mind when first starting out, the Nashville music scene, we talk a little bit about both of our favorite past time – sampling beer from breweries around the world, and much more.

Quotes Mentioned
“We always target the fan directly.”
“I always tell people to intern.”
“The more relationships you can have, it’s always best.”
“Building your own base is so important.”
“Try to play as many shows as possible.”
“Go for what you love… Make a lot of contacts.” 

Links to Things Mentioned
Fueled by Ramen http://www.fueledbyramen.com/?frontpage=true
Roadrunner Records http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com
Metal Emoji http://www.heavymetalkeyboard.com
The Onion http://www.theonion.com
Jonah Bayer Podcast http://jonahbayer.com/tagged/going-off-track 
NOLA on Tap http://nolaontap.org/

Get in Touch with Erick
Instagram: @eacharlez 

Erick’s definition of Making It:
“Being happy with what you’re doing.”