12am.com.au : Mixing Music Media - Midem


	.: Midem - Cannes 2003

date: February, 2003
contributor: James Hamilton

Last week, James Hamilton and Carl Pengelly from our 12am UK team flew into Cannes to investigate the goings on at this years Midem 2003...

January 19th to 23rd saw Midem come to Cannes for the 37th year in a row. Midem week is one of the most important dates in the music industry calendar and sees the industry descend on one of the most glamorous cities in the world, for business, socialising and partying. This year saw over 4000 companies registering from 92 different countries, representing all styles of music and 12am was there to see it all take place. If you've ever wanted to work in the music industry then read on….

Midem has traditionally been the place where new talent and new technologies are unveiled, where the world's biggest stars come to relax in the sun whilst doing their bit for their record companies.

This year proved to be no exception, with Robbie Williams sweeping in to town and making his much publicised comments about internet music piracy, causing uproar when he stated piracy was 'great'. Also, Wyclef Jean was in town, together with Mariah Carey and Phil Collins. All massive stars in their own musical styles, but how important is Midem for international dance music….?

All the big labels attend Midem. It is an opportunity to meet with the people from other international labels who you would normally only be in touch with on the phone or by e-mail. They will bring samplers of their latest tracks and the meetings are fast and furious, normally every half hour as labels swap samplers and try and negotiate deals. There is no doubt that Midem is hard work!

If you have ever wondered how a record becomes an international hit, then a conference like Midem can answer your questions. If you have a hot record, the news can spread like wildfire and you may find yourself in the middle of a bidding war. Some of the biggest hits have been signed at Midem. Jason Ellis, Director of one the UK's leading dance labels Positiva feels that Midem has been a great help to his company…

"Midem is where we signed Moony. It had already been a hit in its native Italy and a couple of other territories, so we knew from this that it was a track with great potential. Since then we have had a chart hit in the UK and seen the track go on to be a hit all over the world."

All the leading Australian dance labels are in attendance; Ministry of Sound, Central Station, Shock Records, Vicious Vinyl, plus many smaller labels. As always, they are working hard and playing hard. I caught up with Ashley from Central Station at around 3a.m. at the Ministry of Sound party at the Noga Hilton hotel on Wednesday night, puffing away on a fat cigar and looking decidedly unsteady on his feet. His next meeting was the following morning at 9.30a.m. I saw him later the next day still looking pale…..

This is the other side of Midem, hard partying, drinking and not much sleep. Most of the people I spoke to were surviving on 3 or 4 hours sleep a night at best. The music industry knows how to throw a good party and there were plenty of them every night, featuring some of the biggest names in dance music. Jeff Mills was spinning at the Martinez Hotel Bar (a second home and main meeting place for most of those attending Midem) on the 21st, a strange place to see a techno legend doing his stuff. Other names were also appearing, both established and new artists, such as Mark Doyle - the owner of Hed Kandi, Dimitri From Paris, Junior Senior, David Holmes, Shakedown and Funkstar DeLuxe.

Paul Masterson was also there. He is one of dance music's most successful producers, with 13 top 40 hits in the UK and numerous hits around the world under his belt. He has many guises, such as Yomanda, Sushi, Hi-Gate (with Judge Jules), The Clergy (with Judge Jules) and The Candy Girls. He is at Midem with his manager and provides a prime example of how Midem works. He is here to let people hear his new single 'You're Free' under his most successful guise, Yomanda. The track has already been signed to Incentive Music in the UK and looks like it will be a big hit. He is here to make sure it is a worldwide hit.

Before coming to Midem he has set up meetings with a number of labels from all the main territories e.g. GAS (Germany / Austria / Switzerland), Japan, Australia, Benelux (Belgium / Netherlands / Luxembourg), Spain, France and many more. He comes armed with samplers of the new track and sets to work. At each meeting he plays the new track while giving the labels the selling points of the track, i.e. it's by an established name, it's already signed to a major label in the UK, it features a big recognisable vocal and it is already a hit in the clubs.

The track is going down a storm with everyone who hears it and the news starts to spread that there is a big track available. Paul starts to receive phone calls from people who have heard the track. Media Records, the home of artists such as Mauro Picotto, call him and ask to meet up straight away. They've heard the track already and want to sign it for Italy. Ministry of Sound Australia take one listen to the track and like what they hear. They make an offer there and then, but it's not that straightforward. Central Station from Australia are also after the track. They match Ministry's offer and increase it.

This sort of activity happens with labels across the world. Three Spanish labels begin a fierce battle to sign the track. Some of the deals are signed at Midem, but most are just started there and finished when the labels return home. It takes some time for the dust to settle as everyone, including me, returns with a bag full of samplers of the most up front dance music from around the world.

The last day of Midem and you can see some very tired and hungover people who do not look happy at the fact that they still have work to do! There is no doubt that it is hard work, but if you have to go to a conference, then there are not many places as glamorous as Cannes, and not many industry's who know how to party like the music industry. With this in mind, you know that everyone will be back next year for more of the same.

Paul Masterson is happy. He's agreed deals for most of the world and looks like he will have another worldwide hit on his hands. So next time you turn on the radio and hear a massive dance tune, the chances are that it came via Midem and that somewhere, an exhausted and hungover A & R person was doing their job!

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