Composer Chris Opperman has been carving his own niche in today’s pop-saturated music world since 1998. He’s released five full studio albums, an EP, and a single in that time. Chris also performed on two of guitarist Steve Vai’s Grammy-nominated recordings: “Lotus Feet” (2006) and “The Attitude Song” (2008).
During this same period, Chris held positions at Universal Music Publishing Group and GSO Business Management. Currently, Chris is teaching courses on music business and composition at Rutgers and Montclair State University while earning his Ph.D. in Music Composition. In Chris’s spare time, as if he had any, he is the President and CEO of Purple Cow Records, a label he started.
If you had to describe yourself as a band, song, or genre, what would it be?
I think I’d have to go with “I Won’t Back Down” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Once I’ve decided that I’m going to do something, I will do whatever it takes to win. There are so many great lines in that song. “You could stand me up at the Gates of Hell, but I won’t back down.” “Well, I know what’s right, I’ve got just one life. In a world that keeps pushing me around, I’ll stand my ground and I won’t back down.” It’s endlessly quotable.
How did you get started in the music business?
I majored in music business management at Berklee College of Music and then started temping at Universal Music Publishing Group where I was quickly hired full-time. I actually started in the basement, and it was only thought a promotion that I got moved up to the ground floor! As a performer, I really got my start when Mike Keneally agreed to produce my first album, Oppy Music, Vol. I, which came out in 1998.
What’s been your proudest moment in the music business?
I’ve been fortunate enough to have a lot of very proud moments, but I think my proudest was our headlining performance at the Zappanale Festival in Bad Doberan, Germany in 2011. We performed my music for over 4,500 people, the largest audience I’ve ever performed for, and they loved us. We played our hearts out for them and it was just the best experience.
Who helped you along the way?
The Buddha once said, “Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” I think the same can be said for the spotlight. There’s a lot of rhetoric about being a do-it-yourself musician, but you’re never really doing it yourself, are you? I’ve had amazing help from hundreds of people–the musicians, engineers, studios, promoters, and performance venues that have given me the opportunity to make my music come to life, my amazing teachers and classmates, the audiences that purchase my recordings and come to the concerts. I prefer the phrase “do-it-as-a-team.” Any effective team is always far greater than the sum of its parts, and I’ve gotten tremendous support, which inspires me to work harder.
What would you consider your biggest failure and what did you learn from that?
I have yet to fail. You only really fail when you give up. Now have I made mistakes? You bet. However, I try to find the positives in those mistakes and learn lessons for the future. The time you spend berating yourself for your mistakes is usually better spent trying to accomplish something else instead. In life, sometimes you lose, and the best thing to do in those situations is just deal yourself another hand and try again. Unless you have a gambling addiction. Then you look for a more appropriate metaphor.
Knowing what you know now, if you could do something over or different what would it be?
I wouldn’t really change anything. It’s what got you to where you are.
What’s been your key to success?
Not being afraid to be myself. Find what it is about your music and personality that makes you unique and see how far you can go with it. Never stop.
Top 3 takeaways to support your success in the music business:
- Be the kind of person that you want to work with. People like to work with people who are personable, eager, and hard-working. If at the end of the day, you’ve known you’ve made your best possible effort, then you’ve won the moral victory even if you don’t get the results that you were hoping for.
- When you’re faced with a project or an idea that seems insurmountable, break it into smaller pieces. For example, “The Porpentine” is a 15-minute work for a full orchestra plus a rock band that features almost all real instruments. Obviously I didn’t have the kind of funding that would allow me to tackle that all at once, so we recorded everything one instrument at a time. I’d save up a few hundred dollars, book some studio time, and get a couple more instruments in. After a couple of years of this, it was finished. Figure out what part of the project you can accomplish today, right now, while coming up with strategies to tackle some of the bigger issues.
- Don’t give up. Both academia and the music business have elements that seem custom-designed to break your heart and spirit. Well, when those moments happen and they knock you to the ground, you just have to get up, dust yourself off, and keep going. Practice harder, go for a run, do whatever it is you need to do to keep going and try again.
The best way to reach Chris Opperman:
You can find Chris via his website or facebook page.
To hear Chris’s music, search “Chris Opperman” in iTunes, Spotify, or Soundcloud.
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