Tess' Career Capsule
After working in retail and sales positions for a few years, I transitioned into the music industry as an executive assistant. After a few years of learning the ropes and wearing many hats, I started getting more and more involved in the radio department. Now, three years later, I'm the Radio Promotions Manager at BEC/Tooth & Nail.  

1. Tell us about what's new with you, your latest adventures, happenings at Tooth & Nail?

Oh gosh, what's new with me...well, we can breathe in our office now. For about a week we were swimming in All Things New promos, so I'm glad we got all those mailed out! We moved into an open office recently and it's been awesome to see our whole team get together to build boxes, bust out the bubble wrap, print labels...promos bring people together! Lauren Heerlein is the real adventurist though, as she travels with the bands more frequently than I do. I had a jaw surgery last year that keeps me from chewing and talking too long...who wants to travel with that?! ;)

2. Since you have a such a busy schedule, how do you best manage your responsibilities and priorities?

I've always been a self motivated worker. I categorize things in lists of what's time sensitive to what can be handled whenever I have free time. I rarely have free time, so let's say my list of things to file is starting to look like Kinkos exploded. My main priority is getting my artists and programmers what they need - I try to make sure in the morning I respond to all my emails, even if I don't have the answer, so people know I'm working on their requests. For me it's always about being intentional with my time (although I have to admit, sometimes that includes intentionally walking to the bakery with Lauren...the croissants are just TOO GOOD.)

3. Complete this sentence: The best way to get a new artist recognized is to____________?

I think the best way to get an artist recognized is to build trust with the people you're introducing your artist to. There are so many incredible musicians out there, but if someone knows me well enough to hear out what I think about a song and know I'm sincere, that goes a long way. That's the difference between them listening to it or not. When people see how hard you work for someone else, I think it shows how much you believe in what that artist is doing. Did I mention how hard we work on our promos? ;)

4. Generally speaking how do you see the state of Christian radio?

I see it's growing! I've only been in this world for a year, and I'm still learning a ton. I'm eager to see how playlists shift and grow as new artists emerge and introduce great music. Lauren and I were at a CMB event in Nashville last month, and it was encouraging to hear all the programmers bring everything back to the listener. Their passion to really minister to people through their stations is inspiring. As long as the state of Christian radio continues to be built on the foundation of Jesus, the road we're on is going somewhere great.

5. Regarding record sales, how has it changed ....please explain?

Record sales have changed a lot. As our technology expands, we're able to stream music and pay $10 a MONTH for unlimited music instead of what used to be $14 for a single CD. Now more than ever we have to get creative and provide for our listeners/fans in ways that we hadn't had to before, via Youtube, Facebook, Spotify, etc. Sales are different, but people still love CD's. We ship CD's out all the time and it's always exciting to see how thrilled people are to receive them.

6. What promotions with radio have you been involved with personally that are most memorable?

I think my favorite promotion was the David Dunn promo we did last year. His song "Today Is Beautiful" was going for adds and we sent out pillowcases with his face printed on them. We told our programmers, "If you haven't added David's song yet, maybe you should sleep on it." I'm sorry guys, I just love puns. 

7. Do you feel the record/radio relationship is still as important as it has been in the past...........explain how its same/different?

I think it's incredibly important. It's the way a programmer knows to listen to a song, when they trust what the promoter is saying about it. It's the way a programmer can email me and ask for liners, for CD's, for station visits. I love being the bridge that brings programmers and artists together. If it was way different in the past, I never experienced it! 

8. There are still some big markets without a CCM station, why do you think that is?

Oh gosh, if I had an answer to this it would be completely made up. Can I say those markets just don't know what they're missing? ;)

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