indieFINANCIALnetwork™ ThinkTank

THOSE NOTORIOUS FRIDAY MEETINGS

A number of years ago, we got together with some close friends and associates in New York City and decided to begin holding "think tanks;" weekly meetings based on discussing the sweeping changes taking place within the entertainment world. Being curious types, we decided to invite a few select guests each week from all walks of the music industry. We wanted to view the business from all perspectives, so we invited entertainment lawyers, booking agents, artist managers, record execs, music publishers, concert promoters, club owners, music technology companies and even venture capitalists. Alternately, we also invited marketing and promotion reps from radio, retail, gorilla street teams, public relations and internet marketing. It provided an opportunity to gauge our own pulses and gave us a chance to ponder where we were at philosophically and conceptually as music companies in the new frontier. The other mission was to find out what our colleagues were still passionate about, what the specific issues were in their areas of expertise and how they were adapting to the radical changes taking place throughout the industry. It was a dramatic education for us; there were monumental moments and fascinating dialog and we learned volumes first-hand about what was really happening behind the curtain in this ever-evolving business. We found ourselves getting caught up in the process, adjusting and adapting instinctively to what we were learning, and especially to what we needed to avoid with respect to our own business plans. We discovered gaps in many areas of the music industry and from our determined desire to fill those gaps, the indieFINANCIALnetwork™ was born. The focus and scope have changed, but the "think tank" has become an essential, ongoing educational process for us.

ABOUT RICK KENNELL, OUR FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR

The indieFINANCIALnetwork™ was founded and is directed by Rick Kennell who started his musical career in Indiana at a young age. Starting out on alto sax, but not really feeling it, Rick got his first bass guitar at the age of twelve, and he was in a band and starting rehearsals that same day. After kicking around and performing in a variety of local Indiana bands during his high school days, Rick found himself in the US Army in early 1972. While serving in a Military Police unit in Germany, Rick hooked up with guitarist and Army brat Stan Whitaker and went on to record, perform and produce with the legendary art-rock group “Happy the Man”. The band, based in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia in 1974 and later, in the Washington D.C. area, were pursued by Peter Gabriel soon after he left "Genesis." They had a few days of fun with Gabriel in their rehearsal room but eventually signed to Arista and did two critically acclaimed projects produced by Ken Scott. A wacky and stubborn art-rock sensibility, a lack of radio friendly material, an absence of compatible touring opportunities, and the dramatic musical shift to disco and punk sealed "Happy the Man's" fate in 1979; resulting in the breakup of the band. If you are interested in reading more about "Happy the Man", feel free to visit: Wikopedia On Happy the Man. Our discography follows below and is available many places. If you are interesting in seeing Rick's collection of bass guitars please click here: RICK's BASS COLLECTION

In late 1979, Rick moved from the Washington D.C. area and began performing in an original rock band near Woodstock, New York. The band, signed to a production deal by the legendary Eddie Kramer (Hendrix/Led Zeppelin), was unable to secure a recording contract. Rick lost interest, resigned from the project, and went on to produce and co-produce a couple of recording ventures, one with former Happy the Man singer Dan Owen. In 1985, after an eight month production stint in San Francisco, Rick moved back to upstate New York and took a job managing a recording studio. Finding it too difficult to pull the great players out of New York City, and discovering that studio management was not his “calling," Rick soon moved closer to New York City. For the next several years, Rick began outfitting his own project studio and became a road warrior, working as a “live” sound engineer and road manager for several rock and dance projects based in New York, Connecticut and Miami. He logged a ton of frequent flyer miles and also produced and engineered a demo that got a project signed to Atlantic. Unsatisfied with his production career, growing tired of all the travel, and at the urging of a few associates, Rick began pursuing artist management and business management for some of his friends, their friends and some ex-band mates. In 1986 Rick linked up with Lawrence Blau and Associates, and decided to focus entirely on business management. Along with Larry Blau, they began marketing their services to members of the music industry and found themselves landing a small but diverse stable of dedicated music companies, bands and solo artists. Rick worked his way up to full partner in 1990, however, in 1994 Rick decided to pursue his own business so he could devote his time exclusively to the music industry. Although they have worked together on many specific projects since 1994, the launch of the iFn finds Rick and Larry reuniting in solidarity. For details on the current client base please visit the plugs page. To view Rick Kennell's profile on LinkedIn.com click here:

ABOUT FEI WU, CPA

We are proud to have Fei Wu as an integral member of the iFn team, as she works hard to provide a variety of accounting and administrative services; and acts as Chief Royalty Administrator for the indieFINANCAILnetwork. Fei has a Master's Degree in Accountancy from the University of Illinois, Urbana and she has earned her CPA designation from the State of Illinois. Fei received her Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the Central University of Finance and Economy in Beijing, China, where she was a member of the English Association, the Psycology Association and for sports participation, the Badminton Association. She also vounteered extensively, arranging social events at the military base near campus, leading English and Art classes for elementary students in destitute areas, and visting local hospices as a care-giver to the elderly. In the English Association, Fei conducted the New Oriental Cup English Contest in Beijing. where she handled publicity city-wide. She also served as a secretary in the Undergraduate Student Association where she held DIY T-Shirt week on campus and attracted 500 participants. At the University of Illinois, Fei participated in the Habitat for Humanity program as well as Project Discovery and was also enrolled in a special Leadership Program.