The Record Business Podcast Sam Freeman

Wojtek Goral is a Stockholm-based musician who's risen to fame as one of the go-tos in Max Martin's network of musicians, and he's contributed sax parts to songs by Pink, Carly Rae Jepsen, Justin Timberlake, Ariana Grande and more. We crossed paths at a live show, and he was kind of enought to sit down with me some weeks later to talk about his career and how he got the point he's at now.

Henrik Frisk is a saxophonist, composer, and vice principal at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm (KMH). When I visited the school to learn more about their programs, he was kind enough to show me around and do a walkthrough of their facilities. In return, I invited him on the podcast to talk about his music history, his tenure at KMH and the kind of academic setup that school has.

John Cloud arrived in Sweden from Southern California in 1984 as an exchange student and went on to become one of the most well-known expats in the Swedish music industry. He started as an intern at Radium Records in Gothenburg and thereafter worked at MNW Records where he was Head of Licensing. He later became a founding member of Playground Music and worked as their Head of Publishing. These days, John divides his time between his own label, Bark At Your Owner, and working at Playground. We talked about his 40 year career, his transition from the US to Sweden, and his vision for his labels.

Born in San Diego, California, Michael Blair is an American drummer and producer who's contributed to breakthrough records with Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, Lou Reed, poet Allen Ginsberg, and many more. He also presents workshops and events focused on unlocking creativity and promoting music collaboration. I was able to sit down with Michael and ask him some questions about his career, his relocation to Sweden, and his wider work.

Peter Åstedt has been working in the music industry for over 30 years, having started his own label, Dead Frog Records, at the age of fifteen in 1990.  He was an early protagonist of the digital revolution and uploaded his first mp3 in 1995, plus he worked on one of the first legal mp3 stores, Vitaminic. He's also been active in distribution, publishing and live shows, and is currently known for his Future Echoes music festival that takes place in Sweden. I had a chat with him about his long-running career, covering how he went from a teenager label owner to a current-day festival owner.

Having existed for five years as a Q&A website, The Record Business has transitioned into a podcast in 2024. With Sam Freeman as the host, the inaugural episode sees him speak with Swedish songwriter Andreas Carlsson. Famous for his work with the legendary Cheiron crew of the late 90s and early 2000s, Andreas was one of the most successful songwriters of that period, and went on to become a judge on Swedish Idol, a motivational speaker, and start his own schools, all of which was covered in the conversation.