We talked to the lovely Jane Yee, who became an NZ household name (and face!) due to her time as a music television presenter (M2, Squeeze, C4). The petite & bubbly presenter became a favourite with NZ viewers for her effervescent on screen manner, passion for music and sense of humour. Now Jane works for Universal Music NZ as Promotions Manager. Read on to see what Jane had to say about life in Promotions!....
 What is your job and who do you work for?
I work for Universal Music NZ as Promotions Manager.
What does a normal work day entail for you?
Every day is different and can cover a wide variety of things including:
-servicing albums and videos to media
-arranging phone and face-to-face interviews with our artists
-writing press releases
-dealing with our international offices in LA and London
-and of course listening to a lot of music!
How did you get into the music industry – any specific training?
I did a three-year Communications degree at AUT, specialising in radio in my final year.
My first entry to the music industry was as a radio announcer, and then as a music TV presenter and researcher.
When I decided to take a break from the small screen I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but I’d always worked in music and am very passionate about the industry, so when I was offered the job at Universal I thought – hey, why not?
It’s been a really intense learning experience, but I totally love it.
What’s the best thing about your job?
It sounds cheesy, but the best thing about my job is the people I work with – they’re all so incredibly passionate about what they do, and I really admire that.
It’s also really cool when you’ve worked hard on a release and you begin to see the fruits of your labour – like when an album or single gets to #1 on the charts.
What’s the most challenging thing about your job?
There are lots of little challenges that pop up on a daily basis – difficult artists, demanding media, videos that don’t arrive on time for scheduled premieres and so on - but the biggest challenge would have to be managing my time.
It’s a really intense and busy job, and because we deal with our international offices a lot we are getting emails to our Blackberries all through the night.
Sometimes you feel like you’re on the job twenty-four hours a day!
Do you have any advice for people who want to get into your field of work?
Be prepared to work really hard - it’s not as glamorous as it seems, but it also has the potential to be extremely rewarding.
You’ll need to be able to appreciate all music genres, and also have a decent understanding of New Zealand media.
A good sense of humour definitely helps get you through those stressful times too!
Why do you love music and why is it important to you?
I love music for the same reasons as everyone else; it evokes a rainbow of emotions like nothing else and can speak to us and for us.
It has also paid my rent for the last ten years. That helps! |
