Blogroll – Page 6 – NOLAmotion Blog

Recruiting Our Way to Success?

Too many folks in economic development overemphasize recruiting. At a time when most admit that Louisiana’s greatest export is our smart, talented, innovative people, highly paid government “leaders” continue to believe they can recruit outsiders to save us.

When I was at the Louisiana Music Commission, we used to joke that to economic development people an expert was someone from out of town carrying a briefcase. Nobody, it seemed, wanted to hear what “we” all have to say. Only the “experts” seemed to know up from down. Though we tried at every opportunity to bring an appreciation for indigenous talent to economic development, and tried our best to be a part of all aspects of the department, nobody wanted to hear anything from us unless it was about music; and, all-to-often only if it involved access to backstage passes.

I recently met with an important person from Louisiana Economic Development who believed that the music director needed to be “working the phones and recruiting.” I said that Louisiana’s music industry can’t recruit its way to success–unless someone has a line on Steve Jobs. I don’t know if I made my point; but I know it’s true. Unfortunately, the folks in charge of music at the state level just don’t get it and remain overwhelmed by the demands of the film industry. Music is still being taken for granted, and the potential of the state to be helpful continues to be untapped.

Our unique music resources, it seems, are still perceived as lacking only what outsiders can bring to it. Well, as far as I (and I’m sure most musicians seeking to make a living) am concerned, the main thing outsiders can bring to our music is their appreciation and their money. And if anyone wants to move their booking or management company here, I’m sure there are incentives that can be utilized. No doubt music could use some help. But what the state is (or rather isn’t) doing is about as useful as a one person sailboat with no rudder on a landlocked pond with no wind or even a paddle.

There are no miracle workers in the music industry anymore. There are no simple solutions to the difficulties of being a musician. The era of the music moguls is long over. And legendary music mogul Clive Davis lost his job (again) this week. Blame whatever you want for the demise of the industry: downloads, supply & demand, competition from video games, all of the above. Whatever you want to call it, the international music industry has changed and the state doesn’t get it. Meanwhile, Louisiana continues to produce some of the world’s best and most interesting music.

But don’t expect the state to fix things anytime soon. Instead of building upon the more than a decade of work that Chairman Ellis Marsalis fostered, the current folks at the LMC continue on their “rebuilding” path by starting from scratch and proceeding at a snail’s pace.

I also learned that nobody at the state’s entertainment office has access to any of the voluminous paperwork we generated in our 13+ years of running the Louisiana Music Commission. The people in charge don’t even know where the ring binders are that hold the reports, plans and the printed version of the (defunct) website. So, again, here is the comprehensive report covering 1992 to 2003, a summary version (bullet text and easy to read) and our last Strategic Plan. And of course anyone can view the old website by visiting Archive.org and typing “louisianamusic.org” into the Internet Wayback Machine.

I know I’m boring some of you with this stuff. But the fact remains that you can’t just erase what we did; and, I won’t let the opinions of openly hostile, manipulative people be the only version of history. I know what I did and I know what we did. And it’s far more than anyone is doing now.

The State of Louisiana continues to neglect its responsibility to nurture our precious music legacy. Our musicians deserve better.

I’ve got a new job

On Monday, March 17 I started a new job as the Crescent City Area Housing Agent at the LSU AgCenter. I’m going to be responsible for educational outreach to consumers, builders and others seeking to rebuild safer, smarter and more sustainably. It’s not a clearly defined role and it crosses into many areas such as storm resistance, energy efficiency and sustainability. Since I’m a longtime advocate for better building and am actively involved in helping bring sustainable building resources to the area; and, since I finally passed the Home Energy Rater Systems (HERS) test (thanks to Southface Energy Institute), am a licensed real estate agent and have a strong background in communications, the folks at the AgCenter tapped me to find ways to reach and assist people in a multi-parish area. It’s a big job.

I’m just getting started learning about all the many services and programs at the LSU AgCenter. One of the primary sources for me will be the Louisiana House (check out the site, its a great resource for Louisiana-specific building research and information to help you save energy and build smarter), a project of the AgCenter.

It’s a fun place to work and I know I’m going to be able to make a difference as a partner in the rebuilding of the area. Watch this space for updates.

A Letter to the Governor & Staff

Dear Gov. Jindal and Staff:

I write you today about music, an issue connected to both economic development and natural resources. Since 2005, the Louisiana Music Commission has been a broken agency. It was sabotaged by an alteration of its legislation in which it was turned from an independent, dedicated commission to a division of LED with direct oversight/management responsibility shifted from the LMC’s Chairman to the Secretary of LED. The result is that the LMC is now subject to the expectations and directives of people whose lives were and are not immersed in the realities of music.

Since 2005 the LMC has been dismantled, de-staffed, unfunded and purged of 14 years of records. Its websites, established in 1997 and recognized as top sites for information, news and links to Louisiana’s complex and rich musical resources, were eliminated and the URLs lost. There continues to be no office, website or publicly accessible vehicle for our music professionals to access in support of their always difficult calling.

The LMC under Chairman Ellis Marsalis was a leader in transparency via its website. It published every report, press release and plan, complete with links, as soon as such docs were produced. It had an office, a staff and a budget. It had the autonomy it needed to research, define and implement programs and projects. It had the ability to react quickly to needs and situations. It was responsive, effective and accomplished many goals.

The LMC handled literally thousands of calls and emails annually. It developed educational initiatives, radio and television programs, economic development projects, advertising and promotional campaigns, and served as an advocate and voice for the state’s often misunderstood musicians and music professionals.

Today, the LMC budget is part of LED. It must compete with industries that are far more organized and structured. It is dying.

Music is too important to be lumped-in with any other industry, including film; because, in Louisiana, music is complex and unlike any other resource. It is a naturally occurring but fragile component of life. It is a family with four generations of God-given grace and talent. It is a 10 year old with an accordion, trumpet or trombone. It is a crusty street musician in the French Quarter. It is a tenor in the nation’s longest-running opera company. And it is depended upon by every one of us as part of the fabric of our lives, part of what makes us laugh, cry, dance and BE Louisiana.

Today, Louisiana’s eyes are glazed-over by the glitter of Hollywood while its crown jewel, music, is buried in a bureaucracy that cannot and should not be responsible for the future of this complex, beautiful and fragile asset.

The LMC needs to be returned to its status as a proper commission, with autonomy, an office, a budget, a staff, a website and a mission to serve. It needs to be returned to its leadership under Chairman Ellis Marsalis who has generously volunteered to once again, rebuild this badly needed entity.

I ask that you take the bold step of appointing Ellis Marsalis as Chairman of the LMC, that you reinstate the original legislation (LS R.S. 25: 315-317) that gave operational control to the board and that you fund the office, staff and mission of this currently ineffective and misdirected agency.

Thank you for your efforts to restore Louisiana. And it is with a sense of optimism that I submit this letter. I remain dedicated to our great state and look forward to doing my part to help you move us forward into a better future for all.

Respectfully yours,
Steve Picou
New Orleans LA
http://nolamotion.com

Tax Credits Gone Wild!

Kudos to the Times-Picayune for pulling back the curtain (be sure to read the comments) more on the Mark Smith scandal, showing how film tax credits were abused to include 3 of New Orleans’ most popular music events: Jazz Fest, Voodoo Music Experience and Essence. It was revealed that more than $10 million in tax credits are due to be paid to behind-the-scenes entities, notably through lawyer Will French whose connections to Smith, LIFT and the whole credit system run deeper than anyone else in the state. Commercial interests took advantage of this (obvious-to-anyone-with-morals) fraudulent twist in the application of the credits. But it was Smith’s penchant for padding that allowed the credits to be based on the entire budget of the events rather than the actual cost of filming. Thus the dollars are beyond any amounts ever thrown at in-state music events.

Again, not only Mark Smith, but former Louisiana Economic Development secretaries Don Hutchinson and Mike Olivier contributed to this huge stretch in logic and reasoning in signing off on what to most people are outrageous claims. In fact, what this represents is the biggest expenditure for music in the history of Louisiana. The state could’ve released more than 1000 CDs by Louisiana artists for less money, not that the CD market is so hot right now. No doubt there are festival organizers around the state fuming, and rightly so, about how New Orleans seems to get too much. Too bad Hutchinson and Olivier (and Ernest Collins and a few others) aren’t joining Smith at this month’s sentencing.

This scam would not have happened under Ellis Marsalis’ watch. When we ran the Louisiana Music Commission, we couldn’t spend more than $1000 without Chairman Marsalis’ oversight. Maybe that’s another reason why they got rid of us. Not that Mark Smith ever dealt with us truthfully or would’ve included us in this kind of decision-making. He couldn’t afford the scrutiny of anyone with common sense. And had Bernie Cyrus been hired as the Entertainment Cluster Developer back when the state first established the position, these scandals with film and music would not have happened.

This situation gets to the root of how large-scale tax credit systems are manipulated by those “in the know” about government programs. Like the GO Zone credits (a story you can expect to be equally tawdry since these disaster-inspired credits are funding stadium suites in Alabama and myriad projects that fail to address true rebuilding needs), the abuse of the film tax credits goes beyond the mechanics of movie production and deep into the intense world of film (and apparently event) financing. As of now, Mark Smith is a lynch pin but hardly the only perpetrator of fraud. Surely others will soon be doing the perp walk on the evening news. We can only hope.

Unless the FBI or Louisiana Attorney General decides to probe whether fraud took place regarding the music festivals, bending these state regulations apparently has no punitive consequences. And obviously, this isn’t the only state rule so poorly written and implemented. So don’t expect to see the State of Louisiana police its own and exact any punitive measures.

All we can ask is that law enforcement dig deeper into this situation. And hope that the new Jindal administration will do better.