Sync and swim in music biz

By Ed Power

Early in 2016, Rory McPartland, one of Ireland’s leading music supervisors and licensers, sat down with first-time movie director Peter Foott.

The Corkman was overseeing a film called The Young Offenders and, though happy with what he’d captured on camera, he felt the soundtrack could do with a little punching up.

McPartland suggested the use of ‘Paper Planes’ by the Tamil-London rapper and singer M.I.A. That sounded fine in theory to Foott, but, operating on a shoe-string budget of €50,000, how could he afford to license the track? ‘Paper Planes’ was a bone fide smash and the costs would surely be prohibitive.

This was even more complicated than it initially appeared. ‘Paper Planes’ samples S’traight To Hell’ by The Clash, so in addition to receiving an okay from M.I.A’s representatives, whoever looked after The Clash would have to approve too. Also, permission would be required from producer Diplo, credited alongside M.I.A. as co-writer.

With a deadline looming and a movie to finish, it would be understandable if Foott concluded he had better ways to spend his time and budget. “He’s the writer and director, he’s got more than enough on his plate,” said McPartland.

So, McPartland came on board as a music supervisor on the project and secured the rights to ‘Paper Planes’, which would go on to feature in a key early scene. He continues to work with Foott, collaborating with him on The Young Offenders TV series.

Music licensing and ‘synching’ (a broad rights license for use in soundtracks, video games), he reveals, have become increasingly important, as record sales plummet. As owners of Dublin-based Planet of Sound music, McPartland and his business partner Dina Couglan (also his wife) help put artists in touch with advertising agencies, production companies, etc.

“It’s become more and more important,” says McPartland, who started out playing guitar in 1990s Dublin band Mike TV, before moving into music licensing and synching at EMI Music Publishing in New York. He will discuss his experiences on both sides of the Atlantic at Music Cork this week.

There is more of a level playing field, in that even small artists can produce, technically, really great records. You don’t need a big label any more. They can compete directly for synchs. You can be more aggressive.

There are now more opportunities than ever before for artists to have their music featured on TV or in commercials. For instance, he helped bring together indie rock band Villagers and Fáilte Ireland for the Ireland’s Ancient East campaign.

The problem is that, thanks to technology, the barriers of entry for releasing music have come down, so there are also more artists than ever trying to make a living. An additional complication today is that TV shows tend to be distributed globally.

There was a time when an Irish TV producer would only have to worry about permission to use music on an Irish broadcast, but if a show is picked up by, for instance, Netflix, the material would need to be licensed all over again, as the original deal would be specific to Ireland.

Consequently, producers nowadays try to negotiate an open-ended licence to use music, meaning the expertise of companies such as Planet of Sound is in demand.

“There’s a whole opportunity if you want to show something on Netflix.

“However, you will have to clear the licence up front. That has definitely happened a lot more.”

If you strike it large with a licensing deal, the results can be hugely rewarding, he says, but catching the ear of an advertising agency in New York or a music supervisor in Hollywood is a needle-in-a-haystack achievement.

Most musicians will still have to explore other ways to earn a living. Always be on the look out for a synch, but don’t assume it is going to happen.

“You need to tour. It raises your profile and makes you more visible. Synching is definitely lucrative. It’s not something you can totally rely on.”

Rory McPartland speaks at Music Cork, taking place Wednesday to Friday. For details, see: musiccork.com