Episode 564 – Musician, Book And Magazine Publisher, And Artist Mike Lawson

In this week’s podcast episode, my guest is musician, book and magazine publisher, and artist Mike Lawson, who also happens to be my book publishing champion.

Mike was the person who took a chance on me to publish my first book, and then most of my subsequent 20+ books after that.

He’s since gone on to become the owner and publisher of notable publications like School Band and Orchestra and Musical Merchandise Review magazines.

If those credits were Mike’s only claim to fame it would be pretty substantial, but he’s also continued to be a working musician having recorded and/or performed with musical luminaries like Merl Saunders, Vince Welnick, Vassar Clements, Pete Sears, John McEuen, Bob Welch, Phil Keaggy, Jack Casady, Rob Wasserman, Michael Cleveland, and a host of others.

He has released eight albums as “Mike Lawson and Friends,” continues to front his tribute band Hooterall?, and even has his own Pearl River signature guitar.

During the interview we spoke about his journey to getting a signature guitar, transitioning from musician to publisher, staying on the bleeding edge of technology, his stints at Gibson, and much more.

I spoke with Mike from his office outside of Nashville.

Timecodes:

00:00:00 – Introduction: Mike Lawson’s Journey

00:00:22 – Meet Mike Lawson: Musician and Publisher

00:01:33 – The Story Behind Mike’s Signature Guitar

00:06:22 – The Importance of Quality and Affordability in Instruments

00:07:42 – Transitioning from Musician to Publisher

00:08:15 – The Start of Mike’s Publishing Career

00:10:02 – The Birth of the Entertainment Source Library

00:12:00 – Innovating with CompuServe and Music Industry Forums

00:13:41 – Working with Gibson and Building Gibson.com

00:15:40 – The Shift to Mixed Books and Publishing

00:19:07 – The Evolution of Mike’s Publishing Career

00:22:29 – Returning to Gibson and New Opportunities

00:24:15 – The Move to Alfred Publishing

00:25:03 – Current Publishing Ventures: MMR and SBO

00:27:49 – Balancing Music and Publishing

00:28:19 – The Impact of COVID on Music Production

00:30:37 – Embracing Technology in Music Creation

00:33:36 – Imposter Syndrome: A Common Struggle

00:37:21 – Lessons Learned from Merle Saunders and Vince Welnick

00:40:41 – Conclusion and Closing Remarks

Additional Resources:

Learn more about Mike’s music at https://www.mikelawson.com, and his book and magazine publishing at https://artistpro.com

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