Artist and repertoire (A&R for short) is a music industry term that refers to the division of a record label that is responsible for scouting and developing talent. The A&R department is the link between the recording artist/act and the record label, and is often required to handle contractual negotiations, find songwriters and record producers for the act, and schedule recording sessions.

One of the A&R department's main jobs is sorting through the plethora of demo tapes sent by hopeful musicians to the label. A&R departments typically only accept solicited demos, or ones from business contacts with which they are familiar.

In some more artistic record labels, creativity is encouraged and songwriting and record producing is done by the artists.

Examples of A&R people include

• Simon Cowell
• Brad Delson
• Ian Dickson
• Mark Holden
• Mitch Miller
• Chuck Paugh
• Frankie Vega
• Ben Watt
• Ron Fair

Some A&R people have literally changed the face of modern music, John H. Hammond for example, had a long and rich career discovering some of the biggest names in music. Artists he discovered, signed and even occasionally produced included Billie Holiday, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin and many others. Other A&R people with similar track records include Clive Davis and Lenny Waronker.

External links

• HitQuarters World Top 20 A&R Chart: A&R
• The Gatekeepers: A&R
• Description of A&R on About.com
• The Problem with Music - Article by Steve Albini famously referencing A&R.

Acronyms | Music industry | Occupations in music

Artists and Repertoire | A&R