Saying Goodbye to WTF…

I have made the tough decision to step away from WTF Publicity and our agency will be closing its doors indefinitely by the end of this year. While things may have seemed easy and successful on the surface, the last 3 years have been some of the most challenging I have experienced, personally and professionally. The music industry is a toxic, thankless environment, and trying to run a business within it takes a mental toll…I have been very open about my struggles with mental health and have spoken on many conference panels regarding this topic, so it’s time to put my money where my mouth is and finally call out this mentally challenging environment for what it is. There is a reason we have high rates of mental illness, substance abuse, and suicide in music. We have a problem, and it must be addressed.

I started WTF in 2021 as a last resort during the COVID-19 pandemic. I thought that I could own a business, run things, learn things, and grow – all while continuing to heal from a massive trauma I still had not fully recovered from – but this industry is toxic as I already mentioned, and it’s hard to heal in this environment. I’ve finally hit a wall, and I know that I need to step away and find a job where I can just work and positively apply my skills for a better cause.

Music Publicity has been difficult for as long as I can remember — and I’ve been in this gig for more than 10 years. The ever-changing digital media environment doesn't make things any easier. You are working in a position where the competition is extremely high, but the perceived value is very low – and consistently trying to prove your worth gets exhausting and defeating. There are millions of artists trying to compete for a small handful of spots in media — it’s about as difficult as getting discovered for movies. Even actors audition and fail over and over again before landing a role…and when they do, more than likely that role is for a B-movie, not an Oscar winner. Just like music publicity — you might get ignored, you may be rejected, and you may only get recognized by a few small bloggers and indie influencers at first. But musicians expect publicity to happen in the form of “interviews” or measurable “coverage,” on a “notable platform” right out of the gate. That’s not how this works. A Publicist is supposed to be your partner, a representative working on your behalf to generate public interest and word of mouth. It’s not our fault if the people we reach out to don’t like what we are pitching — maybe it’s the artists’ fault for not having a better product, promo photos, or touring history, or a label’s fault for not allocating additional funds for digital marketing, or a manager’s fault for rushing the campaign and missing editorial deadlines — or maybe it’s nobody’s fault and your work just doesn’t fit what the media is looking for at that moment — many factors can influence coverage and campaign success. In addition to this, our difficulties only grow with layoffs, staff changes, longer lead times, less coverage space, “clickbait culture,” editorial restrictions, and media outlets turning coverage into payola by disguising it as “marketing." The market is volatile, and after talking with other colleagues, I know for a fact that we are not the only ones dealing with this.

Publicists are not supposed to hit it out of the park every single time, but we are somehow expected to do so. More than not I feel more equated to a racehorse whose only value is in the win — or a slave meant to only secure “links” and “pick up” or demand a performance on Late Night TV (news flash: not just anybody gets on Late Night TV!). It doesn't matter that we sent out 1,000 emails on behalf of the client or received 400 responses that were all passes — that time, dedication, and work put into that outreach doesn’t seem to matter. So, despite putting in countless hours and communications work championing a client’s work, we are treated as useless and disposable.

We have worked with over 200 artists as well as record labels, events, and brands — and I can count on one hand how many of them have simply said “thank you.” We have secured coverage in the Associated Press, The Washington Post, New York Times, Complex, Billboard, Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, and every other top-tier publication out there — but are still treated as amateur. It’s almost like people refuse to believe I am running a company with employees and responsibilities, as if they think this is still the Myspace era of fans promoting bands from their bedrooms. We are professionals, businesswomen — not a volunteer fan club— and honestly, it’s insulting.

Instead of being recognized and respected for our work, I have been dealing with backstabbers, negative attitudes, unrealistic expectations, unpaid invoices, collections, lack of personal boundaries, and other crap for years. In the past 3 years, I have lost over $50,000 due to simple unprofessionalism and bad-faith tactics, despite having a signed and legally binding contract. I was cold-called during my grandmother’s funeral by a client who refused to believe I was out of the office, then dropped me from the campaign for being unavailable (despite having a team on standby to support). I have been manipulated, stepped on, and even threatened into submission to let others get away with not paying their bills. I have even been bullied by those who call themselves “Christians” and owners of a “Mental Health Organization,” — public service is a farce to boost social brownie points in this industry. I have been mocked for sending proof of work completed, and even called “unprofessional” for standing up for our agents’ work or simply trying to collect an overdue invoice. More often than not, I am treated with an animosity only women in the workforce face — because a man acting this way is being assertive and competitive in business, but for a female, it’s deemed unprofessional and rude.

I do not have an investor or a business loan — never did. I started WTF with $2,000 in my pocket and nothing more. More often than not, the people messing with our bottom line are those who can afford it — and who could afford the fallout if I needed to get lawyers. I’ve been a small fish in a big sea of sharks, and I’m ready to sink. In 3 years I haven’t even taken a paycheck for myself. If there ever was a profit - it went towards paying our contractors for work they did but the client refused to pay for, administrative costs, or legal fees. I have been forced to move out of my apartment and into my parents’ home just to meet our bottom line each month and prepare for the inevitable client who wakes up and decides to hold hostage the equivalent to our workforce’s monthly payroll. PR and Marketing is not cheap, so one client can bring down the entire ship, simply by not paying one invoice or paying late and refusing to pay the late fee. I fight contacts more than I work marketing or publicity campaigns, and I’m tired. I have been working and fighting and working and for nothing — just to lose.

I have done the absolute best that I could, but the only thing that I am losing now is my mental health, sense of self, and well-being. I wake up bitter and angry and depressed about where this company is at, and how to get out of this mess. After much reflection and discussion, I have decided to shut down operations at WTF Publicity and walk away from music publicity entirely. I want to focus on my family, and my health, and work in an environment where I feel good about the work I am doing. I recognize that I have completely burnt out and just need time to myself away from it all.

For those left behind, PLEASE treat your publicists with respect. We work hard in a really tough environment, and we’re on your side. I’m laying this all out there hoping that this industry can do better moving forward. We NEED to do better for ourselves and each other. I’ve talked to countless colleagues since announcing to step away — and I am not alone in this. We all treat our internal teams like crap in this industry, and we deserve better.

It’s been a wild ride since starting WTF Publicity, and this is a bittersweet goodbye. At the end of the day though, I’m proud of what I built – it’s just not in my cards to keep it this way, and this was a difficult personal decision that I had to make.

Thank you to everyone who believed in our little company, and supported us through the last three years — and thank you to everyone who has reached out since I announced this news internally. I appreciate all of you <3