The Maestro: Q’s With Andrea Bocelli Co-Manager Scott Rodger

– Scott Rodger

The strategy behind Andrea Bocelli’s new album and tour campaign over the last few weeks has been wildly impressive. It includes a chart-topping classical album buoyed by a concert ticket bundle, collaborations with top contemporary pop artists and a legendary rock producer, a hot single and patrilineal video with nearly 25 million views, a ramped-up media campaign and a quickly selling-out international tour. Pollstar gained insight from one of the campaign’s primary strategists, Bocelli’s U.S. co-manager Scott Rodger of Maverick whose client roster includes Paul McCartney, Shania Twain and Marina and the Diamonds, to get insights into orchestrating Bocelli’s ascendance.

Pollstar: Sum up the strategy behind Bocelli’s campaign for the U.S. market

Scott Rodger: Sí is Andrea’s first album of original songs in 14 years. So immediately we knew there was going to be greater interest in this release. The fact that he has some incredible duets, including his son Matteo Bocelli, Ed Sheeran, Dua Lipa and Josh Groban, opened him up to a more contemporary audience. Andrea also worked with Producer Bob Ezrin, better known for his work with Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel, KISS and Alice Cooper.

It was important to not be predictable with the creative vision for the album. This being said, in the current climate we also know that the core sales base was going to be physical CDs and digital downloads with very little equivalent sales coming from streaming. Most artists outside of the pop, hip-hop and rap genres are in exactly the same position today, as their audiences haven’t fully migrated to the streaming services in the numbers required to make a serious difference.

With one of the key tracks from the album being a duet with Matteo Bocelli, who is 21 years old, this opened up opportunities to do TV performances with father and son together for the first time, which gave a different side to Andrea as well as engaging AC radio for the first time in a very long time.

Who are some of the team members you worked with on the campaign?

We had some extraordinary team members without whom this project wouldn’t have happened. Holly Adams at Verve was the most incredible driver at the label for this project and she created essential and exciting marketing initiatives and opportunities. The media strategy that was put together by Allison Elbl at ID PR was also truly vital in our launch success, too.

Is Bocelli mostly regarded as a classical act for an older audience in the States or are young people aware of Bocelli?

Andrea has a multigenerational audience. We see this from people who attend his concerts in the U.S. as well as internationally. His large shows are very much for the masses and he has an extremely wide repertoire from opera to more contemporary pop-crossover songs. When playing at the Met, and similar opera houses, the repertoire is more opera-focused and possibly suited to the more seasoned opera fans.

How impactful is his first No. 1 album in the States?

Most people are generally not aware of which artist happens to be at No. 1 these days outside of the artist, label and industry in general. However, for someone like Andrea, delivering the first classical No. 1 in the U.S. in over a decade as well as this being Andrea’s first ever No. 1, is a global headline we hope to capitalize on. It has definitely garnered a lot of international media attention, too. The original intention for this album was to make a contemporary classical album that would appeal to the masses, even those people who perhaps would not be thought of as classical music fans. That is still our intention, to continue our marketing efforts and to ensure this album will be worked throughout 2019. So the No. 1 will hopefully make people feel a little more curious to discover this album as it’s been a headline. Our first-week sales comprised of around 96 percent physical sales and digital downloads compared to 4 percent for streaming. There is definitely a focus on building our streaming numbers and monthly subscribers in the year ahead, which we can see going week-to-week right now. It’s definitely a building process!

What’s it like working with Bocelli, Andrea Primicerio, the production crew around John Gibbon and the rest of the team?

In the Bocelli live team, it’s very much a family affair particularly in the video department. John Gibbon has been working with Andrea for almost 10 years now and knows his live setup better than anyone else. Andrea Taglia, who is the sound designer and engineer is probably the most thorough engineer I’ve ever worked with. I very much doubt you will ever hear a better live orchestral sound in large-scale venues that will match what you hear at an Andrea Bocelli show. Andrea Primicerio, Andrea’s agent, is also a seasoned veteran with around 15 years of history. They’ve developed a working rhythm for sure and the hope is we can develop that further and create more interesting and exciting opportunities in the future.

How did you manage to get a classical album onto number one? What were the main drivers that led to this?

We had a really focused marketing and media strategy that connected with Andrea’s audience on top of months of analysis on exactly how we would achieve the required sales numbers. We focused very heavily on all of the remaining physical retailers available in the U.S., outside of Amazon, and set ambitious targets with each one. We came very close to reaching those targets and way surpassed expectations at Amazon. Our live ticket/album bundle was crucial to our week one number and obtaining the required redemptions. It’s probably one of the most strategic campaigns I’ve ever worked.

Is there a large audience for live classical music in the States, or is Bocelli the exception? Could you put his success stateside into perspective?

Andrea has a huge live audience. He doesn’t tour extensively but does an average around 12 to 16 shows per year in the U.S. spread throughout the year. I think people like events and Andrea’s shows are incredibly special events. Andrea’s voice is the driver here, not the orchestra or the spectacle itself. I’m sure that classical music could have new and up and coming stars that could one day tour on a large scale, but for now Andrea is in a league of his own and unmatched in his genre.