Alex Lodge - Thirty Two Music

With under a week to go until #Resonate2017, we caught up with What You Syncing panelist Alex Lodge to get an insight into how he became a music supervisor! What a top guy.

• How did you come to be a music supervisor at Thirty Two Music?

I started supervision life at Felt Music, where I stayed for 7 happy years. When the time came for me to move on and continue my journey, myself and Toby Slade-Baker decided to create something new and exciting, and from a vacant studio room (Studio 32) at Air Post on Old Street roundabout, Thirty Two Music was born. 

• What makes you passionate about sync?

Many things make me passionate about the job I do. I’m not just passionate about ‘sync’. Yes, I’m enthusiastic about being able to use my musical knowledge and harness all the years spent obsessively listening to weird tunes, but I’m equally enthusiastic about the production process involved working with our brand and agency clients and the knowledge it takes to supervise a production to completion. 

• You've recently supervised 'Global Goals', can you tell us a bit about that?

We’ve been working with Project Everyone for some time now helping them license music for their productions, whether it be a film that is shown at a UN summit or incredible online campaigns such as the most recent one for International Day Of The Girl. We believe strongly in the work that the Global Goals is doing and welcome the opportunity to use our skills to do our bit to make the world a better place. We do all out work for Project Everyone and the Global Goals pro bono. 

• What's one thing people should know about Thirty Two Music?

It depends who you are! I guess the thing everyone should know, potential clients and potential collaborators alike, is that we’re highly experienced, very approachable and we won’t bullshit you. We believe in fairness and transparency. We’re here to help you and to perform our work in the most effective and creative manner possible. Also, we’re really, really good at table tennis. 

• How do you rate the importance of sharing knowledge and mentoring young creatives?

I rate it very highly indeed. I have always and will always continue to give my time freely to help people that I believe would benefit from my involvement, in whatever capacity that may be. I believe strongly that now I’m through the door it’s my responsibility to hold it open for as many people as possible. I don’t have as much time as I’d like to dedicate to mentoring and helping young people, but I do what I can, when I can, and I’m happy to do it. 

• Who were your musical heroes growing up?

There are definitely a few potentially embarrassing answers to this question, and it depends on which stage of ‘growing up’ you focus on (Simpsons Sing The Blues), but I guess my first real moments of connection to music that put me on the road to where I am today were with Michael Jackson and Guns N’ Roses. It all started with them. I also had a long and intense love affair with the Manic Street Preachers, but the less said about that the better.... 

• Can you tell us about a project you've particularly enjoyed working on?

I particularly enjoyed working on the TV broadcasts of the summer festival season with Blink TV in the summers of 2014/15/16. We were clearing the rights for the live sets to be broadcast in highlights shows, which involved going to the festivals and sitting with the bands after their sets, showing them their footage and agreeing on tracks to be featured on the broadcasts. I got to ride around backstage in a golf cart too which was probably the best bit. 

• Is there one artist who's career has been burst into success through a sync by Thirty Two?

We chose Nils Frahm – For for a big BMW commercial, which was the first time his music had been synced on a piece of advertising. I’m not sure I’d be able to summon the hubris to suggest that we had a claim in the success of his career though… There have been artists that we’ve helped on their way financially with a timely sync here and there, but I like to think that the success is down to their talent and hard work rather than anything that I’ve done. 

• Are there any emerging artists you’re bussing about right now?

I’m buzzing about an artist I manage called Rick Pike. He’s not really emerging as he’s has a long and successful career with his band PVT, but his new solo project is dropping in the next couple of months (a collaboration with Stella from Warpaint) and it’s an absolute beast. Watch this space.