” Western Union Man by Jerry Butler” were the words I uttered to a customer at a record shop when she asked the manager to help her look for a song. I was a customer there as well and by providing the correct answer, a career that spanned 17 years was launched when the store manager offered me a job on the spot. By being at the right place at the right time, I ended up working every aspect of retail from being a clerk to a sales director for Wherehouse Records to becoming the head director of purchasing for the entire V.I.P. Record Chain, which was the place to go to in LA if you were looking for soul and jazz music!
I landed my first job as a record promoter in 1979 at Record Merch, where I promoted acts in the LA area for Motown & TK Records . My big break came in 1980 at Warner Bros promoting and marketing R&B and Jazz acts in the LA, San Diego & Denver area, a job that I held for 8 1/2 years, winning the coveted ” Record Promoter Of The Year Award ” in 1984, the year that Prince dominated the airwaves with “Purple Rain “.
In 1988, I left WB to become National Director of Promotions & Marketing for the Polygram-distributed label WING Records, home of Vanessa Williams and Tony, Toni, Tone! When the 90s rolled around, record labels started downsizing, and I was among many other colleagues unceremoniously let go. Shortly before my departure, I had bought a new mattress, mainly because I seemed to sleep better in a hotel than in my own bedroom. A great night’s sleep would always rejuvenate me so I took that first hand experience, along with my promotion and sales background, into the mattress industry, where I managed mattress stores for different companies for 15 plus years. I won many awards in that field as well and I decided to add furniture sales to my accomplishments. I’m currently managing the Ashley Furniture Palmdale location. Reach out to me at stepcamp55@aol.com.
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