Meet The Team: Hannah Thacker
Hey! Tell everyone something about yourself that they wouldn’t find out otherwise.
I went to the University of Leicester where I specialised in Old English and American Modernist Poetry, so if that isn’t evidence of not using your degree, then I don’t know what is. Gehwilc gewille eyre! Whatever will be!
Did you always know you wanted to work in the music industry?
Aside from the usual kid dreams of being a vet or lawyer because that sounds impressive and will probably get you an extra biscuit from the adults, yeah I’ve always been drawn to the music industry. I perhaps didn’t believe that the industry had a place for me. I’m your stereotypical poor kid from a single-parent family with a standard education; there was no extra money in the pot for music lessons and I was sternly instructed to get a “proper job” as soon as I could. Yet, it was for that same reason that a new CD, a gig, or my first festival experience was so precious to me and provided an escapism from the rough neighbourhood and the school bullies. I’d stay up late listening to John Kennedy’s show on XFM and trawling SoundCloud with a notebook listening out for the best tracks so the next day I was always a step ahead with music amongst my peers. I didn’t have the latest fashions or academic accolades, but I did always have the best playlist. From there on out, I knew that being separated from this world of music was never an option.
What was your path into the industry?
Now this is a story that I tell a lot, because I think it demonstrates how there’s no direct route into the music industry. Between my second and third years at university, summer holiday boredom set in like it never had before, and so I did what every teenager was doing at the time, I made a Tumblr blog. My goal was to post a song review at least once per day, which I did for four months until I received two offers, to be a writer for global online music blog Unrecorded and to be an A&R Scout for Los Angeles label IAMSOUND Records. All of a sudden, I was no longer a nameless bystander of the industry, but an integral part of it. From there it’s a long and winding road to where I am now, which includes being the online editor for pioneering music discovery platform HumanHuman, festival manager for a charity organization, team manager at Parklife Festival and Warehouse Project and a whole host of other odd jobs. I made the switch over to PR, thanks to encouragement from friends in the industry like Alex Treharne, the MD of Latch Media, who was my very first PR client when I worked his debut EP back in 2015.
Was there a particular learning curve you remember encountering at the beginning of your career?
In the first year of working full-time in the music industry, I got an artist signed to an independent record label, which I assumed would lead to further involvement or recuperation for my time and talent. I shouldn’t have assumed. I should have got the deal with my fair portion down on paper, but being the bright-eyed and trusting soul I was back then, I thought it would all just work out. So what I’d say is don’t assume that other people have your interests at their heart, they may well do, but until you have that in writing, you can’t be certain.
What is your current role?
I’m very proud to say that I’m the Head of Music PR here at Latch Media.
What does that entail?
Alongside my regular duties running digital PR campaigns, I also put together pitches, take client calls, delegate campaigns to other PRs on the team, and also guide the team to ensure all campaigns are being worked to the highest standards.
What is a common misconception about the job that you do?
That all PRs are bad PRs. There’s no doubting that certain chancers have tainted the perceived reputation of PRs and there’s an awful lot of less-than-desirable practices out there, but there’s also so many brilliant, talented and passionate people who do PR because they believe in the music. I’ve had the pleasure to work with some of these good eggs and they’ve inspired me to be the transparent and diligent PR that I am now.
What was the last track that you listened to?
Hilang Child’s ‘Seen The Boreal’.
What is the most rewarding part of working on artist projects?
Personally, being one of the first people to lay your ears on a piece of music and being trusted with it, is incredibly gratifying as a lover of new music. Professionally, nothing makes me happier than landing a great feature for an artist’s project; it’s those times that I’ll hop out of my chair with excitement knowing just how much this will mean to my client.
What are the changes you want to see in the music industry?
Right now, we’re starting to see more diversity within the music business at the lower and mid-tier levels, with a greater number of women, people of colour and LGBTQ+ people in the industry than we’ve seen in the past, but the closer that you travel up the hierarchy, the paler and maler professionals seem to get. Naturally, I’d love to see more opportunities for progression for underrepresented people to ensure the vitality of the industry in the future. We’re not going to get anywhere by upholding the status quo.
I’d also love to see more investment into spaces that aren’t currently accessible to those with disabilities, whether that’s a live music venue or an industry workspace. As someone with a bone disease, trickily called Ankylosing Spondylitis, I’ve directly felt the impact of being in a venue that doesn’t cater to your needs and being in a workplace that couldn’t care less how much pain you're in. This ableist society of ours has a lot of work to do.
Tell us about something you do outside of work.
Out of all the questions, this one was the hardest! Music is genuinely my life and makes up most of my friendships and my social life. That being said, my job is pretty full on and so I’m always looking for ways to zen out. I draw, paint, practice yoga, go on long walks, I constantly have a few books on the go and I listen to a shed-load of podcasts.
What artists should people be keeping an eye on?
Obviously, the Latch roster is banging and you should be keeping an eye on all of our artists, but here’s a few more for you. Look out for Haich Ber Na, Jareth, seeyousoon, Madge, Lazy Day, MICHELLE, Sans Soucis, Nia Wyn, A. O. Gerber, Japan Man, Peter Manos, Love Level… I really could go on all day, but I’ll save you a few hours and leave you with those for now!
Follow Hannah:
Instagram
