GOGO Music
Label Interview
GOGO Music was established 2001 by Ralf GUM and is described as “contemporary club music with soul”. The label concentrates on timeless songs with a deep house foundation. The label has featured artists such as Ursula Rucker, Inaya Day, Black Coffee, Monique Bingham or Rocco as well as very own discoveries as for instance Raw Artistic Soul, Sir LSG or MAQman.
How did the label come to be - what’s the story of how why you created it?
GOGO Music was created because I wanted to have a platform where I could release music either produced by me or other artists without having to compromise in any aspect.
Why the name?
It just sounded catchy to me.
What were the biggest challenges you had to get to release one?
Finances. It was not as easy as it is today to set up a label in pre-digital times where you needed to press and ship the music.
What was the best piece of advice anyone gave you along the way?
Trust your ears.
What makes the label unique?
We believe in quality 100 percent and only release music we love.
What’s your musical policy - what do you look for?
Outstanding, well written and well produced, soulful Vocal (House) music. Songs, not tools.
What producers have you had on the label that sum up the style you want best?
The producer who has the most releases on the label is myself and therefore my sound might be the foundation of the label’s sound, but many established artists, such as Black Coffee and Rocco, as well as new detections as Sir LSG and MAQman have left their mark.
How do you go through demos, how do you like people to send them, what’s your process?
We prefer to work with our regular artist nowadays and have currently stopped accepting and listening to demos.
How long do you plan between signing a track and release?
It completely varies from a few weeks to a few years, simply depending on how long it takes to complete a worthy release package, especially when we’re talking about albums.
How do you go about creating the artwork?
We create our artwork mostly in-house.
DO you release albums as well as EPs?
We release all formats from singles to albums.
What’s been the most successful release to date and your personal favourite?
Take Me To My Love (GOGO 053) was our biggest seller to date, as well reaching an official chart #1 in South Africa.
What do you do around a release - promotion etc?
To date we mainly focus on social media promotion. Of course we send to press, radio and top DJs through our promotional pool, too.
Do you have merchandise?
Yes, we do. T-shirts are available all the time. Other special items are in stock from time to time.
What’s the better revenue source for the label retail sales or streaming?
It can’t be answered in general and depends on the release. Of course, and we seemingly can not avoid it, streaming will be the one in most cases in near future.
What’s the hardest thing you find with releases?
To be 100% satisfied with them.
How often do you have a release?
We usually do not have a set release schedule. It depends on when a strong release is ready.
Do you use a promo list and what do you get out of it?
We reduced our DJ promo-list steadily as the results usually don’t justify giving away the music for free.
Can people apply to get on the list?
They can try, but must be prepared for a “no”, in case they don’t have a big radioshow, write reviews for a magazine or have another good reason.
Do you use a PR company or the services for that a distributor sometimes offers?
Yes, we do on special occasions such as album releases.
How much work do you put into social media promotion or paid advertising on social media?
We put quite a bit of work into it, not so much money.
Do you do any events or club nights?
We used to run various nights and residencies throughout the almost 20 years of label history. The latest one has been at Kitcheners in Johannesburg where we did for 4 years a monthly Thursday night for the real heads. We stopped it in December 2019 and will come up with a new concept once it is safe again to party.
What releases have you got lined up for near future?
We have a few singles lined up. Stay tuned…
What do you think the big issues ahead are?
We believe in quality music and think that there’s always a need for it.
Where would you most want people to buy the music?
We usually release upfront on Traxsource, which we joined as one of the first labels, when they started out. Their price policy allows us to make decent cut and cover some of the costs of a release. Other than that it is great if people buy from Bandcamp, where the artists and labels get the biggest share. But honestly, it is great if people buy the music, no matter on which platform.
Where can people follow the label?
Website
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