by Sheldon Rocha Leal, PhD, read the original post on Medium
Almost from the beginning of my Medium writing journey, I started a series of articles highlighting some of the “Unsung Heroes” of the South African Music business. People whose contributions have been integral to the overall functioning of the industry, but about whom not much is written. The motivation behind these articles is to highlight these phenomenal individuals, but at the same time shed light on the plethora of employment opportunities available in the sector. One often thinks that the only path to a successful Music career is on a stage or in recording studio, but most of the people I’ve selected in this series are neither superstars nor live performers.
In the six articles I’ve written, I have profiled a Music publisher, vocal coach, Music educationalist, Music Advocate/Activist, backing vocalist, and recording artist/Music director. These are all people who I’ve met, interviewed, and from whom I’ve have taken much wisdom. Going through the process of learning more about these individuals has enriched my own experience and helped me hone my craft. Hopefully, in the process, it has helped others on their Music journeys. At the end of the day, it’s about education, enlightening, and giving credit where it’s due because all too often these people are overlooked for their amazing contributions to Music.
For this article, I will highlight an individual who has not only functioned as a record executive but has taken his knowledge and experience and invested it in Music development and activism. Academics speak about musicians needing to lead Portfolio careers, in which they function in different spaces, to generate a sustainable income. Martin Myers is the personification of this Music hustle and another example of someone who has been integral to the success of the Music business without being a musician. The truth is that the Music business requires input from many role players to make it function and Martin is one of these.
Although not a musician he deeply connects with creation, creativity, and the creative process, which is one of the traits that has made him a success. If we can feed a greater number of managers and administrators into the business, who have an understanding of the creative psyche and how to nurture it, then we, as a sector, will emerge all the stronger for it. Music managers and administrators must know how to engage with the goose that lays the golden egg in order stimulate the creation of greater and more substantial content, the engine that drives the sector. But enough about that, let’s find out more about the man known as Martin Myers.
Myers was brought up in the Western Cape and schooled at South Africa’s (RSA) oldest continuously running school, and one of the country’s greatest public schools, the South African College Schools. Better known as SACS, it was originally conceptualised in 1791, founded in 1829 and is one of four schools expressly endowed by Cecil John Rhodes to offer an annual Rhodes Scholarship. Some of the country’s greatest leaders have been schooled at SACS including William Van Wyk Louw (poet), Percy Montgomery (rugby player), Sebastien Rousseau (Olympic swimmer) and Albie Sachs (constitutional court judge). Martin matriculated in 1981 and went to the University of Cape Town in 1982.
At university he obtained a Bachelor of Social Sciences in Public Administration and Industrial Sociology. His parents were both doctors and were heavily involved in labour relations and activism. Myers was inspired to take their baton in an attempt to make things better in RSA, hence his study path. Martin’s father was involved in the team that conducted the first heart transplant in the world with Dr Chris Barnard. Whilst at UCT he got involved with the campus radio station, heading up the marketing and promotions portfolio. As part of his responsibilities, he booked artists for various shows and as a result interacted with their management teams. This part of the story is reminiscent of the story of another previously highlighted “Unsung Hero”, David Alexander, who also started his Music career working at UCT in the 1980s.
His passion for Music and the business of Music grew from his exposure to the sector at the station. One of his longest lasting professional relationships was formed at this time, when Sipho “Hotstix” Mabuse was invited to increase the visibility of the broadcaster. Sipho was experiencing major career success, after the release of his biggest single “Burn Out” (1984) which shipped over 500,000 units in RSA alone. Sipho is considered one of the country’s greatest musicians/songwriters and after he visited UCT the two formed a long-lasting bond. This resulted in Martin managing the icon. In 1989 he was “Hotstix’s” tour manager in Germany, at the time the youngest manager to leave the country and in 2009 he managed his appearance at the “46664” concert in New York City.
After completing his studies Martin secured a job at Woolworths working in the Human Resources department. This was a position he held for two weeks at which point he decided it was something he did not want to do and rather focused his energy on developing his own business. Whilst at university he had started a company called Triple M Entertainment, performing as a DJ at various functions, parties, and beauty pageants. He subsequently decided to invest in and develop this business further after departing from the corporate. As part of the business, he offered services to the Miss Namibia beauty pageant and Sol Kerzner’s New Year’s Eve parties, meeting many influential and key stakeholders along the way.
Through a friend, Martin was connected to one of South Africa’s greatest Music composers and businessman, Attie Van Wyk. Van Wyk owned a company called Big Concerts, which at the time was bringing some of the world’s greatest international recording act to the country. With all these artists coming to the RSA Attie needed people who would take care of them. This was a responsibility Big Concerts outsourced to Martin, who by this stage owned a company with a business partner, Stephen Olivier, called “Crew You”. It was established to provide crew and driver services for various shows and events. The business was a success and resulted in the establishment of a third company called SMD, a lighting company, started with business partners Stephen Olivier, Martin, and David Shout (hence SMD).
One of the first acts brought to the RSA by Big Concerts after the fall of Apartheid was Chris De Burgh. Big Concerts was eventually sold by Attie to Live Nation in 2016. Live Nation is the world’s biggest live entertainment company. At this time Martin was approached by an up-and-coming band, who had opened for Duran Duran and Indecent Obsession in the RSA, called The Usual. They wanted to secure a recording deal and approached Martin to manage them. Martin happened to know the head of marketing and PR at BMG, Marcus Brewster, who studied at UCT at the same time he did. After facilitating a meeting with the company, the band was signed to the label. Marcus eventually left BMG to start a personal venture, leaving a vacancy in the PR and Marketing department.
Martin was offered Marcus’ job and occupied the position for 17 years, whilst still operating his own company Triple M Entertainment. Marcus started his an artist management and PR agency, Marcus Brewster, and was a judge on the first season of South African Idols in 2002. Today he lives in Malta, where he started Marcus Brewster International. Whilst at Sony Martin worked under one of RSA’s most iconic record executives, Dave Thompson, who would also land up occupying the role of South African Idols judge for 5 seasons. In 2009 he left RSA and moved to Australia with his family.
In 2009 BMG hosted the Worldwide Conference of Music in Australia. The conference was an opportunity to gather Music Industry thought leaders in one room and that year included appearances by Lisa Stansfield, La Bousch, and *Nsync. At the conference Martin spoke to Stuart Rubin, the international head of marketing for BMG, about bringing a similar talk shop to RSA. Stewart recommended Martin start his own conference in RSA, geared towards the upliftment of talent in the country and designed to further the domestic narrative. In 2010 Martin finally left Sony and embarked on a new journey, birthing one of his greatest projects, Music Exchange.
The first conference was hosted at the Protea Hotel at Victoria Junction in Cape Town. It was attended by 90 people and various global Music leaders. One of the first speakers was the well-known RSA journalist, ICT specialist, and media analyst, Arthur Goldstuck. Goldstuck just so happens to be the twin brother of Charles Goldstuck, who at the time was President and COO of BMG International, one of the most powerful people in Music. Arthur facilitated a meeting between Martin and his brother, to talk about Music Exchange. Charles was very impressed with what had been assembled in RSA and gave Martin his blessing, co-opting the South African head of Sony to support the venture, even though Myers was no longer an employee of the company.
Today Arthur is the owner and founder of World Wide Worx, RSA’s leading independent technology market research organisation. His brother, Charles, is the founder and managing partner of GoldState Music, a private investment firm, focused primarily on investing in Music Rights as well as enterprises that require growth and expansion capital. At the 2013 conference, Music Exchange got an additional boost when the CEO of SAMRO (South African Music Rights Organsiation), Nicholas Motsatsi, pledged his support through the organisation he ran. Nicholas was the CEO of the most powerful South African Music rights collection society for seven years.
A fortuitous encounter in 2013 resulted in another of Martin’s greatest relationships. Myers had identified Trevor Rabin as a speaker for the 3rd edition of Music Exchange. Trevor is one of the most iconic musicians to have been exported from RSA. The Grammy winner has recorded with Yes, Michael Jackson, Manfred Mann, Seal, Tina Turner, and Bob Dylan. He has written score Music for various motion pictures, including 10 movies for director Jerry Bruckheimer, and worked on movies featuring Will Smith, Nicholas Cage, Denzel Washington, and Samuel L Jackson. Unfortunately, Rabin wasn’t able to speak at that conference, leaving Martin in a quandary.
At that stage Martin was doing some work for an online radio station, Taxi Radio, owned by Soli Philander. One day whilst talking about his Music Exchange predicament to Philander, the station owner suggested Myers speak to Colin Jones. Martin was perplexed, Colin had been doing some work at the station and Martin knew him as a top-ranking cleric in Cape Town as the Dean of St George’s Cathedral. How was a priest going to help? Philander articulated that Colin was the brother of one of the world’s greatest score Music composers and maybe he could convince his brother, Trevor Jones, to speak at Music Exchange. Martin was gobsmacked and thought that this was the perfect solution to his problem. He reached out to Colin, who said he would speak to his brother.
Martin didn’t think much about his request until he got a personal phone call from Trevor who agreed to speak at the conference. He essentially traded one Trevor for another. This was a major coup and the two men formed a strong bond, eventually resulting in Martin becoming the motion picture legend’s representative in South Africa. Music Exchange will enter its 14th year in 2024 and in that time it has hosted some of the greatest thought leaders in the Music Industry, both from South Africa and abroad. Some of these people include Marc Marot (of Island Records), Meng Ru Kuok (music venture capitalist), Mos Def (rapper), Nick Matzukis (music advocate), Bryan-Michael Cox (songwriter), and Candice Pillay (songwriter). Through Music Exchange, Martin met yet another artist he manages today, Siphokazi Jonas. Jonas attended one of the conferences to try and gain a better understanding of the entertainment industry.
As a poet, she felt that gaining a more profound knowledge of the Music business would enrich her personal experience. After the conference, she approached Martin and asked if he would represent her as a manager. Today she is a critically acclaimed, award-winning, and highly respected South African poet. Martin is a born hustler and over the years he has been involved in a plethora of projects. In 2017 he started writing for Bizcommunity, becoming their top contributor for three consecutive years. He was also integrally involved in promoting and marketing one of Cape Town’s biggest concert series, “Concerts In The Park”. The concerts were accommodated at Victorian De Waal Park and brought together some of the country’s greatest established and up-and-coming music talent.
In 2023 Martin entered another era in his career, this time as a radio journalist. This was after an interview organised by the talent manager on CapeTalk with a Music Exchange guest, Marc Marot. The interview resulted in an encounter with the station manager, which motivated Martin to pitch a show to the station. In his pitch he articulated that he would tap into his extensive network of industry leaders to educate listeners about the nuance of the Music and entertainment sectors. The idea was approved and Martin got Trevor Jones to write the jingle music. Since the launch of the “Business of Entertainment” on CapeTalk in May 2023 Martin has experienced growing audience numbers and has interviewed some of the top Music and entertainment leaders. Some of these guests include Wouter Kellerman (Grammy winner), Lesley Wells (music manager), Dr Rachel Adams (AI specialist), Billy Monama (musician), and Michael Yormark (Roc Nation Sports).
To excel in this business, it’s crucial to actively pursue opportunities, remain vigilant for new prospects, and commit to the persistent effort that may blossom into success. Often the work one puts into one’s career today will only bear fruit somewhere down the line. It can, therefore, be disheartening when one invests a lot of time and energy into a project and does not experience instant results. Martin is the personification of a Music Business hustler and someone who embodies all the traits that I have mentioned above. Furthermore, he proves that nothing can be achieved on one’s own, the Music industry is built on networks.
Music networks and how one nurtures and harnesses these connections are what will ultimately result in career longevity and success. Ultimately, Martin proves that a career in Music is a journey, with no particular destination, which is part of the fun. One never knows to where one is going, but that is part of the fun and adventure of a career in Music. It is about pivoting and identifying the opportunities that will articulate into success and cut one’s losses when it’s clear that the opportunity is going to result in a dead end. There are many lessons to be learnt from Martin Myer’s career and how he has approached what he has done, and I am grateful that I can present him as my seventh “Unsung Hero”.
Martin Myers 
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