Coffee Break with Point In Time founders: Collé & Marwan
Creating your own label: challenges & advice from founders of Point In Time
Today we welcome Marwan and Randy, who joint-run Point In Time. Although still in its starting stages, the label has already been the home ground for Collé’s ‘Losing Time’ - a track which made itself known during the past year thanks to its play time from the likes of Dixon, Ame and Trikk. Paired with the current pandemic we found ourselves living through, we thought it would be even more interesting to spend some time chatting with Marwan and Randy to discover how such circumstances have affected and helped them start up the label.
Hi Marwan, hi Randy. Can you tell us a bit about yourself, how did you two meet and when did you decide to work together?
Randy: I’ve been DJing and producing for quite some time now. I was always looking for a sound that suits me, and around two years ago I was really comfortable with the music I was making and started to release under the Collé alias, which is also my last name, so it all made sense to me.
Tamer from Bedouin introduced me to Marwan. Back then Marwan was doing the booking and music management for Uberhaus & The Garten in Beirut, and he had worked with Bedouin for quite some time. One afternoon Marwan and Tamer were in a studio in Beirut and Tamer showed Marwan my music which I had sent him a week or two before. I guess Marwan liked it and contacted me. A few weeks later we met during ADE in Amsterdam and a true friendship was born!
Marwan: I had mostly been involved in bookings involved in Beirut and with the platforms we had mentioned. There was no plan on building a regional or even a worldwide agency, but I guess the stars aligned and I signed Nu as my first artist. That was also friendship-based, which was the case with almost all the artists I worked with. I believe Randy and I have achieved so much since day one, we balance each other on so many levels, which I think is a very important element with anything we have done together.
Randy, how long have you been producing music under the project 'Collé'? What are your main sources for inspiration? Also how did you come up with your artist name?
As just mentioned, around two years ago I was really feeling the music I was making and started to release this under ‘Collé’ which is also my last name so it makes sense as it’s more of an intimate and person project. My main source for inspiration is to just play around in the studio and make whatever I want. I also like to produce many different styles, as I think you can learn from everything. Sometimes I produce a hiphop track just for fun and I discover a trick they often do in hiphop which could work in my Collé tracks. It’s very important for a producer to look further than your own thing because it’s easy to get stuck and you’ll no longer be able to innovate.
Having experience as a music producer and DJ from your side Randy, and experience as a talent agency from yours Marwan (from which Collé is part of: Cottonmouth Music), what essential qualities would you say each of you can bring to a label? How did you visualise this collaboration, and how did you end up working together on the project?
Randy: The idea of creating our own label was always on the table, it was only a matter of time. We were so convinced of ‘Losing Time’, we knew that this could be the most ideal start for this imprint of ours.
Marwan: As Randy mentioned, the label had always been a location we had wanted to land on at some point. The current situation around the world gave us the time, but also made us more patient when making random decisions. As our moto says – ‘everything happens at a particular time’, and I think at this Point in Time it felt like the label launch should happen. The launch was supposed to happen way earlier and we are confident that the decision of postponing was nothing but good karma.
In an industry that is already saturated, with more and more labels created everyday, what motivated you to still create Point in Time? What challenges did you have to face, but also which positive aspects did you encounter? What would you like to bring to the music scene? How would you like to see this scene evolve?
Randy: For me I would like to see more music that stays longer than just a few weeks. Nowadays I see a lot of tracks that get some plays by big DJs and the tracks work really well in their sets but when you listen to them separately it’s not really interesting. In my opinion these tracks are more DJ tools or something. I would want music that is more than just a house or techno record, something that can be played on the dance floor but is also very suitable for listening at home or whenever you feel like. I always find it very beautiful when a track can recall a special memory or moment. It would be the ultimate goal if people would have this with my music.
Marwan: We both believe in this project and in the sound direction it follows. We cater to a crowd that is beyond the dance-floors, DJ booths and guest lounges. This imprint focuses on a vocal electronic music direction, being mindful to steer clear of clichés, all the while reaching a wider audience with its unique releases.
Point in Time happened in spite of the saturation of the music industry. There are so many labels that don’t make sense to us, but it could make sense to other people. The maturity of anything that has to do with music requires a lot of time. It is extremely easy to have a high music reach in our modern times, but so little remains timeless. In my opinion, this is the ultimate goal of any label or producer, but to each his vibe and style in implementing.
To be honest we expected to have different challenges when we started putting down ideas for Point in Time. We were faced with the mother of all challenges instead, Covid19. Nothing made sense at some point, so we decided to focus on nothing but the advantages we can export out of these strange times. But I personally feel that the upcoming challenges are going to be massive compared to the ones that have already passed.I realised the scene was reaching its maturity period prior to Covid19 - more political but mature for sure. I hope our industry stays fun, authentic and most importantly, politics-free with a loyalty twist.
About the label creation process: would you say it was an easy step? How long did it take you to create your company, set up everything and arrange all the details? Is there advice you would like to give from your experience doing this? Are there things you wish you knew earlier?
Your first EP has already been supported by some of the biggest names of the scene: Dixon (at Rakastella), Bedouin, Ame, Trikk… and yet no ID has leaked! First we were wondering how you managed to get in contact with those artists & how you felt when you heard they played your track… Then we also wonder how you managed to keep the track ID a secret (which is hard these days!), and, lastly, what are your thoughts about this whole track ID obsession and its impact on releases in general.
Marwan & Randy: Creating a label can be a bit complicated, depending on your prior experience and most importantly the idea. We work with Proton as our exclusive distributors, which makes our lives much easier, everything is automated and on point. They have the expertise in this field so this gives us more time and energy to focus on the development of the label. I certainly believe that there are many challenges along the way and that there are many things we wish we had done differently, but that is only to be discovered. So far the stars seem to be aligned.
We always send out our promos manually and to a select few. Sending out promos can be very easy when most contacts are available online. It’s more about the whens and hows of it. The artist receiving this promo needs to comprehend why you are sending him such a promo and that it would be an added value to his set. Support is not the main aim behind promos, its collateral.
Dixon supported ‘Losing Time’ because he liked it, and that’s what matters, it was an added value to his set obviously. We were very lucky that this record didn’t not leak beyond the artists you have mentioned, this could’ve easily happened. Videos went viral and many guessed it right, although there was no official confirmation from our side. It was funny seeing all of this and staying silent, but most importantly a very rewarding moment.