Stu Shulman Interview

INTERVIEW WITH STU SHULMAN FROM TheCelebrityCafe.com ARCHIVES

DM) What's the story of the foundation of Seedless Records?

SS) Our record company motto is, When you hear Seedless...you think quality. The foundation of Seedless Records can be traced back to a simpler time when I just had a bunch of songs and needed a place to put them. So after many years of extensive research in the music business & other related areas, I decided that my best chance for recording, releasing, & promoting this material was to take on the challenge myself & utilize the vast amount of knowledge I had accumulated over the years. Hence, the label Seedless Records was initially started for the sole reason to release Cowboy Surfer "Surf Saloon". I used Indie Guru Tim Sweeney's "Guide To Releasing Independent Records" as a blueprint for forming the necessary framework to accomplish my goal and was willing to do the work to bring it to completion. And it's a lot of work. It was kind of like 18 months of boot camp in the music business. You either made it or you quit! I made it in that respect and the self-confidence it has built in me will last forever.

DM) You based a lot of the company on the book?

SS) Yes...A lot of the mechanics of starting a record company successfully were gleaned from the pages of Tim's Book. It gives you the framework from with which to build upon. A blueprint so to speak, but the work must be done by you. The book will not tell you everything you need to know. You must have a strong will and be prepared to sacrifice greatly unless you are independently wealthy and can afford to have people do the tremendous amount of work necessary to achieve operational status.

DM) What kind of sacrifices have you had to make?

SS) I have had to sacrifice a lot for my dreams. Basic necessities like money, food, medical insurance, going to movies, vacations have been put on hold. I have had to sink into the depths of poverty. But everyone seems to think I'm independently wealthy because of the way I carry myself and the things I have accomplished without money. People just assume you have it when you have your dignity. We live in such an appearance based, judgmental society. But it has already paid off for me in many ways other than money. I have literally hundreds of letters from people who say I have inspired them in a positive way & inspire me to continue on with my vision & artistry.

DM) How did you get involved with the "Save the Bluffs" project in Carpinteria?
SS) Living in Carpinteria, I have a special feeling towards our natural treasure, the Bluffs of Carpinteria. It is a special place where the Chumash Indians once called home and is a sacred grounds to their culture. The first surfers were Indians surfing the Rincon Point on long boards fashioned out of local wood. The missionaries who first came here noticed that the Chumash were excellent wood workers, canoe builders, hence the name was changed to La Carpinteria. Knowing the importance & heritage of the area and with developers breathing down the neck of the city, I heard about the opportunity that had presented itself to the Citizens for the Carpinteria Bluffs, a non-profit citizens group. If they could raise a hefty $4mil in 4 mos., a small window of opportunity would exist to purchase the property from developers, Shea/Vickers & thus Save the Bluffs in perpetuity. So I took it upon myself to take charge of the media campaign as no one else had the savvy to do it. I started my media onslaught by building the famous Bluffs website overnight with my friend Steve Powell of SevenSouth Record Shop (it's linked to my site) which was responsible for bringing in tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations. I then planned the Bluffs Benefit Concert at the Plaza Theatre in Carpinteria and got my friends, Brad & DM, morning DJ's on 92.9 KJEE to publicize the cause. This led to me being invited down to be live on the air, which led to me convincing them to let me record a 30sec P.S.A. which ran constantly and led to a 30 minute talk show appearance.

I then took the radio spot to all the other stations & was interviewed about the Bluffs. I also was responsible for finding funding at the last minute for a boat ride that we were taking the California Coastal Conservancy on. A newspaper article was written about this in the Coastal View & it led to us receiving a $1 million dollar bridge loan and a $500,000 grant from the conservancy. I got to go on the boat ride and some of them were surfers! I also organized community service for the local high school to clean the litter on the bluffs before the conservancy tour. But I think the most impact I had on the campaign was the television commercial I produced with Larry Nimmer. I came up with the idea of a TV spot utilizing an edited version of the radio copy mixed with stock footage of the bluffs that Larry had. I then narrated the spot at Larry's studio and arranged with David Edelman of Cox Communications to run the ad & it aired over 500 times in the last, most critical month of the campaign when over $2 million dollars came in. We made the deadline & celebrated by toasting champagne under a full moon on the bluffs at midnight on New Years Eve. It has raised the level of media awareness about me & Cowboy Surfer to astronomical heights.

DM) Now a non-profit group owns the bluffs?

SS) Right now, the Bluffs are in the capable hands of The Land Trust of Santa Barbara, the same people who orchestrated the famous Wilcox Property purchase in Santa Barbara. For those who aren't familiar with that, the Wilcox property is a beloved section of land overlooking the beach in Santa Barbara & facing similar development was purchased by the city with the help of the Land Trust & a last minute hefty donation by Actor Michael Douglas, hence the renaming of the property as The Douglas Reserve. The Citizens for the Carpinteria Bluffs, the non-profit organization to which I belong, raised the $4million by the deadline through private donations and grants from several environmentally related agencies. In order to complete the transaction by the appointed deadline of December 31 1998 & avoid the eventual destruction of the natural habitat, the Citizens Group invoked a $1million bridge loan which we received after the boat ride I mentioned earlier. To date we are still a quarter million or so short of paying off that loan in its entirety. Our goal is to raise the additional monies by the cities birthday in September and have the Land Trust present the deed to the bluffs to the City as a birthday present at that time to preserve it for perpetuity. In addition, we are in the process of trying to raise an additional $500,000 to set up an endowment fund for the upkeep & expense of maintaining the 52 acre coastal bluff parcel. The bluffs are the gateway to one of the only remaining California Harbor Seal Rookeries in Southern California.

DM) Did you grow up in this area?

SS) I was born and raised in Southern California, did a 5 year stint in Michigan, then migrated back to SoCal for college & eventually settled in Carpinteria about 6 years ago. I fell in love with the area and decided to get involved in the fight to preserve some of its natural beauty, so that my children will be able to enjoy it as much as I have.

DM) Are the Cowboy Surfer actually Cowboy's who surf?

SS) Yes, Pete is the best surfer in the group, but we all have a love and respect for the ocean. The name Cowboy Surfer actually refers to a state of mind where you are free to live your life in the manner that you see fit, hence the line, "Allow yourself to be Cowboy Wild...and Surfer Free!" It goes deeper than just being a Cowboy or being a Surfer, but rather the similar motivations & meditative mindset that must be achieved to pursue ones dreams, whatever they may be.

DM) Have you ever gone horse back riding too?

SS) I love horses, but unfortunately cannot afford to have one at this time. But I would love to be able to someday. I rode as child and can remember my folks taking me to the now closed Beverly Park in Los Angeles to ride the ponies. I once rode through the mountains of Jamaica and met a wise old Rastafarian man named Clarence who paused to have a Red Stripe with me and told me to follow my dreams...or visions as he called them. Well, Clarence, wherever you are...thank you!