Ron Burman is an American music executive.

Early life

Burman was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

in 1965 and moved to

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

when he was 12. Between 1986 and 1988, while pursuing Communication Studies at

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

(FSU) in Tallahassee, Burman served as the Concert Director for Student Campus Entertainment (SCE) where he booked bands for the campus nightclub, The Club Down Under, The Metro Night Club, as well as working at FSU's college radio station

WVFS WVFS, launched in 1987, is one of four radio stations that broadcast from Florida State University in the Tallahassee area. (WFSU-FM, WFSQ, WFSU-FM, and WFSW are the others.) WVFS is referred to as "V89", "The Voice", or "The Voice of Florida St ...

in Tallahassee. While head of SCE, Burman booked hundreds of bands, including the

Red Hot Chili Peppers The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...

The Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of t ...

Jello Biafra Eric Reed Boucher (born June 17, 1958), known professionally as Jello Biafra, is an American singer, spoken word artist and political activist. He is the former lead singer and songwriter for the San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys. Init ...

Alpha Blondy Seydou Koné (; born January 1, 1953, in Dimbokro), better known by his stage name Alpha Blondy, is an Ivorian reggae singer and international recording artist. Many of his songs are politically and socially motivated, and are mainly sung i ...

The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, vocals), Derek Brown ...

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

, Dinosaur Jr.,

Love Tractor Love Tractor is a band from Athens, Georgia, founded in spring 1980 by guitarists Mark Cline and Mike Richmond, and bassist Armistead Wellford, students at the University of Georgia. Like The B-52's, Pylon and R.E.M., Love Tractor has been laud ...

, and many others. While still a student, he also completed a summer internship at Bulging Eye Booking & Management in Norman, Oklahoma, who managed and booked bands including The Flaming Lips,

Mudhoney Mudhoney is an American rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, on January 1, 1988, following the demise of Green River (band), Green River. Its members are singer and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner (guitari ...

the Afghan Whigs The Afghan Whigs are an American rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio. They were active from 1986 to 2001 and have since reformed as a band. The group – with core members Greg Dulli (vocals, rhythm guitar), Rick McCollum (lead guitar), and John ...

and

Alice Donut Alice Donut is a punk rock band from New York City formed in 1986. The band released six albums before splitting up in 1996. They reformed in 2001. History 1986–1996: Formation to split Alice Donut formed in 1986 after the demise of the Sea B ...

, whom Burman would go on to manage for several years. Burman graduated from FSU in 1988 with a B.A. in communications.

Career Beginnings

Burman moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in 1988 to work for Associated Booking Corporation (ABC Booking), where he booked

Anita Baker Anita Denise Baker (born January 26, 1958) is an American jazz and soul singer. She is known for her soulful ballads, particularly from the height of the quiet storm period in the 1980s. Starting her career in the late 1970s with the funk ban ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...

Black Uhuru Black Uhuru is a Jamaican reggae group formed in 1972, initially as Uhuru ( Swahili for 'freedom'). The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years, with Derrick "Duckie" Simpson as the mainstay. They had their most successful pe ...

Dr. John Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. His music combined New Orleans blues, jazz, R&B, soul and funk. Active as a session mus ...

The Wailers Band The Wailers Band is a Jamaican reggae band formed by former members of Bob Marley and the Wailers after Marley's death in 1981. It was led by bassist Aston "Familyman" Barrett until 2016, when he passed the role onto his son, Aston Barrett J ...

Third World The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, the Southern Cone, NATO, Western European countries and oth ...

, and

Yellowman Winston Foster , (1956 or 15 January 1959) better known by the stage name Yellowman and also known as King Yellowman, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay. He first became popular in Jamaica in the 1980s, rising to prominence with a serie ...

, among others. among others. In 1991, he founded Stretch Management, which lasted until 1996. During this time he became the personal manager and tour manager for punk rock and alternative bands, including his old clients Alice Donut, Drunken Boat and Japanese noise-punks Ultra Bidé. His bands toured several times across America, Canada, Japan, and Europe. Burman signed both Alice Donut and Ultra Bidé to Jello Biafra's independent label,

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 by Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra and guitarist East Bay Ray in San Francisco, California, with the intention to release the Dead Kennedys' self-produced single " C ...

. Following Stretch Management's closure, Burman became the showcase manager/festival booker for the

CMJ Music Marathon CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events, online media company and a distributor of up and coming music CDs, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music ...

in 1996 and 1997, booking over 1,000 bands into 60 New York venues, including giving

Limp Bizkit Limp Bizkit is an American nu metal band from Jacksonville, Florida. Its lineup consists of lead vocalist Fred Durst, drummer John Otto (drummer), John Otto, guitarist Wes Borland, turntablist DJ Lethal and bassist Sam Rivers (bassist), Sam ...

and

Rammstein Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, drummer Christoph ...

their first shows in New York City.

Roadrunner A&R

In 1997, Burman was hired by independent metal label

Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is a Dutch–American record label focused on Heavy metal music, heavy metal and hard rock music. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City. Formerly seen as ...

which was beginning to expand from metal to more commercial mainstream and alternative rock. Less than two years into his career at Roadrunner, as a junior A&R executive, Burman was tipped off to two self-released albums by

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

band

Nickelback Nickelback is a Canadian Rock music, rock band formed in 1995 in Hanna, Alberta, Hanna, Alberta. Throughout its history, it has consisted of lead guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, rhythm guitarist, keyboardist and backing vocalist Ryan ...

: ''

Curb A curb (American English) or kerb (British English) is the edge where a raised sidewalk/pavement or road median/central reservation meets a street/other roadway. History Although curbs have been used throughout modern history, and indeed ...

'' and ''

The State A state is a political entity that regulates society and the population within a definite territory. Government is considered to form the fundamental apparatus of contemporary states. A country often has a single state, with various administrat ...

''. Persuading the label to let him fly to Vancouver, Burman was impressed by the fans waiting outside the club in the rain, and the band's performance of “

Leader of Men "Leader of Men" is a song by Canadian rock band Nickelback. Written by band members Chad Kroeger and Ryan Peake, it was featured on the band's second studio album ''The State'' in 1998. Upon the album's reissue after the band signed with Roadrunner ...

” from ''The State''. After three months of back and forth within the label, Roadrunner signed the group and re-issued the album, followed by ''

Silver Side Up ''Silver Side Up'' is the third studio album by Canadian rock band Nickelback, released on September 11, 2001. According to AllMusic, ''Silver Side Up'' continued Nickelback's tradition of "dark high-octane rock" from the band's first two albu ...

'' (2001) with its international hit, “

How You Remind Me "How You Remind Me" is a song by Canadian rock band Nickelback. With lyrics written by lead singer Chad Kroeger and music composed by the band, the power ballad was released on July 17, 2001, as the lead single from their third studio album, ' ...

.” Burman went on to A&R a further five records for the band that would go on to sell over 50 million albums internationally. After the success of Nickelback, Burman was promoted to Senior Vice-president of A&R. Burman also signed the Vancouver quartet Theory of a Deadman, protégés of Nickelback singer

Chad Kroeger Chad Robert Kroeger (, Turton; born November 15, 1974) is a Canadian musician who is best known for being the lead singer, lead guitarist, primary songwriter, and founding member of the rock band Nickelback. In addition to his work with Nic ...

, who co-produced them through his own production company,

604 Records 604 Records (stylized as VIOIV Records) is a music production company. It is named after area code 604 of the Lower Mainland, where the company's offices are located. History The company was co-founded by Nickelback lead singer Chad Kroeger and ...

, together with

Joey Moi Joey Moi (born August 9, 1975) is a Canadian record producer, audio engineer, mixer, songwriter, and musician. He is known for his work with the rock groups Nickelback and My Darkest Days, and country music acts Chris Lane, Dallas Smith, Florida G ...

. Impressed by singer Bryan Crouch, Burman signed another Canadian band:

Hail the Villain Hail the Villain was a Canadian hard rock band from Oshawa, Ontario, who released one studio album in 2010, before going on indefinite hiatus. The record, titled ''Population: Declining'', was nominated for Rock Album of the Year at the 2011 Ju ...

, a melodic hard rock quartet from Ontario. Roadrunner re-released their first album, ''Population: Declining'' in 2010. Other Burman Roadrunner signings include the Australian hard rock band Airbourne, whose albums ''Runnin’ Wild'' and ''

No Guts. No Glory. ''No Guts. No Glory.'' is the second studio album by Australian hard rock band Airbourne (band), Airbourne and the follow-up to their 2007 debut ''Runnin' Wild (Airbourne album), Runnin' Wild''. The album was released on 8 March 2010, in Europe, ...

'' both entered the American, Canadian, and British charts, as well as

Black Stone Cherry Black Stone Cherry is an American hard rock band formed in Edmonton, Kentucky in 2001. They were signed to Roadrunner Records until 2015; the band is now signed to Mascot Label Group. The band consists of Chris Robertson (vocals, guitar), Ben W ...

The Wombats The Wombats are an English indie rock band formed in Liverpool in 2003, consisting of Matthew Murphy (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Tord Øverland Knudsen (bass, backing vocals, keyboards), and Dan Haggis (drums, backing vocals, keyboards). ...

Madina Lake Madina Lake is an American rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois, United States, in 2005. The band released their debut album, '' From Them, Through Us, to You'', through Roadrunner Records on March 27, 2007. Madina Lake won Best International Ne ...

DoubleDrive doubleDrive (abbreviated dD) was an American post-grunge band from Atlanta, Georgia. Biography Originally called MK Ultra, doubleDrive arrived on the music scene in their hometown of Atlanta in late 1996. After winning the award for Atlanta' ...

and

Biffy Clyro Biffy Clyro are a Scottish Rock music, rock band that formed in Kilmarnock, composed of Simon Neil (lead vocals, guitar) and twin brothers James Johnston (Scottish musician), James (bass, backing vocals) and Ben Johnston (Scottish musician), Be ...

Mascot Label Group

In 2013, Burman became President of

Mascot Label Group Mascot Label Group is an independently owned record label founded in 1989 in The Netherlands under the name Mascot Records. The company was renamed Mascot-Provogue in 1999 and since 2010 has been known as the Mascot Label Group. The company is bas ...

North America. The Dutch label has a rock, metal, blues and blues-rock roster that has enjoyed success on European charts, with artists such as

Joe Bonamassa Joseph Leonard Bonamassa ( ; born May 8, 1977) is an American blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. He started his career at age twelve, when he opened for B.B. King. Since 2000, Bonamassa has released fifteen solo albums through his inde ...

Gov't Mule Gov't Mule (pronounced "Government Mule") is an American Southern rock jam band, formed in 1994 by guitarist Warren Haynes, bassist Allen Woody (both of The Allman Brothers Band at the time) and drummer Matt Abts (whom Haynes had worked with in ...

Volbeat Volbeat are a Danish Rock music, rock band formed in Copenhagen in 2001. They play a fusion of rock and roll and Heavy metal music, heavy metal. Their current line-up consists of vocalist and rhythm guitarist Michael Poulsen, drummer Jon Lars ...

Kenny Wayne Shepherd Kenny Wayne Shepherd (born Kenneth Wayne Brobst; June 12, 1977) is an American guitarist. He has released several studio albums and experienced significant commercial success as a blues rock artist. Early life Shepherd was born in Shrevepo ...

Jonny Lang Jon Gordon Langseth Jr. (born January 29, 1981), known as Jonny Lang, is an American blues, gospel, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has recorded five albums that have charted on the top 50 of the ''Billboard'' 200 chart and won a ...

, and

Black Label Society Black Label Society is an American heavy metal/southern metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1998 by guitarist/singer Zakk Wylde. To date, the band has released eleven studio albums, two live albums, two compilation albums, one EP, and three ...

. After joining Mascot, Burman helped in signing

to the label, whom he had previously signed to Roadrunner. Burman has developed an international roster with artists from North America including:

10 Years 10 Years or Ten Years may refer to: *Decade, a period of ten years Film *10 Years (2011 film), ''10 Years'' (2011 film), a film starring Channing Tatum *Ten Years (2015 film), ''Ten Years'' (2015 film), a Hong Kong film Music *10 Years (band), a ...

Any Given Sin Any Given Sin is an American rock band formed in Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia t ...

Calva Louise Calva Louise is a rock band formed in London, England in 2016. They compromise lead singer Jess Allanic, drummer Ben Parker, and bassist Alizon Taho. The band has released three full-length albums, ''Rhinoceros'' (2019), ''Euphoric'' (2021), an ...

Conquer Divide Conquer Divide is an American rock band whose members are from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada, with one former member coming from Serbia. History The band was formed in Michigan by guitarist and songwriter Kristen Sturgis al ...

Crobot Crobot is an American hard rock band from Pottsville, Pennsylvania, composed of Brandon Yeagley, Chris Bishop, Dan Ryan and Pat Seals. Formed in 2011, the band has released five studio albums. History Beginnings In mid-2011, Brandon Yeagle ...

Dinosaur Pile-Up Dinosaur Pile-Up is an English alternative rock band formed in late 2007. Hailing from Leeds, West Yorkshire. Current members are lead singer and guitarist Matt Bigland, drummer Mike Sheils and bassist Jim Cratchley. Their past members include ...

Earthside Earthside is an American progressive metal band from New Haven, Connecticut, consisting of guitarist Jamie van Dyck, bassist Ryan Griffin, keyboardist Frank Sacramone and drummer Ben Shanbrom. The band doesn't have a full-time vocalist; instead t ...

, The Cold Stares, The Georgia Thunderbolts, Otherwise,

P.O.D. P.O.D. (an initialism for Payable on Death) is an American nu metal band formed in 1992 and based in San Diego, California. The band's line-up consists of vocalist Paul Joshua "Sonny" Sandoval, bassist Mark "Traa" Daniels, lead guitarist Mar ...

and

Shaman's Harvest Shaman's Harvest is an American alternative metal band from Jefferson City, Missouri. Bassist Matt Fisher, singer Nathan "Drake" Hunt, and guitarist Josh Hamler founded the band in 1996. Ryan Tomlinson joined the band on lead guitar for their 200 ...

All Music & Discogs

* 10 Years - Inner Darkness - EP 2024 * Cedric Burnside - Hill Country Love- LP- 2024 * Any Given Sin - War Within - LP - 2023 * Black Stone Cherry- Screamin’ At The Sky - LP - 2023 * Black Stone Cherry - Live From The Royal Albert Hall… Y’All! - Live LP- 2022 * Black Stone Cherry - The Human Condition - Deluxe Edition - LP- 2021 * Black Stone Cherry - The Human Condition - LP- 2020 * Black Stone Cherry - Family Tree - LP- 2018 * Black Stone Cherry - Kentucky - LP -2016 * Conquer Divide - Slow Burn - Deluxe Edition 2024 * Conquer Divide - Slow Burn LP - 2023 * The Cold Stares - The Southern - LP - 2024 * The Georgia Thunderbolts - Rise Above It All - LP - 2024 * Earthside - Let The Truth Speak - LP - 2023 * King Falcon - LP- 2023 * Oxymorrons - Melanin Punk - LP- 2023 * Otherwise - Gawdzillionaire - LP- 2023 * Crobot - Feel This - LP - 2022 * The Cold Stares - Heavy Shoes - LP- 2021 * The Georgia Thunderbolts - Can We Get A Witness - LP 2021 * Otherwise - Defy- LP- 2019 * Monster Truck - True Rockers - LP- 2018 * Galactic - Into The Deep -LP- 2015 * JJ Grey & Mofro - Ol’ Glory - LP- 2015

Filmography

Burman was interviewed in the documentary film ''Freaks In Love'' by filmmakers David Koslowski and Skizz Cyzyk, covering Alice Donut's 25-year career in 2011, and additionally appeared in the

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...

TV series ''

Metal Evolution ''Metal Evolution'' is a 2011 documentary series directed by anthropologist and filmmaker Sam Dunn and director, producer and music supervisor Scot McFadyen about heavy metal subgenres, with new episodes airing every Friday at 10 pm EST on M ...

'' that same year. He was also interviewed for the 2023 documentary film ''Hate To love: Nickelback'' by Leigh Brooks.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burman, Ron Living people American music industry executives Florida State University alumni Businesspeople from New York City People from Manhattan 1966 births