BIOGRAPHY
comic credit: Grant Morrison / "The Invisibles"
With a background in the Los Angeles film, fashion, music and marketing industries, O'Shea hopped a plane with a one-way ticket to London in 1986. Having sent her resume to various entertainment sectors in London, she landed a job as Managing Director of a Production Coordination company with a twist. The job required that she develop a computerized studio database, and catered to American producers recording in the UK and Europe. She soon became politically involved in the UK industry and was instrumental in raising awareness to block a government proposed withholding tax in the UK, which would have eliminated US production in the country.
Working with producers led to managing them, which led to helping bands that the various producers were developing - which led to artist management. She would also occasionally trouble-shoot for overseas artists in the UK in conjunction with their managers.
While Industrial was taking life in post-grunge America, techno and dance remixes were flourishing in UK clubs and creating a new tool with which to break bands in the competitive one-station UK radio market. However, O'Shea noticed that sonics had priority over song structure in industrial and club music, which limited their vehicles for exposure. She felt that juxtaposing the best of cutting-edge genres and techniques from both sides of the pond whilst simultaneously throwing in hooky guitars could give a new meaning to crossover. With an international roster of multi-faceted, collaborative, cutting-edge writing producers, remixers and artists, they were able to deliver a unique crossover mechanism by manipulating hardcore sonics and applying traditional song structure and production. This led the way to new trends, in addition to widening the A&R community's awareness of the SOS producers' variegated sensibilities.
In 1991 O'Shea was voted onto the inaugural steering committee for the International Mangers Forum UK (IMF), along with luminaries such as the late Peter Grant (Led Zepplin), Ed Bicknell (Dire Straits), Elliot Rashman & Andy Dodd (Simply Red), Raymond Coffer (Smashing Pumpkins, Cocteau Twins) and Gail Colson (Chrissie Hynde) amongst others. The IMF successfully encouraged dialogue and education among managers and gave the government and record companies a representative body to consult with when implementing changes in the industry.
Throughout her sojourn in the UK, she developed and managed the careers of multi-instrumental producers Danny Saber (Black Grape, Rolling Stones, David Bowie), Stephen Lironi (Hanson, Black Grape), Marc Waterman (Elastica) and Garry Hughes (Bjork, Killing Joke) amongst others.
She was also recognized for her work in evolving new directions with well-known producers and managed the legendary Jimmy Miller (Rolling Stones '68-72, Spencer Davis) until his untimely death in '93. She relocated Jimmy to the UK during the Happy Mondays/ Stone Roses era and revived his status as a world class producer after teaming him up with PRIMAL SCREAM on their seminal 'Screamadelica' LP. After introducing Butch Vig (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins) to the UK remix scene, she was instrumental in developing GARBAGE, which was inspired by the sound created through his remixes with long-time friends and SOS clients Steve Marker and Duke Erikson.
Returning to the States in '95, the company grew rapidly. In addition to breaking Garbage, she and her producers worked with some of the world's most intriguing talent and their emissaries, including the Rolling Stones, Marilyn Manson, David Bowie, U2, No Doubt, Uncle Kracker, No Doubt, Moth, Kill Hannah, Foetus, Mellowdrone, Project 86, God Lives Underwater, System Of The Down, Deep Purple, Fiona Apple, Black Grape, Hanson, Folk Implosion, Chuck D, Michael Hutchence, Black Sabbath, Ice Cube and Korn.
O’Shea has maintained her philosophy of quality vs. quantity in her roster, managing a handful of multi-faceted visionaries. Her current artist roster includes 8mm, New World Revolution, The Brothers Black and Lucky Valentine. Producer / mixers include Sean Beavan, Herwig Maurer and Ben Rosen.
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(intervew was done before pre-satellite radio, pod casting etc.)
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