Nick Olds Interviews Sarah Lewittin

An AIM conversation with Stolen Transmission co-founder, Sarah Lewitinn
I'm still not sure why Sarah Lewitinn agreed to do this. I dunno, maybe she's bigger than I think. She's got an impressive resume, ya know. But who knows, maybe she's not (I mean, is she in a middle class white rap group? [See Joke-Life.com]). Either way, this was more interesting than I could've ever imagined. All true too.

And to think it came about cause I pissed her off on a blog (who says MySpace can't make you famous?). But, since I already admitted I was wrong, [read: "Correcting an Interview, or the First Time I've Been Wrong", 2/2/07] we don't need to go there again.......so let's get on with the interview, shall we?

Sarah and I cover a lotta ground here: from all things Stolen Transmission and Ultragrrrl, to SPIN magazine and Hilary Duff- the indie dream girl. So don't make any plans for the next 15 minutes (hands where I can see 'em and pull up those pants!)....

SH: I've been stood up on AIM before, it still hurts sometimes...but anyway, you got a few minutes?

SL: Hahaha yeah, but unfortunately not toooo long cause I gotta work my little fingers.

SH: Not a problem, I trimmed down my list from 100 questions to 12. Short ones, though, I promise.

SH: Ok, I guess I'll start by asking: how did you come about starting the label?

SL: That question's not totally easy cause the answer's pretty long. Basically, I started out as a manager (but basically I was a "friendager") working with My Chemical Romance and stellastarr* when I was 21 in 2001/2002. I met Rob Stevenson from Island Records, who had just signed Thrice and Sum 41, and we became friends. He saw that I had a good ear for music and did whatever he could to foster that, which included encouraging me to start a label through my blog, that was based out of my bedroom. That's how Stolen Transmission started. I started putting out limited edition 3-song CDRs of bands that I thought were great (like Louis XIV, The Oohlas, Nightmare of You, and the Spinto Band). All the EPs were handmade by me and some friends, which were $4 including shipping and materials. The one I'm most proud of is the Nightmare Of You EP, which had dried rose petals glued onto them. They were gorgeous.

SL: I ended that cause I have no time, but hopefully in the summer I'll start up again.

SL: I wasn't really happy there. I didn't feel appreciated. So I wanted to venture into something else that'd let me help out baby bands from the very beginning, like what I was doing with the singles label.

SL: So Rob Stevenson and I discussed ways to do that... helping bands develop with whatever resources was available, for a VERY limited fund, which would alleviate the pressure on the bands to turn in a hit album or a hit song, and just give them time to do their thing with supportive people around them from the start. And, since very little money would be invested, it'd be a labor of love for everyone, and therefore, people would be happier to work for it. And, like I said, no pressures to turn out "Mr. Brightside" or "Hit Me Baby" right off the bat. Next.

SL: I can't really answer that, but it's literally 1/10th of the cost of a mid-level band's video budget. Like the Oohlas album was recorded for $0 in their backyard, and they spent their advance in a month on rent and food. We just don't have the money in our budget to spend more. Which kills me, cause deep down inside I'm a Jewish mom, so I try to feed my bands as much as I can when they're in town. Permanent ME loves when I come around cause it means they'll eat.

SH: Wow. So basically, I was completely wrong? [read "Interviewer's Note" in the interview with Photo Atlas frontman Alan Andrews]

SL: Getting tied to a major label bums me out cause I end up hearing about ways that money gets spent, and I'm like "if I had that budget! Oh my god!" But at the end of the day, my bands are well-oiled machines that can perform under any circumstance and worked hard to get where they are.

SL: My bands? As much as they can. if can play a show they do. We don't let them just sit at home. If they can play a show in a living room, we have them do that.

SL: No, that's usually left to the booking agent. But we sometimes do end up helping with booking since we've all be in the music industry for a while. So like, it's all hands on deck.

SL: 10 years. I'm 27 on Saturday. Oh shit. 11 years. Oh my god, I'm gonna kill myself. I'm too old.

SH: We're about the same age and you've been in the game for 11 years... I insanely hate you. How'd you get in?

SL: They had a kids section of the website for like 10-14 year olds. And so I wrote reviews on there, did interviews, and a lot of assisting with web production like HTML, scanning in things, formatting.

SL: Yeah, I would leave school at like 2:30, hop on a bus, and travel to the city to intern till 7pm. And during the summer, I'd sit there every day.

SL: Yeah, absolutely. I went on to work for my old boss at another job she had.

SH: I hope I can pay the bills some day. Now, is that when you started the Ultragrrrl blog?

SL: I started the Ultragrrrl blog while I was at SPIN in 2003, when I was 23. I became friends with these two guys and we would go out every night drinking, find open bars and just drink ourselves into stupidity. It became an issue, and one day my family said they were gonna send me to rehab. I begged and pleaded that I didn't have a problem, so I started my blog as a monitoring device so they could see what I was up to each night and my struggles with not drinking. It just so happened that I was going to shows all the time with friends who were also bloggers, so we'd end up writing about the same bands we saw, taking photos, etc. And that's how it started.

SH: Ahh, I was wondering. Ok, topic change. Music downloading, who's side are you taking?

SL: Well, I was pretty into it when I was at SPIN cause I was getting anything I wanted for free anyways. But when I started my label, I gave up on that and have since run up a $4000 ITunes bill in the past year. Yikes!

SH: Wow, I'm shocked at how high that bill is but I'm also amazed at how well it segues into my next question. I just got a few left, so I won't bore you to death.

SH: Allright, let's say I just bought an IPod and I've never heard music, but I hear good things: what would you recommend to start with on my IPod?

SL: Well, an easy answer to that question is: Buy my book! http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1416907238/qid=1126636629/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-0473319-4446429?v=glance&s=books&n=507846. I wrote a book about exactly that.

SH: Ok, next question: acclaimed DJ, former SPIN columnist, label head, and author of The Pocket DJ.…would you judge me on my record collection?

SH: So we could still be friends, even if, say, I owned a few Queen Latifah albums?

SH: Agreed. Ok, next question: if somebody was looking to break into the music biz, and, oh, I DON'T KNOW, let's call that somebody "me"; what advice would you give them?

SL: Get an internship, and if you can't get an internship, figure out a way in your community to make an impact. When I was 21, I was a show promoter and putting on local bands that I thought were amazing.

SL: Everything has a domino effect. Even if you keep a blog. Get attention from a bigger blogger, and your shit could be huge. Pink is the New Blog [pinkisthenewblog.com] credits his success with other blogger's linking him.

SL: Yes and no. I was a writer for a major music magazine, so I didn't need publicity really. Plus, I didn't do my blog to gain notoriety. I came into the blogging scene before that shit happened.

SH: I hear that. You need a blog now. It's like your social security number. If I meet someone who doesn't have one, they don't exist to me.

SL: HAHAHAHA. Definitely. But my parents and my boyfriend's parents read my blog, so now it's PG-13. Which is a bummer cause I enjoyed writing about a litter of puppies falling out of my vagina due to being so stoked on a band.

SH: We'll see then. But it seems like you gotta good thing going there. Where do I find it?

SL: Ultragrrrl.blogspot.com/. MySpace: www.myspace.com/ultragrrrl. And Ultragrrrl.buzznet.com/user/

SH: Allright, I'll pretend you're excited. I read an interview of yours saying that you'd met Hilary Duff- Would she date a guy that hates her music?

SL: Hilary actually has really impressive taste in music. I took her out to this one party and sat her down next to the most pretentious Goth girl I've ever met, who knows about German Goth bands that have like one EP out and it's only available from back alley vendors, and the two of them were talking music on the same level. Hil knew about everything. She was going through my CD book when I was DJing with her and picking out some of the best shit that I'd be scared to play, but it went down amazingly. So like, you know, maybe she's not a fan of her music either and does it for financial reasons. I don't know.

SH: I was kidding really, I don't know anything about her. But I'm blown away by that statement. You sound like you're friends with her.

SL: Well, I'm really close with her ex-boyfriend (Good Charlotte frontman Joel Madden) and his family. We're friendly, and I'd hang out with her and have a great time, but we don't have each other's numbers.

SH: So you're acquaintances. That's cool. Now, is your speed dial filled with celebs?

SL: Ha. I guess. It'd be really unfortunate if my phone was ever stolen. Fortunately, I have a lock on my phone that protects my friends. But, that's life.

SH: Sure is. Ok, last question: You've won two Paper Magazine Nightlife Awards for your DJing and were named one of New York Magazine's Most Influential People in Music last year......why are you talking to me?

SL: I actually won 4 awards, I think. Maybe 5. But anyways, who else am I supposed to talk to?

SH: Wow, I'm flattered. I think I just blushed. Or maybe I couldn't breath for a second and my face got red. I dunno, but it felt good.

SH: Well Sarah, we've been talking for 2 hours....you can leave now with a good interview or we can be buds for life. What's it gonna be?

SH: Ya! Ok, now that we're friends forever, here's my list of girlfriend problems. It's pretty long, cause she's really pissing me off lately. I'll get the slippers and cookie dough, you grab the pillows.