Yessian Music Expands Globally and into the Southwest Market as Evelyn Brown Rejoins the Team
In an ongoing effort to promote growth and focus on cutting edge developments, Yessian Music is expanding into the Austin & Southwest markets, and are excited to announce the return of executive producer Evelyn Brown.
“We are thrilled to welcome Evelyn back into our Yessian teams as we expand our offerings throughout the US.” said Brian Yessian, CCO of Yessian Music. “In addition, this next year we will continue our global expansion through strategic partnerships with composers, producers and creative partners to facilitate creative projects that include commercials, film and immersive experiences in all corners of the world.”
To celebrate this reunion, the team spoke with Evelyn Brown on her history with Yessian, her sabbatical to study music therapy, and her creative plans for her return.
Q> Can you give us a brief overview of your start/history with Yessian?
Evelyn> Probably about 12 years ago, I walked up to a woman at the bar at the AMP awards. I was a “studio manager” at the time at another reputable music house in New York City. I was young, and very green. She had just spoken on stage to the room about the impact music has in advertising and how we have all done a great job that year, but I didn’t know who she was. She looked important so I asked her if I could buy her a glass of wine (it was an open bar.) Fast forward, a few years or so later and through recommendation of a mutual friend, She, Marlene Bartos, EP/ Managing Director of Yessian NY was sitting down to interview me for a Sr. Producer role in the New York City office at Yessian. This was one of those moments where a glass of wine and happenstance seemed to run full circle. I spent six and a half years working under Marlene and the Yessian’s where I grew into the role of executive producer. What I have been able to bring to the table through it all here at Yessian is very natural to who I am. I am a musician, I desire to always be the best, I truly enjoy cultivating meaningful relationships, and one of the things that brings me the most joy is learning and growing. All of this lends itself to the success of this environment, and I am looking forward to being able to continue to do these things under the Yessian roof, especially in our newest location in Austin, Texas.
Q> Can you tell us about your sabbatical studying music therapy?
Evelyn> Since I was a child I’ve carried around an obsession with medicine and making people feel better. It was something that always took a back seat to my other calling of music performance and then production, but it certainly never went away. As life shifted beyond Covid, I was pulled into the frame of mind of exploring this. Without expectation, I had applied to Saint Mary of The Woods College for their post graduate music therapy programme to allow me to extend my already existing Bachelor’s in Music into the dream of becoming an MT-BC, a Board Certified music therapist. Once I was accepted though, I understood that for the foreseeable future working full-time wasn’t going to yield the best results for me or for Yessian. With a heavy heart, I made the decision to part ways to spend some time studying. Having done that, perhaps the best part of it all is that I have found that my itch for music production and working alongside the team at Yessian is still very much alive and possible as I continue this journey.
Q> Are there ways in which the worlds of music in medicine and music for media collide or interact?
Evelyn> On a basic level most people understand that there is music that helps with mood elevation, or perhaps music or sounds that when listened to might calm someone down. Beyond the tip of that iceberg, there are people that spend their lives dedicated to researching and clinically proving that not only does music offer the power above but if used in the right way and context it can aide in someone learning to speak again post a traumatic brain injury, or help a child walk whose disability otherwise wouldn't allow.
Music around the world and through time has been the centre of our most celebrated cultural experiences - you can hear this in lullabies, hymns, battle songs, storytelling, and one of my favourite, entertainment. If organised in a certain way, music enhances feelings and experiences and this isn’t always purely random emotion, it’s science and psychology. In advertising, experiential - even the ending of the little song that plays when your dryer finishes a cycle… This combined knowledge of how music works in context allows for calculated decisions that yield best results for manipulating the emotions of consumers.
Q> How is the scope of the work at Yessian developing in both the work that you are now doing and that the company is doing as a whole?
Evelyn> Coming back to Yessian looked different, I have moved back to my hometown of Austin Texas, which is a wonderful home base and desirable location to focus on the work down here and the surrounding Southwest.
Yessian has a rich history working outside of the box, and if the last years have taught us anything there's a strong desire and pull towards human connection on a global level. One of my focuses in the next year is to help our team continue to expand our capabilities not only here in Texas and the surrounding areas, but on a much larger scale globally where we can connect to people all around the world who share a common goal of making the best work sound the very best it can.
Q> What are you most excited for on this new but familiar path?
Evelyn> What I loved about this return to Yessian is how empowered they have allowed me to feel. There was no “you can’t do both.” or “we are worried about your capacity…” it was “we know how wonderful this is for you and we are excited to see how this informs our environment”.
BUT what I am most excited about is seeing the growth of the people within the team I have missed so much. Everyone has learned new ways of working, and some people, like our associates have grown into newer and exciting roles and they are slaying it.
My managers and team have expanded with added value and new talent has given us a fresh and exciting perspective for what the future can hold.
My fire is lit by the ability to believe that anything is possible with who I believe are some of the most talented people in our industry working together. The coming years are going to be no exception as we expand our horizons and continue to grow alongside this ever evolving world of music and sound.
Yessian is looking to the future with this new and exciting chapter. The way forward reveals itself when you are surrounded by a team that is passionate about continued growth, and Yessian feels confident that is exactly what they have with Evelyn Brown rejoining the team.
“Timing is everything.” said Marlene Bartos, Yessian New York EP/managing director. “During her previous six years at Yessian in New York, Evelyn’s talents, knowledge and enthusiasm were a winning combination that contributed immeasurably to our success. As we continue to expand into new markets and restructure internally, the timing of her move to Austin created the perfect opportunity for us to join forces again. We are a formidable team and it’s a pleasure to be working with her again after a brief hiatus.”
To follow along on Evelyn & Yessian’s endeavours in the world of sound, follow them on LinkedIn and other social channels.
