Interview with Alex
Henderson
Interview by Jenna Glatzer
Alex is a Philadelphia-based writer specializing in the music world.
His work has appeared in publications like Billboard, Spin, Pulse!, JazzTimes,
and CDReview, and he is a regular contributor to the All Music Guide. Alex
began his music reviewing career at age 15, then studied journalism at
California State University. His work has included writing press releases
and liner notes for record companies in addition to his columns and reviews for
magazines, newspapers, and websites.
How did you become a professional writer at age 15
and establish yourself as an expert in the music field?
At 15, I decided to submit an unsolicited review of Van Halen's first album to a small rock publication called Rogers' Review, which later changed its name to Talking Head. I wasn't counting on getting any type of response, but to my surprise, the editor, Don Rogers, soon gave me a call and invited me to become a regular contributor to the publication. The Van Halen album, he explained, was already covered, but was there anything else I would be interested in reviewing? So a review of The Rolling Stones' "Some Girls" became my first published review, and a lot of other assignments followed.
Don had no idea that I was only 15--he assumed I was older. And by the time I reached my 16th birthday, I had a
clipbook.
How important was journalism school to your career?
In terms of knowledge, the journalism department at California State University, Northridge was beneficial. Their journalism department had some excellent professors. When it came to teaching writing skills and media ethics, they were great. But I think that most of them didn't want to tell the students the really cold, really hard facts--they didn't want to come right out and tell you that in the journalism field, knowledge counts for little and connections are everything. That sounds very cynical, and I imagine that those professors didn't want to appear cynical. But it's the truth. A journalism degree isn't a bad thing to have on a resume, but it doesn't help as much as having the right connections.
The thing I despise the most about a lot of newspaper and magazine editors--not all, but many of them--is the fact that they are only interested in who you know and not how knowledgeable and qualified you are. If you aren't part of the elite little clique that an editor belongs to, you can forget about writing for that publication. So journalists are often reduced to putting as much effort into schmoozing as they put into perfecting their writing. That, in my view, is a tragedy because it brings down the quality of the writing. Over the years, I have had to waste way too much time and energy schmoozing.
And the ironic thing is that a lot of these editors are self-proclaimed "liberals." They love to espouse leftist ideas, but they don't begin to realize that their elitist, exclusionary attitudes are a form of bigotry.
Have you always supported yourself solely through your writing?
Not always. But I am presently earning a decent living by doing different types of writing. I devote a lot of my time to music journalism, but I also do high-tech writing for computer software developers. One minute, I'm reviewing Pearl Jam, Limp Bizkit or Lil' Kim--the next minute, I'm writing a press release for someone's new educational software program.
In addition to writing reviews and articles, you've also written press releases for record companies and liner notes. How did you find these jobs?
Again, it all comes down to connections. You can be the most talented, gifted journalist in the world--and if you don't know the right people, you're screwed.
Do you choose what you review?
I make pitches to publications, and they give me a "yes" or "no."
Do you ever feel pressured to give a positive review to something you don't think is particularly good?
Yes, I have had that happen on many occasions--and I have said that if I can't render an honest verdict on a CD, I would rather not review it at all.
Writers often complain of editors who "slice and dice" their words, but this must be especially tough when reviews are concerned. Have you ever had an editor change your fundamental opinions?
When I was in an editor myself, I tried to change as little as possible. Obviously, I would edit potentially libelous things out of articles and reviews. But if something read well, I pretty much left it alone. Unfortunately, you also have the control freaks who love to do as much editing as possible. My theory is that deep down inside, those individuals are insecure--so doing a lot of editing gives them a feeling of power. But I'm very confident, and I was never the type of editor who needed to butcher another writer's work in order to feel good about myself.
If an editor wants to rephrase something, that's one thing. But they minute they change the context, they have crossed the line.
Any tips for dealing with deadbeat editors/publishers? What do you do if payment is late or missing?
I'm presently writing a column on this very subject for Jazz Notes, the newsletter of the Jazz Journalists' Association. The column is called Payment Overdue, and it exposes deadbeats--deadbeat magazines, deadbeat newspapers, deadbeat labels. I've stepped on many toes since I started writing the column a few years ago and have probably burned some bridges. But that's fine because if you can't pay me promptly, don't waste my time. Either show me the money or stay away from me.
One problem is that journalists and editors can be extremely cliquish, which makes it difficult for them to form a united front and take action against deadbeats. There is strength in numbers, but unfortunately, journalists don't network the way they should. If more journalists would network, unite, form strong unions and look out for each other, we could put the fear of God into deadbeats. Can you imagine the Teamsters putting up with deadbeats? Obviously not. But many journalists and editors, I find, are too damn cliquish to take the sort of united action that Teamsters and other blue-collar unions have taken in their fields.
How much of a song or an artist's words are you allowed to quote in your article without obtaining permission?
I'm not one to quote lyrics extensively. So this is probably a question for an intellectual property lawyer. For intellectual property questions, I would refer you to entertainment attorney John Anello, who can be reached at
johncexton@aol.com.
Alex can be reached at bearilla@aol.com.
