My Biggest Lesson: Ann Haugen

Nothing is more important than relationships.

Great music goes hand in hand with great production. 

Appreciating your current clients is important because It’s easier to keep an existing client than get a new one. 

Hard work pays off. 

Embrace change. 

You are only as good as your last piece of music. 

I am lucky to have gleaned so much wisdom from some of the best in the business throughout my career. It’s tough to narrow in on just one.

I started out my career as an account executive at TBWA\Chiat\Day working on Energizer Batteries. It was the heyday of advertising back then— big budgets, worldwide shoots with top agency creatives, directors and photographers. 

I remember attending a photo shoot for a print campaign for Energizer Batteries, which was doing award-winning work at the time. We stayed in NYC at The Royalton Hotel working with photographers, Duane Michals and Deborah Turberville. I was somewhat starstruck by the surrounding talent, and I remember feeling unbelievable fortunate to have this job. 

After several years, I realised that I wanted to be on the production side of things. It seemed to be calling me. I was in awe of the female production powerhouses like Elaine Hinton and Jennifer Golub.

Eventually I drew up the courage to approach them, and while I was a bit nervous about the switch from account to production, they were both so gracious and supportive. Elaine was honest, telling me I’d have to take a step back and work my way up the ladder in the production department at Chiat\Day, because I had no experience, but that the possibility was in reach. 

At the time, Chiat was using 'Elias Arts' for music on most of their work. After attending a few orchestral sessions Capital Records, I struck up a friendship with Jonathan Elias. He told me they were looking to hire a producer and thought I’d be a good candidate.

Working in the music industry had always been a dream job, even though the risk wasn’t lost on me. Do I trade my agency experience for a post-production house? But as Elias kept pursuing, my heart kept moving towards the decision that would inevitably change the course of my career. And I never looked back. 

I remember Elaine Hinton told me before I left, “Annie, you gotta get the paperwork in order. The music is great, but get that place organised!” And so I took the job and went on to do just that, while producing some of my most iconic work with Chiat\Day. I felt a bit like an insider by having an understanding of the interworking's of an ad agency, which proved to be so valuable in helping build Elias up over many years. 

I was honoured to produce one of my first projects with Jennifer Golub on the 'Apple - Think Different' campaign. It doesn’t get bigger than that! Jennifer was so unbelievably smart and confident, and it was that combination that I aspired to be like. 

Richard O’Neill also had a big influence on my career. On one hand his experience in the industry made him a bit intimidating, but his loyalty proved so valuable to me and the company. In those early years, Chiat\Day became our best client / partner as we racked up awards with Nissan, Visa, and Energizer, and Richard was always the driving force behind that. He could be tough, always pushing for the best work, but inevitably that drive made the work better. We were only as good as the last piece of music we created. 

Jonathan Elias taught me so much about music and the importance of partnership. I was an indie music lover, but a novice in the symphonic world. He introduced me to the greats like Ennio Morricone, Samuel Barber, Debussy, Nina Rota, and taught me how the perfect score can elevate a piece of film. He also taught me the importance of hard work. These were the days when clients and composers made music together, in a studio, usually till the wee hours of the night. 

Everything was live — players and singers alike. There was little room for error in those days. 

Jonathan also taught me the importance of relationships. We built some of our most powerful relationships with the teams at Widen & Kennedy / Nike producing campaigns like 'Frozen Moments', 'Move', and 'Tag'. DDB was also a highlight, working on their iconic Super Bowl ads for Budweiser — 'Cydesdales', along with GSP and the famous 'Got Milk' campaign. It felt like we were helping to build culture, while building the biggest music company for advertising of that era.

While we stand proud of the work we did, we also stand by the relationships we built, the trust we nurtured between the music and creative, and the love we poured into everything we touched.

Nine years ago, I was looking to start a new chapter, and was lucky to find SOUTH Music. I was the missing piece in this young, exciting artist-driven company. They appreciated my wisdom and experience in the cinematic realm and I loved the new challenge of producing songs and covers in genres I hadn’t had the opportunity to work in — hip hop, indie, electronic, though genres that were near and dear to my heart.

A lesson I have learned from just being in music production for so long is to embrace and welcome change. I have seen SAG strikes, industry downturns, company management changes, a pandemic. While some people are reluctant to face the fear of change, I believe change makes you a better producer, a more resilient colleague, a more grateful human. And lets be honest, music is about growing, evolving, and always changing. The world would be boring without it. 

Steve Neely at FCB, taught me that it’s important to be a good mentor. While doing all the early Levi's work (aka David Fincher’s 'The Chase'), Steve was always teaching me about the production process. He was encouraging when I attended shoots, letting me in on what was happening, and how the process works. Fast forward twenty years, and now I feel the need to mentor and give back to the next generation of producers.

I also volunteer with the Youth Business Alliance in Los Angeles, an organisation that helps teach kids in inner city schools about future careers, like those in advertising and post-production.

I want to be a leader of change, and I believe this starts in high school, showing kids that these careers exist. I speak to kids, listen to them dream, set mock interviews, and judge portfolios as well as host field trips to the SOUTH Music studios. It feels good to give back and pass on a little knowledge I’ve been lucky to gain in my career.