Exclusive Interview with EDM Media Mogul Emily Tan

Emily Tan is a name that has been known within the dance community since the early 1990s. With a roster like no other including, Armin van Buuren, Andrew Rayel, and Ice-T, Emily Tan is the cream of the crop when it comes to public relations. It is the 30-year anniversary of Emily Tan Media Relations and she has come a long way within the industry. Not only did she survive, she and her eponymous agency thrived and in the process, her own spiritual existence has also elevated. Wise, experienced, and real are just some of the words one can use to describe Emily. In this interview, you will discover how a healthy and positive mindset sprinkled with some compassion can not only bring you worldly success but also inner peace.

One EDM: It’s 2020 and your 30-year anniversary as a top publicist within the electronic dance music industry, congratulations! What are some of the things you are most proud of,  looking back on your career? 

EMILY TAN: The personal and professional relationships I’ve made over the years. There are so many rich memories! The past two years have been a period of immense personal and spiritual growth and I feel like my consciousness is vibrating at a much higher frequency as a result. Professionally, I’m proud to have not just survived, but have thrived after all these years. There’s something to be said of longevity.

At press time, you’re working new releases from Universal Music. How do you go about attracting the world’s biggest record label as a PR client?

EMILY TAN: I’m thrilled and honored to earn globally important clients like Universal Music Group as clients for my PR, radio promotions, and playlisting agency! We have a lot happening at all times. At press time, I’m working releases from Bruno Martini x Iza x Timbaland (“Bend The Knee,” “Skin,” Original); Cher Lloyd (“One Drink Away”); and Charly Black (“Diggy Dee” with Sak Noel), with much more on-the-way! I’m fortunate to have really passionate artists and labels for clients, like the incredibly talented, progressive DJ/producer who goes by the name Traveler.

Maro Music out of Warsaw, Poland, is also a longtime client of mine and he actually is also the creator and owner of Bettermaker professional mix/mastering equipment and software, in addition to being an established producer and mix/mastering engineer in the worlds of EDM, hip-hop, film scoring, and commercial production. I’m still working DVRKO, the mysterious masked EDM artist. I just joined with another vibrant female producer, Jessa le Carre (dJESSa for mashup-DJ work), and more. It’s pretty much weekly that I’m having to turn-down potential new-clients as I vet each new-client inquiry to ensure every client has individualized attention. Things are busy!

Gratitude is the state of being thankful and fortunate for something you’ve experienced or are currently experiencing. You have a sense of gratitude that can pierce the most stone-cold hearts when you speak about your amazing life. What are some fundamental life philosophies that you carry to keep these opportunities flowing?

EMILY TAN: How can I not live with gratitude? There are so many things to be grateful for. There are so many aspects of daily life — both big and small — that I feel grateful for. Being human is not always easy, but even the experiences of pain offer a lesson. I’m grateful for the lessons.

For some people, a busy work schedule can mean a sign of success and effort. For others, it could be a sign of avoidance in the uncomfortable feelings of stillness. What does a busy work schedule mean to you? How do you maintain your work/life balance?

EMILY TAN: Work is what I do; it’s not who I am. I used to tend to extremes. Nowadays, I maintain a much healthier work/life balance. That said, I work a lot. If there were 36 hours-in-a-day instead of 24, that’d be awesome.

The state of the world today can be very anxiety-provoking, obviously. Mental health is central to people’s overall health, but it can be a real challenge at times, especially now with the way things are in this world. What are some insights you can offer to readers who might, perhaps, be struggling with their own mental health difficulties right now?

EMILY TAN: Always remember that karma is real. Realize that happiness — serenity, joy, peace — is an inner state. It comes from within. It’s subjective. You, I, we each have the power within us to create our own reality. I never said this was easy. It’s not! But if you can let go of all the negative feelings inside you and learn to forgive, you’ll find peace. The first step in learning true forgiveness is to practice extreme empathy, compassion. Compassion for others, compassion for yourself. Forgiveness releases all negative energies that may haunt you. Once you learn to genuinely forgive, it’s like a door opens and you’re flooded with warm, white light. Flooded with love. It’s totally ecstatic and there’s no man-made drug that’ll give you a better high.

There is the good and the bad in everything, pros, and cons. The music industry can be fierce and intense no matter what your role is. How do you manage to protect yourself, remain true to yourself, stay humble, and stay loving? Have you developed a thick skin to survive the industry?

EMILY TAN: No, in fact back when I did have a “thick skin,” I was more callous, more aggressive. That was not the true ‘me.’ I’ve been told that I have a “very strong life-force,” that I’m “always so full of positive energy,” and comments like that. Call it empathy or whatever, but that empathetic feeling’s gotten more intense with time. Am I an “empath”? Probably, though I know a handful of people who are even more empathetic than I am. I’m attracted to people who emit positive energy and I’m repelled by those who give-off negative energy. I’m sure lots of people are like that. It’s self-protective. I feel my heart literally overflowing with love. I don’t have room (or time) for negativity in my life.

What are your thoughts as you look forward to the next 30-year run for EMILY TAN Media Relations?

EMILY TAN: There’s no past nor future. There is only now. Time — more accurately, spacetime — is relative to the observer. Your perception is your reality. Change your perception and you alter your reality.

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