Meet Laury Verdoux, a passionate music publicist and the visionary founder of Moonlight PR. As a music publicist, she devotes her expertise to helping artists thrive by handling all aspects of music promotion, from interviews and radio airplay to advertising gigs and playlist placements. Today we spoke to Laury about her journey into the music industry, and what led her to pursue a career in Pr.

Can you provide a brief introduction to yourself and the work you do as a music publicist and founder of Moonlight PR?

Laury: I’m a music publicist which means that I am helping artists with everything related to promoting music: from articles/interviews to radio airplay, advertising gigs, and playlist placement. I decided to start my own PR agency, Moonlight PR, in order to work with the artists I like, with a focus on Korean artists.

What initially sparked your interest in pursuing a career in the music industry, and how did your journey in this field begin?

Laury: I always knew I wanted to work in the music industry since I was a teenager, I just wasn’t sure what job I wanted to do. I absolutely loved going to concerts, so I thought it would be nice to be involved in that field. I went to university to study Cultural Management with an emphasis on Music and Events. So after my studies, I started working in music booking, which even led me to work on a date for Elton John’s French tour back in 2019. Initially, I didn’t intend to work in the PR field (I had no idea what it was until a few years ago) but it happened naturally and I love my work now.

With your PR agency focusing on helping Korean artists gain exposure outside of Korea, what strategies do you employ to bridge cultural and language barriers and effectively promote these artists to international audiences?

Laury: To effectively promote Korean artists to international audiences, I employ various strategies and adapt my approach based on the artists’ and labels’ specific needs. Here are some key elements of my approach:

• Tailored Worldwide Campaigns: I create worldwide campaigns to promote artists globally, leveraging my contacts in different countries to generate press coverage, airplay, and more streams. However, I also understand that sometimes the artists may want to focus on specific countries because they might require promotion ahead of a tour for example, which would make me focus only on certain territories. The fact that I speak French, English, and Spanish is definitely an advantage for me to reach out to different media outlets in the desired countries.

• Customized Strategies: Each campaign is unique because artists have diverse goals and preferences. I work closely with the artists and their teams to define the most effective strategy for their specific objectives. This level of customization allows me to align my efforts with their desired outcomes and ensures a more successful promotion.

• Cultural Sensitivity: Being a music publicist working with artists from different cultures (especially Korean culture, coming personally from a French culture), I recognize the significance of cultural sensitivity. I have to ensure that the promotional strategies and materials respect and align with the cultural values of both the artists’ home country and the targeted international markets. This helps bridge the cultural gap and fosters a deeper connection with the audience. The fact that I lived and worked in Korea allows me to appreciate this even further as opposed to a PR agency with staff who never lived abroad and might not understand Koreans’ way of working.

• Language Adaptation: In some cases, language barriers may indeed exist.  More and more Koreans speak English but that’s not always the case, which makes it harder to coordinate live interviews with group members. When working with Korean artists, I always have to translate key promotional materials, press releases, and interview questions/answers to effectively communicate the artists’ message and story to international audiences. Again, the fact that I speak different languages definitely helps me in securing more press and radio opportunities.

What motivated you to study music production in Korea, and how has that experience influenced your work as a publicist?

Laury: As I mentioned earlier, I’ve always had an interest in different parts of the music industry. A few years ago, I had a growing desire to attend a course about a specific music software to work in the studio. I wasn’t satisfied with how they were providing this course in my country, so I looked at other options and got in touch with different music schools worldwide. I ended up choosing Korea and since the class wasn’t full time, I decided to do an internship at a music label and that’s where everything started for me. Without even realizing it, I started doing PR tasks and from that point, I secured other jobs as a publicist with different independent artists/labels in Korea.

Could you share a memorable experience you’ve had while working with any of the artists you’ve collaborated with

Laury: I got a video interview opportunity for April 2nd when I was working with Chili Music Korea back in October/November 2021. It was an in-person interview so we rented a studio in Seoul and I attended the recording. The guys did the interview, it went really well, their answers were really funny, and when it was done… The 2 interviewers realized that the camera wasn’t filming and they had to do it all over again at 10 pm. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as spontaneous as the first time, but the interview still ended up nicely and we had a great laugh.

As a global publicist, what are some challenges you have faced in promoting artists from different genres, especially those involved in traditional music?

Laury: The work and the way of communicating with the artists/labels is completely different depending if I’m working with Asian or Western artists – which is a big challenge sometimes. Even in Korea, depending on the genre, things are done differently so I always have to adapt myself quickly.

I’d say that the main challenge is to always look for new outlets and radio stations and reach out to new industry people on a daily basis to make sure I have acquaintances supporting all the genres possible. When I worked with my first Korean traditional band (SORIPERCUSSION), I started from zero as I had no contact in the traditional world. So I connected with more and more people over the months and was able to secure good opportunities for them.

Another thing is that when it comes to K-pop unless you’re working with big names, it is hard to get them into mainstream publications and radio stations. Especially in Europe, there is still a stigma around K-pop but it is slowly changing. Fortunately, there are a lot of outlets and radio shows focusing on K-pop music only but I find that limiting sometimes. If I’m working with other genres of Korean music, I won’t really focus on the Korean side and I will just use my contacts based on the genre, in a way that opens more doors but the competition is also harder because you’re competing with artists from all around the world in the same genre.

Lastly, what do you hope to accomplish in the future? And do you have any advice for hopefuls who hope to break into the PR business?

Laury: I just want to keep doing what I’m doing now and hopefully work with more and more artists. I’m a big hip-hop fan so I would love to work with more Asian rappers in the near future. One of my long-term goals is to establish myself as one of the go-to music PR agents for both Korean and Western artists.

For anyone interested in the PR business, I can only recommend networking. A huge part of the job is linked to your connections with journalists and radio hosts so it’s really important to nurture those relationships.

We want to give a special thanks to Laury Verdoux for sharing her story with us and to learn more about her and Moonlight PR check out the links below!

Laury Verdoux:

Moonlight PR:
https://www.instagram.com/moonlight_pr_/
http://moonlightprmusic.com/