From small beginnings as a band guitarist in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 36-year-old Lucas Keller has risen to become the guardian angel for the writers and producers who make hits for the superstars.
His agency, Milk & Honey Management was created in 2014 because he saw many producers and writers were underpaid and under-appreciated. The goal of his agency was to redefine this norm and he started working from his living room with just one client. 6 years later, he has 13 full-time staff, 5 global offices, and more than 50 clients including premium songwriters/producers Oak, Sir Nolan and David Hodges, as well as international touring DJs Oliver Heldens, Sunnery James, Ryan Marciano, Claptone, M22 and many others.
How the Hits are made
As Lucas tells us, the journey of a No. 1 song starts with the producer. With multi-talented producers, Lucas analyzes the formulas behind today’s biggest hits to create the next club banger.
“The key is having a circle of mainstay songwriters and producers. It’s not just the song’s production; it’s coming up with the song and a concept, and letting the producers take it from there,” Lucas explains.
“ There’s just something these guys know about having hits that they can do repeatedly. The other interesting thing is they often take a different path to get that hit. They always tell you that for each success, forget everything you know and start from scratch. I’m always intrigued by their ability to continue to have hits.”
The key to radio success
The relationship that people have with different genres of music is very dynamic. For EDM, for example, there was a 5-year recession until 18 months ago when people started to get excited again, as Lucas explains. There are many different aspects that have contributed to this shift. One part of that is radio.
“We look at radio from the two different sides of our business. There’s our producer side, where we have clients such as Oak Felder and Sir Nolan; guys like that are becoming mainstay pop producers who figured out a formula for hits. Much like producers such as Max Martin and Dr. Luke, these are guys who know, at any given moment, what people are looking for in pop culture.”
He continues below.
“On our artist/DJ side, you need patience to do a lot of work. A lot of DJs who aren’t on the radio in America never prioritize the effort to get that airplay. They’d rather be doing a lot of EDM fests in Asia than meet the people at iHeart.”
Staying Indie
In only 6 years, Milk&Honey clients have sold over 400 million records worldwide, with credits on top songs including the Backstreet Boys‘ “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart“, Panic! at the Disco‘s “High Hopes“, Khalid and Normani‘s “Love Lies“, Bebe Rexha‘s “I’m a Mess“, and many other chart-toppers.
There are several speculations about the future of Milk and Honey. Lucas regularly receives acquisition offers, however, he is content with staying as a mid-sized independent brand.
“We’re going to continue to put songwriters first,” he asserts. “Songwriters, and their hits, will always be at the core of Milk & Honey’s business.”
