Narrative
Most of an A&R's day is spent not listening to music.
A working label gets around 200 unsolicited demos a week. That is on top of the acts managers pass them, the ones contacts flag, and the three already in development on the label's roster. A given week might hold a signing meeting, a quarterly budget review, and a call with a lawyer about an option album they want to shelve. To advise an artist dealing with a label, you have to understand what the person on the other side of the table is actually paid to do.