BBC - Nile Rodgers How to Make It in the Music Business (2017) Part 2

American Nile Rodgers (b. 1952) is a Grammy-winning guitarist, songwriter, and producer with whom everyone would like to collaborate. He has the golden touch of Midas, producing some of the most iconic songs of the last 40 years for artists like Diana Ross, Duran Duran, Sister Sledge, Madonna, David Bowie, Daft Punk and Avicii. In 1976, Rodgers formed Chic with Bernard Edwards, whose disco song Le Freak was a giant hit. Chic still works under Rodgers and also releases new music. As producer of some of the most successful records of all time, his towering influence on music and pop culture over the past four decades is incalculable. Nile shares a lifetime of experience on how to make it in the music industry. Using his songs as a guide, he explains the secrets of his success, his longevity and how he's stayed relevant. In three-part series, Nile Rodgers tells how he has managed to stay on top for over 40 years and sell over 300 million records.

Series Director Christopher Bruce; 1212 Ltd Productions for BBC Music

Part 2

Nile Rodgers reveals how he became the go-to producer of the 80s, creating signature sounds for some of the world's biggest stars Diana Ross, Carly Simon, David Bowie, Madonna and Duran Duran. The first artist Nile worked with was Diana Ross. The album they created, Diana, became the biggest-selling studio album of her career and spawned three international hit singles. In the film, Nile explains how they came up with the songs. Nile and Carly Simon reveal the working process that led to the song Why, which flopped in America. Nile explains why and is candid about what you do when failure comes knocking. When Nile met David Bowie, neither could have known how much it would change both their lives. After a number of critically received albums, Bowie was looking to do something different and asked Nile for an album of hits - and that is what Nile gave him; Let's Dance became Bowie's biggest-selling album. In an intimate mini-masterclass, Nile explains how the song Let's Dance developed from Bowie's initial idea into a global hit. The album Nile produced for Madonna was Like a Virgin. We learn about how his deal was structured with her record company, and how this gave Nile one of the biggest paydays of his career. Duran Duran's third album contained a song they felt hadn't realised its full potential - The Reflex. Nile used a recently bought Synclavier and gave the song and the band an entirely new sound. Nile and Nick Rhodes explain how the record was made.

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