BREAD AND CIRCUSES INC.

Bread and Circuses Inc. was dissolved on June 26th, 2018: 

Bread and Circuses founder Michael D. Kniseley hails from Youngstown Ohio, a town little known for entertainment.

Youngstown is part of The Rust Belt, an area once known for its steel producing factories. It's also known for its hard winters, hard workers and hard times as a result of its many factories closing in the 1970s. However, this region has also produced some of the world's most renowned and innovative talent in the entertainment industry such as the Warner brothers, Iggy Pop, Devo, The Black Keys, the Dead Boys, The Cramps and countless others.

After the steel mills closed, Michael's hometown had drastically changed, and by the time he graduated high school in the late 80s, there were no real prospects for work. So, Michael left The Rust Belt for good seeking a new life. He began his new life attending college in SW Florida and eventually his work would take him to London England, far from the decaying wasteland where the bustling factories once stood.

Michael’s career officially began in 1994 at a Beasley Broadcasting radio station, while working on a college internship that would change his life for good. During this time Michael helped to lead an intern research team in surveying the general public to verify the feasibility of reformatting an FM radio station. The intended reformatting was from classic rock to what was then called alternative music. Alternative music was the equivalent to the music that you hear on college radio today, and Michael firmly believed that the people needed to hear new and fresh music. His perseverance paid off, as after many hours and months of research the station agreed to reformat. And as a result of this successful reformatting, the station's ad revenue more than doubled, thus marking the beginning of a long successful career for Michael.

But this was only the very beginning, before Bread and Circuses Michael spent years working for other companies, burning the midnight oil while conducting promotional work, PR campaigns, media buying & placement, working closely with former Virgin Records A&R staffers and logging many miles of international travel while working for other companies. Despite Michael's success he yearned for artistic fulfillment and formed Room Full of Strangers, an endeavor, and band that eventually would take precedence over Michael's corporate life. It was shortly after the Strangers began performing in 2008 that Michael formed Bread and Circuses, which was initially a publishing company for the band and clearinghouse for other business development contracts, followed by Michael later moving into events marketing and festival organizing. In the very beginning Bread and Circuses only consisted of volunteers and began by hosting music and art events. These mini-festivals and parties were part of a plan to pique the interest of local music venue owners and move the band directly to headlining well-attended shows. The strategy worked as the parties became part of local lore and legend, as well as being a key reason why the band began headlining stages throughout the region. Then in early 2012 Bread and Circuses opened an A&R and development office for clients on behalf of a world-class audiophile recording studio. The Bread and Circuses A&R department satisfied a need for independent artists that wanted to have a professional yet affordable recording experience and most importantly work with a staff that was capable of understanding and capturing the artistic vision of it's recording clients. It wasn't long after the sign was hung on the office window that Michael and his staff began addressing the fact that many artists needed representation after their record was finished, or more to the point, long before it was recorded. In the beginning, what was once advice, became a service and from here Bread and Circuses dovetailed organically into hosting the myriad of services that it provides today. PR, copy-writing, rehearsal space / back-line rental, professional studio services, and distribution through The Orchard, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SONY, as well as working with a slew of Grammy award-winning professionals and agencies. Needless to say, the Bread and Circuses A&R department was a huge success, making for many satisfied artists, tripling the studio's revenue inside of three years, and ultimately evolving into a one-stop-shop for artists. 

The origin of the Bread and Circuses name comes from a phrase which was used in ancient Rome to describe the people's disdain for their government; which at the time had resorted to providing games of sport and free wheat during the fall of the Roman Empire. This was to appease the masses. Michael, always the consummate visionary looked closely at the entertainment and recording industry, and it's similarities in comparison to the fall of Rome. The comparisons were to be found in the waste and vacillation with the major labels and the apathy, lack of funding, and saturation of some indie labels. Another similarity was all the deceptions that the music industry is known for. With that Michael decided on the name Bread and Circuses Inc. However, Michael's concept of Bread and Circuses is contrary to the name's origin. Michael's Bread and Circuses would go on to shine a light on the ruse that the music business had become known for and did so by sharing the knowledge, experience, and contacts Michael had obtained over the years. Michael's Bread and Circuses would educate, empower, and ultimately enhance the careers of other artists and became an alternative to the norm. Now, with an in-house team and strategic partners, Bread and Circuses brings concise direction to its clients and prides itself most on working with the independent artist (the people) by providing the professional representation that you would expect from a major firm, sans the bureaucracy while maintaining the personable boutique feel of an independent firm. Bread and Circuses possess the facility of a label for their artists, however, through non-exclusive representation, their artists maintain 100% creative control and publishing rights. Through professional representation and being a complete 'one-stop-shop,' team Bread and Circuses has become an equalizing force for independent artists.

Besides being heavily involved with Bread and Circuses, Michael still maintains 50 to 100+ dates a year on the road between the U.S. and Europe with his band Room Full of Strangers and is still bringing new music to the people today.