Zappa, the entrepreneur

As I've said before, Zappa was always looking out for opportunities to get his name out there. He was a very good businessman. Zappa knew that publicity was important, so he appeared on TV shows and in interviews quite often.

However, Zappa never sacrificed his art for publicity. If anything, it allowed him to express himself more. He would never have been able to fund 200 Motels if he was an unknown; it was thanks to his interviews, appearances, and connections with other bands and artists that he was able to produce such a thing.

Zappa's record label was also a smart business decision on his part. He handpicked all of his artists, some of whom (like Alice Cooper) even went on to achieve lots of success later on in their careers.

One thing that we learned at the end of this semester shocked me, though. I had no idea, prior to this class, that Zappa was asked to be Czechoslovakia's consultant for the government on trade, cultural matters and tourism. This never came to be due to interference from the US government. Zappa actually turned much of his attention over to business ideas and ventures later on in his career. Ever the entrepreneur and workaholic, he continued to work even after he was slowed down due to cancer.


Even in his final years, Zappa was doing interviews.