Career
Upon joining KCRW in 1998, Harcourt hosted and edited the daily radio show Morning Becomes Eclectic. A weekly version of the show called Sounds Eclectic, launched in 2000, was broadcast on several other stations in cooperation with PRI. The shows, recorded in Los Angeles often featured live performances by artists, both popular and obscure.
Artists including Dido and Travis have credited Harcourt for recognizing them early in their career. Harcourt was also credited with helping to launch Coldplay's career as well as those of Norah Jones, Sigur Ros, and David Gray. He played a demo CD by Jem which launched her singing career, and was the first DJ in America to play Franz Ferdinand. He has been described by music writer Mark Weingarten as "the most influential DJ in America."
In 2005 Harcourt published Music Lust, a book of "recommended listening for every mood, moment and reason." He has also worked as music consultant/supervisor for several television shows and movies, including: Ben Affleck's Gone Baby Gone (2007), Love Monkey, The Dukes of Hazzard, Life As We Know It, Igby Goes Down, and the first season of the rebooted teen drama 90210 (TV series). Harcourt was also the American national voice over talent from 2005 thru 2008 for the Land Rover advertising campaign.
On November 10, 2008, Harcourt announced that he would leave his role with Morning Becomes Eclectic and resign as music director for KCRW as of November 30, 2008, while offering a new show on Sundays. Jason Bentley was selected by KCRW management to replace Harcourt on both Morning Becomes Eclectic and as music director.
Upon stepping down from the music director position at KCRW, Harcourt founded his own company, SamLuna Media Inc., to develop TV and movie projects. Harcourt continued to do his Sunday show at KCRW until June 2011, when he left KCRW for deciding to do a new show on KCSN called Connections with Nic Harcourt Harcourt was hoping that he could have done his shows on both stations as he was not getting paid by KCSN. On October 19, 2012 Harcourt debuted his weekday morning show on KCSN, called "Mornings Are Electric". Harcourt also became Music Supervisor in residence for MTV in March 2011 and many thought he left KCRW for this reason due to a press release from KCRW mentioning his new job. Harcourt denied this in an interview with the Los Angeles Times and said the real reason he had to leave KCRW was because of his new show on KCSN and that KCRW management would not let him do shows on both stations.
Harcourt has also served as Editor at Large: Music and Culture for LA: The Los Angeles Times Magazine (2009-10), He produced and hosted an acclaimed but short lived live performance music website called TheLiveBuzz in the fall of 2010 and was also the first Music Supervisor in Residence at MTV (2011-2012). He is currently the host and interviewer for DirecTV's Guitar Center Sessionsand also hosts a performance/interview podcast series also for Guitar Center.
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