Yesterday I received a call warning me that a con artist that preys on the music community is working in New Orleans right now (A million wisecracks come to mind right now), and according to reports on the Web, this person has ripped people off under a number of aliases. According to online reports, he books studio time and doesn’t pay for it, and solicits money for services from young bands but doesn’t deliver. One post online says he was recently arrested in New Orleans.

I’m reluctant to be too specific about the details such as the person’s current name or recent aliases in case there is more to the online story than meets the eye. Suffice it to say, though, that it’s a good time to know who you’re dealing with professionally and to check up on the people you’re working with. If someone says he represents a label or production company, there ought to be someone who can verify it.