Amid tabloid rumors surrounding his marriage, musician and producer Ahmad Dhani is gaining respect as a talent scout.

The band has since released eight albums and won a number of awards in major categories such as best song, best group and best album, including the prestigious Angurah Musik Indonesia.

When asked how he had been occupying his time lately, Ahmad answered with his trademark smirk, "signing papers".

He said he spent most days developing budgets and balancing the books.

Yet Ahmad doesn't take himself too seriously. "I am more of a talent scout than a businessman," he said.

While many aspects of the music industry are glamorous, Ahmad is just as happy in business.

"I haven't received formal training in either profession. Whether it's doing business or composing songs, I call it 'learning by doing'."

He founded Republik Cinta entertainment agency in early 2007.

One of the reasons why he decided to be a talent scout and band manager was that he could support musicians without compromising his integrity.

"This particular industry is very appealing to me because there is no such thing as piracy in the band management industry. Whereas, if I developed other businesses, such as setting up a record company, I would have to deal with piracy and I'd rather not," he said.

As a scout, Ahmad relies on his gut instinct about what makes up talent. He is not looking for particular characteristics but is more interested in how a musician is developing their career.

He said he had no secret marketing strategy for his clients but did help them cultivate fresh new sounds and images.

"A bad boy image is essential for a male rock singer. It's a given. Mick Jagger would not be where he is today if he did not fool around back then," Ahmad said.

"In Republik Cinta, I put more effort into fostering the quality of my artists' music, which they continue to cultivate. A high quality product sells easily," he said.

Ahmad said all of the musicians under his management had struck a balance between quality and marketability.

"Unfortunately, the Indonesian music market is becoming increasingly more fragmented and the quality of the music is suffering. The market demands fast-food music -- light, easy and cheesy," he said.

"My artists are commercial but not cheesy. They have the quality and dignity that is missing in many Indonesian artists."

Ahmad then listed a number of top Indonesian artists such as former Dewa 19 vocalist Ari Lasso and Melly Goeslaw, dismissing their work as cheesy.

"They are here only to sell. There is absolutely no punch in their music!" he said.

Concerned about the decreasing demand for good quality music, Dhani went looking for a smart but easy way of making a profit. One of his ways is "recycling" his music. Artists under the Republik Cinta management, such as Mulan Jameela and Dewi Dewi, have already included some of his songs in their albums.

The trio Dewi Dewi has seven popular Dewa songs on their 12 track album Recycle+, while Mulan Jameela included five "recycled" songs on her self-titled 10 track album.

"I see it like this," Ahmad explained, "If my songs are my horses, I want to push them to their limits."

The decreasing demand for good quality music, according to Dhani, is not only an Indonesian phenomenon.

"The taste of the global music market is getting worse and worse. This is happening because the condition of the world is also deteriorating. Indirectly, I think it influences the taste of youngsters and those who listen to Dewa," he explained.

This is what inspires his vision in life.

"I just want to introduce good things to Indonesia, to the world. Right now, I want to keep bringing good music to Indonesia," Ahmad said.

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