A&R WORLDWIDE INDUSTRY SHOWCASE COMES TO LONDON “CALI- STYLE”
GEMA & BMG ANNOUNCE ANGLO-AMERICAN DEAL
U.K. TEEN SENSATION GARNERS EARLY A&R INTEREST
PPL ANNOUNCES MULTI-NATION EUROPEAN DEAL
NORWAY’S ANJA “ARTIST OF THE WEEK”
AUSTRALIA’S SAN CISCO “VIDEO OF THE WEEK”
GLOBAL MUSIC NEWS UPDATES
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U.S. SENSATION CALI TO SHOWCASE IN LONDON
Unsigned 22-year-old singer/songwriter Cali (www.officialcali.com) who hails from Seattle, WA and now resides in Dublin, Ireland has been turning A&R and publishing ears worldwide with her captivating vocal style, unforgettable melodies and Marilyn Monroe-style good looks.
Cali recently secured representation in the US with a leading talent agency after her MUSEXPO showcase, as well as a global synch with one of the world’s biggest gaming franchises. Fan and industry reaction has been very strong, which has led to Cali being invited to showcase in London on Monday June 11th at 7.15PM at 229 The Venue, located at 229 Great Portland Street, London W1W 5PN for an official A&R Worldwide industry showcase.
A&R Worldwide Founder Sat Bisla who was instrumental in helping with the early support, development and/or signing of female acts such as songwriter and artist Bonnie McKee to Warner Bros. (McKee helped write several hit singles for Katy Perry on her latest album), Missy Higgins, Dido, Adele, Frou Frou (featuring Imogen Heap), Laura Izibor, Nova Delai (signed to a worldwide deal with Sony last week) and many others stated, “An artist like Cali comes through once in a very long-time. She is amazingly talented!”
A trained jazz musician, Cali fuses those skills with her passion for soul and hip-hop, drawing inspiration from both classic greats such as Billie Holliday, Ella Fitzgerald, Shirley Bassey, and Sam Cooke along with such modern-day progenitors as Lauryn Hill and Amy Winehouse.
At the tender age of 14 Cali's passion for soul was ignited when her father introduced her to the music of Dusty Springfield. Completely enthralled by Dusty’s voice and music, Cali set her mind to becoming a singer and entertainer. A chance meeting with super soul music arranger/producer Misreid at Legacy Studios in New York in 2009 was the start of the musical journey for Cali. Together the pair formed a sound legacy reminiscent of both their classic jazz and soul backgrounds, enlisting some seasoned session musicians to bring their shared musical vision to reality over the past twelve months. Cali is currently in the studio putting finishes touches to her debut album, with initial single, “Outta My Mind,” due in early 2012.
Cali is managed worldwide by Henrik Hansen (hwh@blackbeesound.com) and Stella Reid (s.reid@horpinc.com). UK A&R, publishers, agents, promoters, radio and media wishing to attend Cali’s showcase on Monday June 11th at 7:15PM should RSVP no later than Wednesday June 6th to info@anrworldwide.com.
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BMG & GEMA REACH LICENSING DEAL FOR ANGLO-AMERICAN CONTENT
BMG Rights Management and GEMA have reached an agreement which will simplify the licensing and administration of online rights for BMG’s Anglo-American repertoire across Europe. The cooperation is scheduled to start operations on July 1, 2012. It means digital service providers can now acquire licenses for BMG’s Anglo-American repertoire for all of Europe directly through GEMA. The service will particularly benefit cross-border digital music services.
BMG was founded in 2008 with a business model designed specifically to help both music artists and writers and music users make the most of today’s digital landscape. After several acquisitions and numerous international signings, BMG has assembled a strong catalogue of Anglo-American rights within just over three years. BMG believes that its new cooperation with GEMA will offer both music creators and users considerable advantages in rights administration.
As one of the leading copyright administration organizations worldwide, GEMA (in conjunction with PRS for Music) already administers the Anglo-American mechanical repertoire of EMI Music Publishing under the CELAS banner, and the Anglo-American mechanical repertoire of Sony/ATV under the name of PAECOL. With the agreement announced today, GEMA now has one of the most attractive catalogues of music rights in the online area, which can be offered to national as well as foreign online users as part of its Pan-European licensing programme.
Hartwig Masuch, CEO of BMG stated, “BMG is a start-up of the digital age, and we see technology primarily as an opportunity for the music industry. This cooperation with GEMA is an important step in the right direction, offering digital service providers one-stop licensing of our Anglo-American repertoire across Europe. The advantages include easier access to our repertoire for digital music service providers and simplified, more transparent and faster accounting for our songwriters.”
Dr. Harald Heker, Chairman of GEMA’s Executive Board added, “The signing of the agreement shows once again how much copyright holders trust GEMA. We are very pleased with the agreement with BMG Rights Management. Through this additional cooperation for the licensing and administration of mechanical online rights in all of Europe, GEMA is in the best position to grant rights in the online area, which has a promising future.”
Laurent Hubert, President Creative & Marketing, BMG North America added “Simplifying the licensing process and speeding up payment to writers is one part of the picture, but of equal importance is the ability the deal gives us to actively seek out new opportunities and experiment with new business models. This deal is about unlocking the enormous potential of music’s digital future.”
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NICK CELION GARNERS INT’L INTEREST
The U.K.’s bright new musical hope is 16 year-old Nick Celino from Newcastle, England who has been described by his representatives as one of Britain’s best new talents to emanate from across the Atlantic in quite some time.
Celino has been provoking serious industry interest with his debut unreleased track, “Elusive,” which has been tipped as brilliant by some industry insiders and recently began picking up some national airplay in the UK. The record has all the hallmarks of a classic record It’s a riveting acoustic ballad with edge and epic orchestration and with some additional driving production and rhythm courtesy of the hit production team Craze & Hoax producers of Emeli Sande and legendary record producer Nick Patrick (his credits include Marvin Gaye amongst others).
Celino is being nurtured and developed by Jeff Chegwin and Nick Patrick and is the latest signing to their production company Chegwin Patrick Productions. Chegwin and Patrick’s last collaboration, The Soldiers, sold over one million records in the UK.
Jeff Chegwin tells A&R Worldwide, “I have never in my life heard a 16 year-old with such an incredible distinctive voice.” Nick Patrick added, “Nick Celino has a voice to touch the soul with a beauty and vulnerability way beyond his years.”
Celino’s management are seeking an album deal which reflects his potential and are open to discussions with labels, licensing partners, publishers and agents in territories worldwide. For more information contact Jeff Chegwin at jeffchegwin@hotmail.com. To see Nick Celino’s unreleased music video, click HERE.
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PPL SIGNS SIX NATION AGREEMENT IN EUROPE
UK-based music licensing company PPL has announced that it has secured six new licensing agreements in European markets that include Croatia, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania and Portugal.
The agreement will allow PPL-registered performers to receive money when their content is used in these countries. PPL will also pay out to performers from these countries when their songs are played in the UK.
Laurence Oxenbury, Director of International, PPL stated, “Signing these new agreements with our European counterparts is great news and shows our commitment to maximizing the rights of our members.”
“We already cover a significant part of the global market by value of collections; we are now looking to fill in the gaps and ensure that our members are being paid from all of the smaller markets. 2012 is already shaping up to be a very encouraging year.”
As reported in Music Week recently, PPL made the largest single payment of international royalties it has ever made in March 2012. Almost ฃ10million ($15.7 million USD) of revenue was distributed from 18 different countries including Denmark, Sweden, USA, Brazil, Japan and Canada as well as the first ever payment from Latvia for both performer and rights holder members.
“The record payout for March is a testament to the level of service we provide at PPL,” said Laurence. “Our team has worked incredibly hard to ensure this has happened and we also could not have done it without the co-operation of our counterparts around the world so offer our thanks to them.”
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GLOBAL NEWS UPDATES…
Warner Music Group head Len Blavatni is currently expanding his search for a new CEO, according to the New York Post, to replace Stephen Cooper. Cooper runs his own company, but has also been helping to overhaul Warner on cost-cutting measures and slimming down the company.
BMG Rights Management has acquired leading French independent music company Francis Dreyfus Music, giving it access to songs and master recordings by artists such as Jean-Michel Jarre. The acquisition was made for an undisclosed amount and takes in the Disques Motors, FDM and Dreyfus Jazz publishing and recording catalogues and includes Jarre albums such as Oxygène, Équinoxe and Chants Magnètiques. The purchase also takes in works by French singer and songwriter Christophe, among them Les Morts Bleus, Aline, Success Fou and Les Paradis Perdus.
BMG Chrysalis US announced this week that it has renewed its exclusive worldwide administration agreement with The Pokémon Company International. Since Pokémon’s North American arrival in 1998, BMG Chrysalis US has managed various needs for the brand, including cue sheet preparation, ensuring public performance monies are received throughout the world, and selecting musicians and compiling soundtrack albums for the Pokémon animated television series. Pokémon is one of the most popular children’s entertainment properties in the world, offering video games, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, and animation.
Roc Nation Management in the US has announced the signing of MIA to their roster. Roc Nations currently manages artists such as Shakira, Rihanna, Santigold and Mark Ronson. MIA’s fourth studio album, Matangi, is scheduled for release in the autumn.
Last month, the photo application Instagram was purchased by Facebook for $1 billion. Last week, Facebook launched the Facebook Camera for iOS. This application was being developed before Instagram was purchased and now gives a glimpse of how Facebook was planning to compete against the start up. Although early reviews are still stating that the Facebook Camera is not as good as Instagram, there have also been unconfirmed rumors that the free version of the Instagram application may be obsolete by the end of 2012.
BMG has announced the signing of Matteo Capreoli to an exclusive worldwide songwriter agreement with BMG Germany. Matteo’s German lyrics are backed with folk-soul, reggae and pop music, making him a musician with truly unique sound.
Jimmy Steal, Emmis VP of Programming and PD of KPWR “Power 106” Los Angeles has added the Digital PD title for Emmis Digital. The announcement was made by Emmis Digital VP, Angie May-Cook last week. Steal's role in this position will be to continue to build and grow the digital audience and increase the engagement with the audience.
The respected independent South African label Just Music has informed A&R Worldwide that it has just signed the talented indie-alt act Dance You’re On Fire from Joahnnesburg. Just Music distributes labels such as XL, Beggars, Glassnote, Mute and others in South Africa.
Critically acclaimed British artist Ghostpoet has signed a worldwide deal with Play it Again Sam. The agreement will see Play It Again Sam working closely with Ghostpoet on all areas of the artist’s development, with a sophomore album chalked for release in 2013. Recording will begin over summer, with some exciting collaborations in the pipeline. Originally signed to Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood Recordings, Ghostpoet’s first album, Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam, was nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2011.
WKQX Q87.7 Chicago, who recently switched to Alternative, names PJ as the Program Director. PJ was most recently the Interim OM of WLUP 97.9FM Classic Rock, the sister station of Q87.7FM.
One of the most iconic rock bands of all time, Black Sabbath, has signed with one of the world’s leading music merchandising company’s, Bravado, a division of Universal Music Group.
twofour54 ibtikar has announced it is supporting a music publishing and music rights consultancy called PopArabia, which has secured agreements to become the exclusive representative in the Arab World for Universal Music Publishing Group, the Universal Production Music Library, and Imagem Music Group, the world’s largest independent music publisher. This will give PopArabia exclusive management rights to millions of titles, driving the development of a sustainable commercial music industry in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Hello (again) Cleveland! Clear Channel Radio brought back Alternative music to Cleveland last week with the launch of 99X. The station brings the format back to the city ever since WKRK switched formats to Sports Radio last August. The new station 99X is located at 99.1 FM and on the WMMS-HD2 channel. Bo Matthews, current PD of Cleveland's Top 40 WAKS, has been named the PD of 99X.
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Colin Lester, Emma Banks, Carter Armstrong, John Cloud, Andrea Ruffalo, Thorsten Koenig, Paul Samuels, Mark Wood, Rob Prinz, John Sykes, Karl Anderson, Mamie Coleman, Jimmy Steal and Alexandra Patsavas.
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JACKASS OF THE WEEK
Have you ever sent a personal IM to the wrong screen name, accidentally replied “send all” on an E-mail, or made a total ass of yourself? Yes, we’ve all had a jackass moment at one time or another in our life. This week, we show you a collection of idiots for the spring. Click HERE to watch this selection of human fails!
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A&R WORLDWIDE’S "ARTIST OF THE WEEK" – ANJA
“Follow Your Dreams.” The familiar saying tattooed onto ANJA’s right arm tells the unlikely story of her life. Growing up in the Norwegian countryside, the Scandinavian-born songstress was raised far from the pulse of mainstream pop culture. And in a village that didn’t see singing as a proper job, even farther from the likelihood of ever becoming a part of it. Now, with her first two singles “Dance All Nite” and “Baby Don’t Stop Now” featured on the over 8 million copies sold of game maker Ubisoft’s Just Dance 3, she’s turning her dreams into a reality. ANJA traveled a long road prior to landing a contract with Ubisoft Music. She graduated from Liverpool’s prestigious Paul McCartney School, juggled gigs like London Fashion Week and the MTV European Music Awards with singing on a cruise ship, and covered Michael Jackson’s Los Angeles funeral for a Norwegian music magazine. Before Ubisoft discovered ANJA’s demo, she had saved up money and followed her dreams to Los Angeles. Before long, she found herself homeless, living in hostels and motels between tireless auditioning. Just a year later, she would see her name among artists like Britney Spears, Katy Perry and Beyonc้ on Just Dance 3, part of a franchise that has sold over 28 million copies worldwide. In April of 2012, ANJA released her debut music video for “Dance All Nite.” She is currently working with Ubisoft Music and Circle Road Records to record her first album in Montreal. It will be released in the fall of 2012. To listen to “Dance All Nite,” click HERE.
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A&R WORLDWIDE’S "VIDEO OF THE WEEK" – SAN CISCO
Western Australia's San Cisco is the epitome of low-fi garage pop, filled with energy and bright, catchy hooks along with intelligent songwriting. Formed in 2009, the Fremantle quartet composed of Jordi Davieson (guitar, lead vocals), Josh Biondillo (guitar, vocals), Nick Gardner (bass) and Scarlett Stevens (drums, vocals) signed to Albert Productions, home of AC/DC and Megan Washington, in November of last year. They recorded their sophomore EP, Awkward, with producer Steve Schram (Little Red, Cat Empire, Little Birdy), with the title track as the first offering. "Awkward" is a call and response song between lead singer Jordi Davieson and drummer Scarlett Stevens which is completely fictional, according to the band. San Cisco has been busy gigging in the last year with showcases at both the FUSE Festival in Adelaide and Big Sound in Brisbane. They’ve also performed at Big Day Out, Laneway, Groovin’ the Moo and even supported the likes of The Grates, Architecture in Helsinki and Kimbra. The video to “Awkward” is currently available online and stays true to the bands low-fi reputation. The two and a half minute clip has over a million views to date on YouTube and can be seen here. The band is currently available for signing, licensing and booking in multiple territories. Contact info@anrworldwide.com for more details.
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PASSPORT APPROVED™ PLAYLIST – 5/27/2012
“PASSPORT APPROVED” PLAYLIST FOR Saturday, May 27th 2012: The two-hour weekly import show. As heard on KCSN “88.5FM” Los Angeles; KNRK Portland (now with a “Passport Approved Daily” segment on KNRK Portland); KCMP “The Current, Minneapolis; WCNR Charlottesville, VA; “YRockOnXPN” WXPN Philadelphia; WEQX Manchester, VT/Albany, NY and on www.indie1031.com and www.moheak.com in the United States. Also, on the worldwide web and twice weekly segment on Flux FM Germany (Berlin, Brandenburg and Stuttgart), Allgauhit-FM Bavaria Germany, Euro Trash Music South Africa, as well as, a regular feature on Japan’s national radio network Tokyo FM.
Listen to this two-hour show by clicking HERE:
CITIZENS! “(I'm In Love With Your) Girlfriend” (Kitsune, UK)
ALL THE COLOURS “Love Like This” (Unsigned, Australia)
NINA NESBITT “Apple Tree” (Unsigned,UK)
SHIELDS “All I Know” (Unsigned, UK)
THE CHEVIN “Borderland” (SO Recordings, UK)
FRIENDS OF EMMET “13th Floor” (Unsigned, Ireland)
YOUNG LYRE “Make Light” (Unsigned/Kiwi Hit Disc 147, New Zealand)
RACHEL SERMANNI “The Fog” (Unsigned, Scotland)
KEYWEST “In The Fight For Love” (Alphastar, Ireland)
SAN CISCO “Awkward” (Unsigned, Australia)
BOY “Little Numbers” (Unsigned, Germany)
CARO EMERALD “Back It Up” (Grandmono, Netherlands)
DR ALBAN “Freedom (Mr Bubblehead Remix)” (Playground, Sweden)
THE TEMPER TRAP “This Isn’t Happiness” (Liberation Music PTY, Australia)
JULIANA DOWN “Empires” (Unsigned, Dubai)
SIMIAN GHOST “Wolf Girl” (Playground, Sweden)
VIERKANTTRELAGER “Das Neue Gold” (Unter Schafen Records, Germany)
CALI “Yours Always” (Unsigned, Ireland)
THOMAS AZIER “Red Eyes” (BMG Rights, Germany)
THE CONCEPT “D-D-Dance” (Unsigned, Sweden)
NIAS “She Would” (Snowhite, Germany)
MUSEUM OF BELLAS ARTES “Watch The Glow” (Force Majeure, Sweden)
LADYHAWKE “Sunday Drive” (Island, New Zealand)
MIDNIGHT YOUTH “Come One Come All” (NZ On Air/Warner Bros. New Zealand)
U.T.R.B “Pressure” (Unsigned, UK)
WARSONIC “Chemical Imbalance” (RDF/DEAG, Poland)
GIN WIGMORE “If Only” (Island Records, New Zealand)
WHO MADE WHO “Inside World” (Kompakt, Denmark)
ANIMAL KINGDOM “Strange Attractor” (Boom Box/Mom+Pop, UK)
(Check out the Passport Approved Radio “Featured Artists” on the daily profile exclusively on AllAccess.com including Dane Rumble, Junica, ZPYZ and The Feelers).
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