On the heels of the release of his latest release WASTELAND, which earned him the No. 1 slot on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip Hop Album chart, Brent Faiyaz extended his worldwide publishing deal with PULSE Music Group. “We’ve been involved with Brent since the beginning,” says Ashley Calhoun, President PULSE Music Group. “PULSE was the first publishing company that Ty sent Brent’s music to, and as soon as I heard Brent’s voice I immediately knew that I had to work with him, so we moved quickly to close the deal in spring of 2016. Brent and Ty then reinvested the publishing advance back into their company, which made it possible for Brent to stay independent as an artist because he was able to support himself financially, use our recording studios, and focus on his music full-time.”
Matt Sorum
Reservoir Media has announced a new deal with Matt Sorum, ex-drummer for acts including Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver and The Cult. The deal includes the acquisition of his publishing and master rights as well as publishing rights for future works. Some of the tracks included in the deal are Gun N’ Roses’ cover of “Knocking on Heavens’ Door,” “November Rain,” “Don’t Cry” as well as Velvet Revolver’s “Slither” and “Fall to Pieces.” Sorum said of the deal, “I am very pleased to enter into this relationship with Reservoir. It is gratifying to know how much the Reservoir team appreciates my work. I am honored to have been in bands that have been such an important part of Rock N’ Roll history with catalogs that have stood the test of time.”
Sony Music Publishing has signed a new global publishing agreement with Em Beihold. As the writer of “Numb Little Bug” a viral pop hit, she has become one of the brightest new stars of 2022. Sony Music Publishing svp, creative Jennifer Knoepfle and creative coordinator Adam Ikner said, “Em is a natural born songwriter, with an innate understanding on how to succinctly translate her thoughts and emotions into a song.” Beihold added, “So many of my favorite artists who inspired me to start writing in the first place like Regina Spektor and Sara Bareilles are with [Sony] so it was a natural decision.”
Concord Music Publishing has signed a new global publishing deal with Tre Jean-Marie. Best known for his work on Mabel’s latest record About Last Night… and Anne-Marie’s album Therapy, Jean-Marie is a hitmaker who has influenced the sound of modern British pop. He has also worked with Burna Boy, Kaytranada, AJ Tracey, Labrinth, Galantis, Becky Hill, Meduza, David Guetta, Sam Ryder, Zara Larsson, Mimi Webb & Marshmello. Kim Frankiewicz, evp worldwide a&r at Concord Music Publishing says, “Tre has had an incredible couple of years and has set a new standard for great songwriting. His work ethic is infectious and along with his fantastic managers Ross and Jordan, we are very excited about what’s to come next.”
Stromae’s Mosaert, an independent label and publishing company, has signed a worldwide administration deal with Warner Chappell Music. The multi-faceted independent is run by Stromae, his wife Coralie Barbier, and his brother Luc Van Haver and founded in 2009 as a way to help Stromae retain freedom and independence as his career grew.Warner Chappell Music’s office, outside Belgium, will represent Stromae’s catalogue including his writer’s shares of his multi-Platinum selling albums Cheese, Racine carrée and Multitude.
Warner Chappell Music has signed a new deal with Brasko for worldwide co-publishing. Brasko is an up-and-coming songwriter, best known for penning Yungblud’s “The Funeral” and “Memories” and Casey Bishop’s “Bad Dream.” In a statement about the deal, Brasko says, “I spent half of the year meeting with publishers and really taking my time getting to know them… I’m happy to say I went with my gut on this one and it’s instantly felt like a team.”
The International Music Publishing Forum (IMPF), a global network for indie music publishers, has announced the election of publishing representatives to the board and audit committees of ZAiKS, the Polish Society of Authors and Composers. This is something the Polish music publishing association (PSWM), IMPF, and CISAC have been campaigning and working towards for 20 years. Approved by law in Sept. 2021, the elections recently took place, choosing Schubert Music Publishing’s Marta Zgzywa and Rebel Publishing’s Damian Słonina as members of the ZAiKS Board and ABKCO Music International’s Magdalena Cuprsyńska as the publisher member of ZAiKS’ audit committee. By achieving full member status with ZAiKS, music publishers will now be able to influence the management and direction of the society moving forward.
TaP Music has signed Rich Costey for management. A Grammy-winning producer and mixing engineer behind music from Charli XCX, The Foo Fighters, The Killers, HAIM, Keith Urban, My Chemical Romance, Major Lazer, Snoop Dog, Muse, Death Cab for Cutie, and more, Costey says he is “thrilled to become a part of the fanstic roster at TaP” which includes Lana Del Rey, Ellie Goulding, Noah Cyrus, Dermont Kennedy and Caroline Polachek. He will be supported by a team of René Symonds and TaP founders Ben Mawson and Ed Millett. Costey adds, “the whole team has an innate ability to comfortably ride the nexus between artist creativity and long-term careers. I feel lucky to be here.”
Simple Minds
BMG has acquired publishing rights, neighboring rights, and master royalties for Scottish rock group Simple Minds. The agreement was made between BMG and Simple Minds’ Jim Kerr and Charlie Burchill, including publishing for more than 240 songs across five albums, all of which hit the top of the charts in the U.K., as well as the neighboring rights and royalties for the group’s full recorded music catalog. This is the latest update in a years old partnership between BMG and Simple Minds. BMG has been the band’s publishing administrator in the past and even released their 2018 album Walk Between Worlds. This fall, BMG will release Simple Minds’ latest studio album Direction of the Heart, out Oct. 21, 2022.
Tommy Parker has signed a publishing partnership with 10K Projects, Champagne Therapy, and The Revels Group‘s newly launched publishing division Coup D’Etat Music. A multi-platinum selling producer and artist, Parker is best known for working on hits like “i n t e r l u d e” (J. Cole), “Stressed” (Young Thug) and “Love Language” (Ariana Grande) and more. This marks the first-ever publishing signing for Coup D’Etat Music. Parker says of the deal he “couldn’t be more excited to begin this new chapter and partnership with [his] new family.”
Global digital collection society AMRA has expanded its operations to license on behalf of its songwriters and publishers in Canada. Working alongside streaming services to settle mechanical licenses in Canada, AMRA began collecting for its members on April 1, 2022. Since its founding in 2015, AMRA has struck global licensing deals with more than 29 digital service providers that operate multi-territory services, covering 212 territories worldwide. AMRA CEO Tomas Ericsson says “the addition of Canada makes perfect sense and adds to AMRA’s ability to deliver added value and services to our clients.”
Warner Chappell Music has signed a deal with country singer-songwriter Tyler Chambers. His first publishing deal, Chambers calls the signing “a huge milestone in [his] career.” Before working with WCM, Chambers released his songs independently, including “Kiss Me Like That,” “I Saw Your Car,” “Work Hard Pray Harder” and his 2021 breakthrough “See That Summer.” Will Overton, a&r director, WCM Nashville says Chambers “has such a unique perspective in his songwriting that brings his story to life. It has been so fulfilling to watch his talent evolve and grow since we first met!”
Warner Chappell and Numbers Don’t Lie has signed a publishing administration deal with country-pop act Leah Marie Mason. Recently featured on the cover of Spotify’s Fresh Finds: Country playlist and newly signed to The Orchard/The 13th for distribution, Mason is, what Ryan Press, president, North America, WCM calls, “defining what the future of country-pop will look like with her powerful lyrics and social-first marketing tactics.”
Bucks Music Group has signed an administration deal with ROBA Music Publishing, one of Germany’s leading music publishers. The terms of the deal cover ROBA’s catalog — which includes Sven Väth, Scooter, ATB, Ben Böhmer, and Avec — in the U.K. and Eire. Bucks Music Group a&r James Paterson, says it’s a “privilege to be entrusted with its catalog of great works from a diverse roster.” Prof. Dr. Christian Baierle, md of ROBA, adds, “Our new association will bring even more benefits to our songwriters and producers, and we look forward to a long-term, fruitful relationship.”
