Warner Records has announced a strategic partnership with veteran executive Sickamore and his “creative institute,” Three Times Louder. The imprint will continue its partnership with SoundCloud; Sickamore will continue to work alongside Travis Scott and David Stromberg at Cactus Jack Management, where he co-manages Don Toliver.
Brooklyn-bred alternative R&B artist Laila will serve as the flagship artist for the Three Times Louder/ Warner Records partnership, who launches the partnership with her new single “Miss Mango.”
Sickamore said, “Laila is the exact archetype of an artist we dreamed of when starting Three Times Louder: resourceful, fearless, and infinitely creative,” said Sickamore. “In Warner Records, we have a partner who respects her autonomy and has the infrastructure to amplify her genius without compromise. I couldn’t be more excited for this partnership.”
Warner CEO-co-chairman Aaron Bay-Schuck added, “Sickamore’s reputation as one of the culture’s most important and impactful disruptors most definitely precedes him. He has served as a trusted confidant to some of the world’s biggest superstars. Now, the same acumen and vision underscore Three Times Louder. We’re excited to team up with him and to elevate it to the next level.”
(Pictured above, L-R: Tom Corson, COO-co-chairman, Warner Records Group; Sickamore; Laila; Bay-Schuck)
+ Veteran Scottish band Snow Patrol have signed a new global recording deal with BMG, covering the release of future studio recordings.
The first release sees Snow Patrol teaming up with pop superstar Kylie on the new single “These Alarms.” scheduled for July 1. The song was originally written with Kylie specifically in mind and initially recorded for the band’s 2024 album, “The Forest,” but tgroup decided to hold the track back until they could record it with her.
In a collective statement on the deal, Snow Patrol said: “We are delighted to be working with BMG. We’ve known Alistair and his team for a long time and he and everyone at the label have always been enthusiastic supporters and champions of music and creativity. We’re excited about working together on new SP music. We can’t wait to get started.”
BMG’s Alistair Norbury added, “Snow Patrol are one of the great songwriting bands of their generation. There’s a rare consistency to their work – songs built on emotional honesty that continue to resonate around the world. At BMG, we’re focused on long-term artist partnerships, and we’re proud to work with the band as they focus on new music and enter their next creative chapter.”
In addition to the new recording agreement, BMG represents the music publishing interests of band members Gary Lightbody and Nathan Connolly.
+ Country group Restless Road have announced a partnership with Empire, led by the company’s EVP and Nashville chief Jen Way. The partnership with Empire Nashville will launch on July 10 with the new single “Forever A Go.”
The band has toured with Brett Young, Kane Brown, Tim McGraw and Cole Swindell, and performed at such festivals as the U.K.’s C2C: Country to Country Music Festival, Stagecoach and CMA Fest.
+ Ticketing powerhouse AXS has announced the appointment of Sweta Patel as Chief Marketing Officer. In this new role, Patel will oversee AXS’s global marketing organization and focus on deepening fan engagement across digital and live touchpoints, enhancing partner value and driving demand generation. Patel will be based in Los Angeles and report to CEO Bryan Perez; she joins from Roku, where she was VP, head of marketing & merchandising.
“Sweta is a proven marketing leader with deep experience building global brands, scaling high-performing teams and connecting customer insight with measurable business impact,” said Perez. “Her background across technology, entertainment and subscription platforms makes her uniquely suited to help AXS strengthen how we grow, engage and retain our global database of fans and drive revenue opportunities for our partners.”
+ Merlin, the digital music licensing partner for the world’s leading independent labels and distributors, has appointed Harmen Hemminga as VP of business development. He joins from Downtown Music, where he most recently served as VP of product & services strategy. During more than nine years with Downtown and its subsidiary FUGA, he held a variety of senior roles spanning product strategy, licensing, partnerships and strategic projects. Previously, he held roles at the Dutch entertainment company ID&T / Headliner Entertainment, and also founded the music consultancy Creative Consortium.
Merlin CEO Charlie Lexton said, “Harmen is an innovative thinker who will play an important role in helping us create, identify and pursue opportunities that create meaningful value for our members around the world. He brings industry knowhow, strong commercial instincts and a proven track record of helping independent music businesses grow and adapt in a rapidly changing market. His experience both with labels and in distribution gives him invaluable perspective on the issues and opportunities our members face.”
Tuesday, June 30:
Singer-songwriter Ashe has signed with Atlantic Records and has struck a publishing deal with Doomsday/ Universal Music Publishing Group. She will be on tour this summer supporting Benson Boone. Last year she teamed up with Finneas as the Favors, with the duo releasing their debut album “The Dream”; her most recent solo album was 2024’s “Willson.”
“I feel like I’ve been waiting my whole career for the partnership I’ve found at Atlantic. Joining the label and this team was an effortless decision,” Ashe says. “From our first meeting, I felt uniquely understood. They’re thoughtful, intentional, and genuinely care. The fact that our first meeting involved tacos, cookies, and painting pottery told me they understood me. I’m immensely grateful to begin this next chapter with people I trust so deeply.”
+ Virgin Music Group, the independent distribution and artist-services wing of Universal Music Group, has today announced its new global and regional leadership team, bringing together senior executives from both Virgin Music Group and Downtown Music, which UMG acquired earlier this year.
VMG is organized into six key regions, with regional leaders reporting to VMG Co-CEO’s JT Myers and Nat Pastor. In their respective markets, VMG’s regional and country leaders have oversight of FUGA and Downtown Artist & Label Services’ local functions, with Downtown executives taking key positions as below.
North America is led by Jacqueline Saturn as President, North America & EVP Global Artist Relations. Sarah Landy is appointed SVP, Business Development, North America, reporting to Saturn.
LATAM is led by Victor González as President, LATAM, US Latin & Spain. Brazil and Portugal are led by Cris Falcao as President. Renato Vanzella is appointed Managing Director, Brazil, reporting to Falcao.
Europe is led by Nick Roden as President, Europe. Liz Northeast is appointed as SVP & General Manager, Europe, reporting to Roden.
Asia, Middle East, Africa are led by Michael Roe as Managing Director, AMEA. Australia and New Zealand are led by Nathan McLay as Managing Director.
In other VMG moves, Tom Allen has been named as Chief Technology Officer; Christiaan Kröner has been named EVP of Global Operations; David Driessen has been named Chief Product Officer; Matt Sawin has been named EVP, Physical & Direct-to-Fan Growth; Gareth Mellor has been named as SVP, Communications & Brand Strategy, while former Downtown Artist & Label Services President Ben Patterson will lead a new premier artist-focused enterprise in collaboration with VMG.
+ Singer-songwriter-actress Meg Donnelly has signed with WME for representation in all areas.
Donnelly is known for her roles in Disney’s musical “Zombies” franchise and the ABC sitcom “American Housewife.” This past year, Donnelly starred as Satine in “Moulin Rouge! The Musical “on Broadway. Her latest EP is titled “Dying Art.”
+ Firebird has launched a music catalog acquisition platform in partnership with global investment firm Ares and global investment and advisory firm the Raine Group, with more than $750 million available.
As part of the launch, Ares funds have also invested directly into Firebird and announced Jeevan Sagoo will be joining Firebird’s Board of Directors. “We believe Firebird’s innovative platform is helping artists build longer lasting, more impactful, and more profitable careers by investing in IP,” said Jeevan Sagoo, Managing Director at Ares.
+ Electric Feel Publishing and Sony Music Publishing have partnered to sign producer London Cyr, who has collaborated with Drake, Travis Scott, Young Thug, Doja Cat, Don Toliver, and more
“I am happy and blessed to be with Electric Feel and Sony Music Publishing. I have looked up to [Electric Feel founder-CEO] Austin Rosen’s approach to the music business for a long time, and I’m excited to work alongside both teams. I believe that together we can build something really special” says Cyr, who is managed by Forge Music Group and represented by the Zia Firm.
+ Sony Music Publishing Nashville, in partnership with Ace High Music, has signed songwriter-producer-artist Chris Sligh to a worldwide publishing deal. Sligh’s songs have been recorded by Rascal Flatts, Bailey Zimmerman, Nate Smith, Josh Ross, Austin Giorgio, and Mary Kutter, among many others.
“Ace High is the publishing company we as writers dream of – attentive and challenging; cheerleaders and critics when they need to be; friends and champions,” Sligh said. “Years ago, when I came back to music, my first dream publisher was Sony. I’m proud to call Ace High and Sony Music Publishing home!”
+ Amazon Music has hired Hrishikesh Aradhye as its new Vice President of Product and Tech. He will report directly to Ryan Redington, VP of Amazon Music.
Aradhye joins from Google, where he most recently served as Senior Director of Engineering leading YouTube Music and Podcasts. Earlier in his career, Hrishi spent time at Google Research pioneering computer vision and machine learning systems for YouTube and Android.
“The music industry is going through a tectonic shift that will unlock entirely new kinds of customer experiences through AI,” said Aradhye. “From my early days in research to building products used by hundreds of millions of people, I’ve learned that the most meaningful growth happens when you put yourself at the center rather than on the sidelines.”
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