sony/atv
Executive Turntable: Sony/ATV Names Digital Prez, Sony Music Africa Hires Artist Dev Lead
Bebawi started his publishing career at EMI Music Publishing in Sept. 2005, when he joined as UK head of business affairs after serving as a partner at London-based media and entertainment law firm Harbottle and Lewis. During his time at EMI, he implemented a pioneering restructure of the company’s digital rights and launched the first publisher-led, Pan-European digital licensing initiative outside of the traditional collection society network. Bebawi was later promoted to European General Counsel and, after Sony/ATV acquired EMI in 2007, he joined the former as executive vp, digital and society relations, international and UK. Sony Music Entertainment Africa has enlisted Christine “Seven” Mosha to lead marketing and artist development for the East Africa region, effective immediate...
Sony/ATV Acquires River House Artists Catalogue of Country Works
Sony/ATV Nashville has acquired the catalogue for country specialist River House Artists, which includes Luke Combs’ hits “Forever After All,” “Beautiful Crazy,” “When It Rains It Pours,” and “Lovin’ On You.” In addition, the major music publisher signed a joint venture with River House Artists to provide creative services to its talent. The independent label and music publisher River House Artists was established in 2016 by veteran executive Lynn Oliver-Cline, who co-manages Combs. “Lynn’s intuition for identifying singer-songwriters who speak right to the heart of Country Music is second to none, and she knows how to turn their dreams into reality,” comments Sony/ATV Nashville CEO Rusty Gaston on the deal. “We’re proud to partner with Lynn and the River House team as we build a long and ...
Publishing Briefs: Rodney Jerkins Puts Hipgnosis Under His Spell, Primary Wave Acquires Stake in Devo
Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited has acquired the 982-song music catalog of four-time Grammy winner Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, who under the terms of the deal will also join Hipgnosis’ Investment Adviser’s Advisory Board. The agreement includes 100% of Jerkins’ writer’s share of income for his early works and 100% of his publishing interest and writer’s share of income for his later works. Jerkins’ long list of hits includes tracks for Mary J. Blige (“I Can’t Love You”), Brandy (“The Boy Is Mine”), Whiney Houston (“It’s Not Right But It’s Okay”), Destiny’s Child (“Say My Name”), Beyoncé (“Déjà Vu”), Spice Girls (“Holler”/”Let Love Lead the Way”), Michael Jackson (“You Rock My World”), Sam Smith (“Stay With Me”), Lady Gaga (“Telephone” feat. Beyoncé), Jennifer Lopez (“If You Had My Love”), Jus...
Halsey’s ‘Without Me’ Wins Song Of the Year at BMI Pop Awards; Khalid & Post Malone Share Songwriter of the Year
“We look forward to celebrating with everyone in person at next year’s ceremony,” said BMI’s Barbara Cane. “Without Me,” which was co-written by BMI writers Halsey and Delacey, was awarded song of the year at the 68th annual BMI Pop Awards. The single reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Halsey’s first No. 1 as a lead artist. It’s also the first song that Halsey wrote under her given name, Ashley Frangipane. Khalid and Post Malone shared the award for songwriter of the year at the event, which, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was held virtually. Both singer/songwriters co-wrote four of BMI’s top-performed songs of 2019 — in each case, three songs on which they were the lead (or co-lead) artist and one on which they were the featured artist. Khalid sc...
