Music Industry Moves: Sony Music Nashville Signs David J in Partnership with Ryan Tedder’s Runner Music

Sony Music Nashville has signed 19-year-old multi-instrumentalist David J, the label announced today. Runner Music and founder Ryan Tedder are joining in partnership with the SMN.

To celebrate the announcement, David J has released his latest track “Last Time.”

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A native of upstate New York, David J has earned 75 million career on-demand streams on his independent releases including “Lost My Heartbreak,” “Before You,” and “Stay,” all from his 2022 EP “Lost My Heartbreak.”

Having supported Blake Shelton, Mitchell Tenpenny, Chase Rice, Drake White and more on the road, David J is set for upcoming dates with Lauren Alaina and will appear at CMA Fest on Saturday, June 10. He is actively writing and recording new music with new releases coming soon.

David J is managed by Grey Area Music, operated by Joe Putnam, Sean Pace, and Collin McMillan, and represented by Sabrina Butera at CAA for booking.

+ Roc Nation has signed NOLA native and rapper RJAE, who simultaneously announces the release of a new single titled “Remember That” featuring A Boogie Wit A Hoodie. The new release previews RJAE’s upcoming album “You’re The Problem” with the lead focus track, “Too Gone,” featuring NBA YoungBoy, dropping June 16.

“We are excited to have RJAE join the team,” said Shari Bryant, co-president of Roc Nation label. “RJAE’s passion for his art, along with his versatility proves that he is an artist here to stay.”

“The only two words I can think of is blessed and surreal,” added RJAEl “I’m still trying to soak it all in. It’s crazy to think that someone can come up from where I’m from can find success like this.”

Fee Banks, CEO of Good Money Global and management veteran to the South’s biggest stars like Lil Wayne, Kevin Gates, YoungBoy alongside RJAE shared: “I’m really appreciative of having Roc Nation and Good Forever as dependable labels I can count on when it comes to making the right move for RJAE. We have a great chemistry between management and marketing, I feel those two things are vital to artist success backed by the Roc.”

+ Katelyn Tarver has signed to Nettwerk, coinciding with the release of her first single on the label “Starting to Scare Me,” and its accompanying music video directed by Skyler Brown (Ethel Cain, Royal & The Serpent).

Tarver is also scheduled to commence her first headlining tour on Sept. 6 in San Francisco, and her forthcoming sophomore album is slated for early 2024. Fellow Nettwerk pop artist Rosie Darling, as well as Australian singer-songwriter Jack Gray, will support on select dates.

Thursday, June 1

The Recording Academy has elected four National Officers and 19 leaders to its 2023-2024 Board of Trustees, the organization announced today. Tammy Hurt has been re-elected to serve as chair of the board of trustees, Chelsey Green was elected vice chair, Gebre Waddell was elected secretary/treasurer, and Christine Albert has been re-elected to serve as chair emeritus. The full list of the Academy’s Board of Trustees is below:

2023-2024 RECORDING ACADEMY BOARD OF TRUSTEES

*Elected or re-elected this year; bold identifies National Officers.

“I’m pleased to introduce and welcome the new National Officers and Trustees to our Academy family,” said CEO Harvey Mason Jr. “This great, new group reflects our eclectic music community and will carry forward our mission of serving all music people. I look forward to working alongside this esteemed group to continue the evolution of our Academy.”

According to the announcement, the National Officers lead the Trustees and Academy senior staff in partnership with Mason to guide and shape the mission and policies of the Academy and its affiliates. The Board of Trustees works to uphold the Academy’s mission to serve and represent the music community-at-large through its commitment to promote diversity, equity and inclusion, fight for creators’ rights, protect music people in need, preserve music’s history, and invest in its future.

+ Imperial and Republic Records have announced plans to expand their global partnership with South Korea’s JYP Entertainment to further support and develop its roster of K-pop acts Twice, Stray Kids, ITZY, NMIXX, Xdinary Heroes and others.

The three labels will collaborate on the entire JYP roster, including worldwide distribution of artists and catalog, A&R, marketing and business development.

+ Armada Music has promoted Madeleine van Schendel as chief growth officer; Jop Bonnike, formerly general manager, is promoted to chief operating officer, and Michel Peek is upped from head of publishing to general manager publishing. Additionally, Nadine van Bodegraven, formerly on the executive team, joins BEAT, Armada’s first dance music investment company, as chief operating officer.

“After twenty years of business, it’s humbling to see the growth that Armada Music has experienced,” said Maykel Piron, CEO and co-founder of Armada. “As we prepare to usher in a new era, assembling a team of experienced, creative minds will only help further solidify and empower our status as a powerhouse label and spring the company forward.”

Van Schendel previously served as a consultant for the label and was responsible for implementing Web3 and NFT strategies for Armada co-founder and global DJ and record producer, Armin van Buuren. As the new CGO at Armada, van Schendel provides support for growth initiatives, helping to reshape the organization.

Tuesday, May 30

Composer Nicholas Britell, who has scored films for Barry Jenkins (“Moonlight,” “If Beale Street Could Talk”) and Adam McKay (“The Big Short,” “Vice,” “Don’t Look Up”), as well as HBO’s “Succession,” has inked a new label services deal with Secretly Distribution.

The Emmy-winning composer, pianist and producer collaborated with Secretly to release “Succession: Season 4 (HBO Original Series Soundtrack)” on global streaming services — just hours after the highly-anticipated series finale aired — via the composer’s newly launched Lake George Music Group imprint.

“It has long been a dream of mine to release music through my own label, and I’m tremendously excited to have the final season of ‘Succession’ as our label’s first release,” said Britell in a statement. “Lake George Music Group is proud to partner with the team at Secretly.”

The company will work directly with the composer on a number of upcoming projects and campaigns as the latest addition to Secretly’s growing real estate in the world of music for film and television. They’ve previously distributed music for A24 (“Everything Everywhere All At Once”) and supported other artist-owned imprints including Sufjan Stevens’ Asthmatic Kitty, Sylvan Esso’s Psychic Hotline, Dr. Dog’s We Buy Gold Records.

+ Managers Jack Babnew and Max Dubois have joined James Vitalo’s Los Angeles-based Gold Theory Artists, which manages rock acts such as Turnstile and Knocked Loose.

Commenting on the additions of Babnew and Dubois, Vitalo added, “When I set out to start Gold Theory, I knew I wanted to eventually expand beyond myself and my team to include other managers, but only those that felt aligned with the company’s ethos and possess the same all-or-nothing mentality. I’ve seen both Max and Jack’s work over the years and deeply respect their knowledge of and passion for the industry, so it was a no-brainer to bring them into the fold when the stars aligned. I couldn’t be more excited to work with them, continue to serve and support our artists, and propel Gold Theory into its next phase.”

Joining from a seven-year stint at TMWRK, Babnew will co-manage new Gold Theory client Beach Fossils alongside Vitalo. Dubois began his career working at WME for artists such as Outkast and Nine Inch Nails. In 2020, he launched his own artist management company working with clients Hana Vu and julie, which he brings along with him to Gold Theory where he will also co-manage new clients Deafheaven and MSPAINT alongside Vitalo.

+ SESAC has upped Erin Collins from vice president, film/TV and developing media to senior VP, film/TV creative services, where she will continue to report to president and COO Scott Jungmichel.

“We are thrilled to announce this new role for Erin,” said Jungmichel. “She is instrumental in supporting and fostering relationships with our creative community and her unwavering support of our affiliates does not go unnoticed.”

Collins will continue to oversee SESAC’s network of composers and publishers including Christophe Beck, Danny Lux, Randy Newman, and many more.

+ Wu-Tang Clan and De La Soul have partnered with HiNOTE — a custom video service platform — for their upcoming 20+ date tour later this fall. The partnership will allow fans to purchase personalized videos from the artists at the same time they are buying tickets via Ticketmaster.

HiNOTE Founder Tyler Childs adds, “Since our launch, HiNOTE has been growing in popularity with both artists and fans but we feel it will be a real game changer for touring artists who may not have the bandwidth for meet-and-greets before the show. And for fans, HiNOTE gives them a custom video that they can share with their friends and family and on social media which is far more meaningful than a quick photo backstage. Having Ticketmaster make it a seamless part of the ticket-buying experience makes it so easy for fans to take advantage of this cool new experience.”

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