Concord’s Wisely Joins Board of Directors, Selby Rises To Chief Publishing Executive

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Pictured: Jim Selby, Jake Wisely

Effective Jan. 1, 2021, Jake Wisely, partner and Chief Publishing Executive at Concord, will soon join the Board of Directors of Concord, the music and entertainment company he co-founded.

Wisely will pass the title of Chief Publishing Executive on to current Concord COO, Jim Selby, who will report to Concord CEO, Scott Pascucci. Wisely will remain a partner and shareholder in Concord and will maintain an advisory role in the day to day operations of Concord Music Publishing, while also maintaining the company’s Executive Member seat on the NMPA Board of Directors.

“The Concord Board of Directors and I are pleased to name Jim Selby as my successor,” said Wisely. “Since joining Concord in 2016, Jim has been an invaluable member of the team, helping to forge our discipline and culture, focusing on synergies between Concord businesses and maximizing value for all stakeholders. Jim is a consummate music fan, well-versed in our roster and catalog, and will ensure that Concord’s songwriters and composers are diligently served.”

Pascucci commented, “Concord would not be what it is today without Jake Wisely and The Bicycle Music Company. Jake was critical to the establishment of Bicycle as a world-class publishing operation, which then became the foundational platform for Concord along with Concord Music Group. Since the combination of those two companies in 2015, Jake has proven himself to be an extraordinary manager and strategic thinker, whose contributions have been invaluable in building the company through new partnerships and investments. I look forward to working with him in his new role as a member of the Concord Board of Directors.” He continued, “Jim was a natural choice when deciding who should guide Concord Music Publishing in its continued growth. He knows all areas of the Concord business, is a champion for our artists, songwriters and composers and will transition to Chief Publishing Executive seamlessly over the coming months. I am excited to see our publishing business flourish under his leadership.”

Selby rose to the position of COO at Concord after four years as GM overseeing Label Shared Services for imprints such as Concord Records, Craft, Fantasy, Fearless, KIDZ BOP, Loma Vista and Rounder, and then as Chief Revenue Officer. Born and raised in Canada, Selby spent 16 years at Naxos of America, where he was CEO from 2007 to 2014. He then joined Ole Media Management as the publisher’s SVP of Digital. Selby is a past member of the A2IM Board of Directors, where he was Chairman for two years, and has enjoyed direct involvement in more than 35 Grammy Award-winning projects.

“I am thrilled to carry on the work that Jake started at Concord Music Publishing,” said Selby. “It is an honor to serve our songwriters and composers as the industry forges ahead in the digital era during these challenging times. I want to thank Concord’s executive team and Board of Directors for their support through the years and the trust that they have bestowed on me to lead Concord Music Publishing.”

Concord Music Publishing will continue to grow and diversify its catalog and roster under Jim Selby through acquisition, investment and new signings. He will be supported by the global Concord Music Publishing executive team, including John Minch (President, International Publishing and executive in charge of Boosey & Hawkes), Kim Frankiewicz (EVP, Worldwide A&R), Duff Berschback (EVP, Business & Legal Affairs), Kent Hoskins (Chief Financial Officer), Brooke Primont (SVP, Sync) and Dana Siegel (SVP, Brand Management and Music Marketing), as well as a team of more than 200 creative and administrative music publishing and shared services employees.

Wisely first discussed building a music publishing business in 2004 with current Concord Chairman, Steve Smith, leading to the 2005 acquisition of The Bicycle Music Company. Operating as Bicycle over the following decade, Smith, Wisely and current Concord Chief Business Development Officer, Steven Salm, acquired numerous businesses and catalogs across both publishing and recorded music with the backing and support of Wood Creek Capital Management.

Bicycle merged with Concord Music Group in 2015, which began a period of seismic growth under current Concord CEO, Scott Pascucci, then operating as Concord Bicycle Music. The company acquired Razor & Tie in 2015 and Mexican label/publisher Musart/Edimusa in 2016. Imagem Music Group was acquired in 2017, including Boosey & Hawkes and Rodgers & Hammerstein. In 2018, Concord Bicycle, Imagem and Razor & Tie were merged and simply branded Concord, with three core business units: Concord Music Publishing, Concord Recorded Music and Concord Theatricals. In 2019, Concord acquired famed Latin Tropical label and publisher Fania and German classical music publisher Sikorski. In 2020, Concord acquired an interest in PULSE Music Group, forming an exclusive joint venture with an emphasis on new pop hits, purchased the song catalog of superstar band Imagine Dragons, and signed a trifecta of deals with Nashville hitmaker Hillary Lindsey, including a catalog purchase, co-publishing agreement and joint venture.

Kevin Jonas, Sr. Launches Nashville-based Publishing House Jonas Group Publishing (Exclusive)

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Pictured: Kevin Jonas, Sr. (Founder and CEO), Denise Jonas (Founder), Terri Jo Box (Songwriter), Roger Hodges (Artist Manager with Jonas Group Entertainment). Photo: Courtesy of Jonas Group Publishing

Jonas Group Entertainment, led by founder/CEO Kevin Jonas, Sr., has opened the Nashville-based publishing division, Jonas Group Publishing, with flagship writer Terri Jo Box.

The company will begin building out its publishing staff and signing more writers to the roster over the next year.

Jonas, Sr., 55, helped guide the early careers of his three sons, Kevin, Joe and Nick, collectively known as the superstar group the Jonas Brothers. The sibling trio rose to popularity via a series of Disney Channel shows, before releasing their 2007 self-titled album, which was certified Platinum. Last year, they returned to the spotlight with their first single in six years “Sucker,” which earned a Grammy nomination earlier this year for Best Pop/Duo Group Performance.

In 2005, Jonas, Sr. launched the talent management company Jonas Group Entertainment, which counts rock group PUBLIC, Melanie Pfirrman, LIVVIA, Mandy Harvey, Lucy Cloud, and author Shaina Kohli Russo on the roster.

Along the way, he co-wrote songs including Jonas Brothers’ “When You Look Me In The Eyes” and Michael W. Smith’s “I Still Have The Dream.”
However, Jonas, Sr.’s musical roots can be traced to Nashville. “My love of Nashville goes way back as a writer and an artist,” he says.

When Jonas was in high school, he began singing clubs and talent contests around Charlotte, North Carolina, performing country classics from Alabama and Kenny Rogers.

One of his fellow contestants in one of those North Carolina talent competitions was a young singer named Randy Traywick—who went on to find country music stardom by the name Randy Travis.

“I remember I would win the contest one week, he would win another week,” Jonas, Sr. said. “He beat me in the finals,” Jonas, Sr. adds.

Jonas, Sr. went on to enter Bible College, and he and his wife moved to Arizona. Still his sights were on music, and he would fly to Nashville and tried unsuccessfully at the time to break into the Nashville music scene. He and his wife soon started a family, and took on an early management role in his sons’ careers as they showed an early talent for music.

Having spent years managing artists to success in the Top 40 space, his love of country music comes full-circle with the new publishing venture. “I’ve always loved the craft of songwriting and I have so much respect for songwriters,” he says.

Flagship writer Box is known for co-writing songs such as Ashley McBryde’s “Bible and a .44” and Miranda Lambert’s “Dear Old Sun,” from her ACM-winning The Weight of These Wings double album.

“That’s the little song that could,” she says of “Bible and a .44.” “Ashley came in with all the pieces. It was her heart and the story about her dad. That song’s been a good run for us, since Eric Church did a live performance of it and Trisha Yearwood put it on her last record, and performed it with Patty Loveless. It’s funny because you go into work that day and write a song and you have no idea where the song is going to take you.”

Beginning in 2010, Box also owned and hosted the songwriters showcase Music Row Freakshow at Nashville venue The Local. Jonas, Sr. had traveled to Nashville numerous times during his career, and met Box through the writers’ round.

“I was amazed at the talent at this show,” Jonas, Sr. said. “She was a shepherd and encourager and emcee over this group and she also wrote incredible songs. I felt like she was a perfect choice as the leader for this group of people and to launch our publishing efforts in Nashville.”

Box began touring around Texas before moving to Nashville, and has been writing full-time for the past decade.

“The roots of Nashville we both have in country and CCM and the wings of Top 40 that he has, it was a no-brainer for me to have the best of both worlds, working with Kevin,” Box says. “He’s also focused on integrity, so that was another thing that drew me to being part of the company. They also set up my situation to where it didn’t look like a lot of deals, because I am able to have creative control in helping to build the company and consulting on writers and artists we work with. He has a long-term game plan. I’m excited about what we are building here in Nashville.”

Initially, Jonas Group Publishing will focus on country music but intends to add to the roster songwriters in various genres, including Contemporary Christian and rock/pop.

“I would love to find some of the incredible talent in the Christian world. I’ve been fortunate to have mainstream Top 40 success, but having a presence in church music and CCM music has been a lifetime passion of mine. But, the rising pop and alt-pop producers in Nashville also inspire me. There is a multi-genre story that is rising fast in Nashville and we want to be part of it.” Jonas, Sr. says.

Jacob Davis Inks Publishing Deal With UMPG Nashville (Exclusive)

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Jacob Davis. Photo: Katelyn Brown

Jacob Davis has signed an exclusive, worldwide publishing agreement with Universal Music Publishing Group Nashville. Davis earned his first No. 1 as a songwriter in 2019, as a co-writer on his brother Jordan Davis’ hit “Take It From Me,” which has earned more than 250 million streams. He also co-wrote Jordan Davis’ song “Detours.”

Terry Wakefield, Senior Vice President A&R, UMPG Nashville, said: “I have been friends with Jacob over the last four years, and I’m grateful we now have the opportunity to work together. Jacob is a dynamic songwriter and storyteller. We are thrilled to have him as part of the Universal family.”

Davis commented, “I’m over to moon be a part of the team that Troy [Tomlinson], Terry and rest of the staff is building at Universal. The excitement of that team overwhelmed me the first time I walked into the building…and it feels good to call it home.”

Jenn Schott Inks With RED Creative Group, Anthem Music Publishing

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Jenn Schott

Jenn Schott has signed a global publishing deal with RED Creative Group and Anthem Entertainment.

The Pittsburg, Kansas native has had songs recorded by Tim McGraw, Rascal Flatts, Eli Young Band, Pam Tillis, Francesca Battistelli, Mickey Guyton and many others. Schott co-wrote Mickey Guyton’s debut single, “Better Than You Left Me,” which was named one of Billboard’s 10 Best Country Songs of 2015, and also penned the title track of Tim McGraw’s Grammy-nominated album, Two Lanes of Freedom, which was the namesake of McGraw’s 2013 summer tour. She has already celebrated success in 2020 with the release of Tim McGraw’s “7500 OBO,” Rascal Flatts “Feel It In The Morning,” & LJ’s “Preachin.”

“Jenn’s songwriting has a depth and humility to it that will stand the test of time. Her talent, character and work ethic will continue to bring her success and we couldn’t be more thrilled to represent her,” said Jeremy Stover, President/Owner, RED Creative Group.

“Jenn is a powerhouse and we are excited to welcome her into the Anthem Entertainment and Red Creative family,” said Helen Murphy, CEO, Anthem Entertainment. “We look forward to more amazing songwriting from Jenn and to reaching new heights together with the Red Creative team.”

“I have so much respect for what Jeremy and Brooke have built at RED, and I’m so honored to be joining their team in partnership with Anthem. I’m grateful to both companies for their belief in me and can’t wait to see what we’ll accomplish together,” said Schott.

Warner Chappell Music Nashville, Tape Room Music Sign Taylor Phillips

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(L-R): Will Overton (WCM), Kelly Bolton (TR), Ashley Gorley (TR), Taylor Phillips, Ben Vaughn (WCM), Blain Rhodes (TR)

Warner Chappell Music Nashville and Tape Room Music have signed a global publishing deal with Taylor Phillips. The North Carolina native began working in Nashville in 2013. He has since landed three No. 1 hits, including “Homesick” and “Good as You” by Kane Brown, as well as “Hurricane” by Luke Combs.

Hipgnosis Acquires Big Deal Music Group

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Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited, the UK investment company, has acquired Big Deal Music Group. Big Deal Music will be rebranded to Hipgnosis Songs Group effective immediately.

Kenny MacPherson will act as CEO of Hipgnosis Songs Group and will report directly to Hipgnosis Songs’ Founder, and CEO of the Investment Adviser, Merck Mercuriadis. MacPherson is joined by Co-Presidents Casey Robison and Jamie Cerreta and Executive Vice President Dave Ayers (New York) as well as Senior Vice President Pete Robinson (Nashville), all of whom have signed new five-year contracts.

“Over the last two years it has been my privilege to assemble and work with a world class team of individuals of the highest calibre,” said Mercuriadis, Founder of Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited and The Family (Music) Limited. “With this acquisition, and following the appointment of Ted Cockle and Amy Thomson earlier this week, the scale and quality of people working with me to drive shareholder returns reaches new heights and sets our company on the path for the next chapter of its growth. This is a best in class team and we now have the resource to be on top of every song’s destiny all day every day and I’m delighted to welcome Kenny, Casey, Jamie, Dave, Pete and the other 30-plus new team members into the Hipgnosis Family.”

Founded in 2012 by MacPherson, Cerreta and Ayers, Big Deal Music Group has offices in Los Angeles, New York, and Nashville. Big Deal Music’s roster includes Teddy Geiger, Julian Bunetta, John Ryan, Joe London, Kamasi Washington, Sharon Van Etten, Sylvan Esso, Jake Sinclair, Dan Wilson, St Vincent and My Morning Jacket. The company has created and acquired a catalogue of over 4,400 songs, written by over 160 songwriters, and features songs achieving five Grammy Awards, 126 NMPA, BMI and ASCAP awards, and 27 Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certifications. Among the catalog songs are Shawn Mendes’ “Stitches,” ‘Treat You Better’ and “Mercy,” Thomas Rhett’s “Die A Happy Man,” Panic! At The Disco’s “High Hopes,” One Direction’s “Story of My Life,” and more than 30 other songs performed by the group; as well as Niall Horan’s “Slow Hands.”

Big Deal Music Group, significantly, also has a U.S. administration function through its Words & Music Brand which will be part of the rebranding as Hipgnosis Songs Group, effective immediately. In addition to in-house administration for Big Deal Music’s catalogue, Words & Music is also responsible for U.S. administration for several significant third party catalogues including Beggars Music, Mushroom Music Publishing, Gary Numan, Notable Music, Native Tongue, Goo Goo Dolls, Hootie & The Blowfish and Underworld.

“Collectively my partners and I have spent our careers identifying and nurturing some of the most iconic songwriters in contemporary music and creating value for our investors,” said Kenny MacPherson. “Over the last eight years at Big Deal Music my partners and I built a meaningful cultural legacy by assembling an incredible group of artists and label partners and world class songwriters. We look forward to bringing those creators and their enormous talent with us as we join Merck and his team at Hipgnosis. What Hipgnosis has assembled in such a short Mme is truly remarkable – a catalogue of over 13,000 compositions from some of the most important creators in the history of music. My team and I look forward to bringing all of our experience to bear to unlock more value in these catalogues and continue to build on the amazing work that Merck and his team have already done at Hipgnosis.”

BMI Announces Record Revenue Of $1.311 Billion

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Despite the unprecedented impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, BMI closed its fiscal year ended June 30 with $1.311 billion in revenue, a $28 million increase over the previous year. The company also distributed and administered $1.233 billion to its affiliated songwriters, composers and publishers, 3% or $37 million more than last year. For the fifth consecutive year, these results represent the highest reported public performance revenues and royalty distributions of any music rights organization in the world.

BMI President & CEO Mike O’Neill said, “During this unprecedented year, our songwriters and composers’ incredible creativity, talent and resilience were beyond compare and truly inspiring. We were thrilled to be able to distribute our highest royalties ever and deliver them earlier than scheduled to help ease the concerns of our creators and publishers during this challenging time. BMI remains committed to supporting our affiliates during this crisis and beyond, and our team continues to work hard every day to protect the profession of songwriting and composing and ensure the ongoing creation of new music.”

The $1.233 billion total in distributions includes domestic and international royalties, as well as distributions from direct deals that BMI administers on behalf of its publisher and digital service provider clients. Those direct deals, which account for $71 million, represent an increase of $9 million over last year and approximately 6% of BMI’s total distribution.

Though its revenue performance surpassed last year’s results, BMI estimates it absorbed a $60 million negative impact to its revenues due to the COVID -19 effect across multiple businesses. The company’s total domestic revenue, including digital, media and general licensing, came in at $961 million, an increase of $18 million, or 2%, over last year. Strong growth in the digital and radio categories helped weather a decline in other areas, notably the general licensing sector, where businesses such as live concert venues, bars, restaurants, fitness centers, retail establishments and many others faced closures as a result of the pandemic.

Revenue from digital sources represented 32% of BMI’s domestic total with $304 million, an increase of $42 million, or 16%, compared to last year. This marks the first time the digital category eclipsed all others. As people stayed home during the COVID-19 crisis, they turned to indoor entertainment which translated to increases in viewers and listeners. The company saw strong growth from subscription streaming services that feature TV series, movies and music. Notably, BMI entered into new digital audiovisual licensing agreements with Disney+, Apple TV+, HBO Max and Peacock this year.

Total domestic media licensing revenue, comprised of cable & satellite, broadcast television and radio, came in at $527 million, an increase of $14 million, or 3%, over last year. Of this, cable and satellite-derived income remained the largest contributor at $271 million. Radio revenues totaled $155 million, $27 million higher than last year, or an increase of 21%, thanks to BMI’s rate court settlement with the Radio Music Licensing Committee (RMLC) that resulted in a new agreement and retroactive payments. Broadcast television revenue came in at $101 million, flat to last year.

General licensing, along with other income, came in at $130 million, down $39 million, or 23%, from last year. BMI’s international revenue grew to $350 million, up $10 million, or 3%, over last year. This figure would have been $9 million more were it not for a negative foreign exchange impact.

BMI saw its affiliate membership increase by almost 10% this year, with nearly 100,000 new songwriters, composers and publishers joining the organization. Exciting new signings included Succession composer Nicholas Britell, Chance the Rapper, H.E.R., Tame Impala, Dave Mustaine, Juan Salinas and Oscar Salinas of Play-N-Skillz, and the late Pop Smoke, among others, while agreements were extended with Ellie Goulding, Elton John, Khalid, Marshmello, Willie Nelson, Ozuna, Horacio Palencia, Mike Post, Lil Wayne, John Williams, Bebe Winans, and many more. In addition, BMI’s number of licensed musical works grew to over 17 million.
This year, BMI processed approximately two trillion performances. While this number is slightly lower than last year’s total, this is only due to a change in BMI’s internal performance tracking system. The Company actually saw a 26% increase in performances processed when comparing year-over-year with this new approach.

Spirit Music Group Acquires Tim McGraw Master Recordings

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Tim McGraw

Spirit Music Group has acquired a number of Tim McGraw’s master recordings. The acquisition deal encompasses masters for three of McGraw’s albums: Two Lanes of Freedom (2013), Sundown Heaven Town (2014) and Damn Country Music (2015), all released via Big Machine Records and featuring some of McGraw’s top hits, including the No. 1, Grammy-winning “Highway Don’t Care” and his chart-topping “Humble and Kind,” which were also certified 3x multi-Platinum last week, moving McGraw’s total career RIAA certifications to 75 million. The deal with Spirit also includes the Platinum-certified “Shotgun Rider” and “Truck Yeah.”

“There are few artists in any genre of music who have had the level of success and impact that Tim McGraw has—we’re delighted to welcome Tim McGraw to the Spirit family and to represent his recording interests in some of country music’s most beloved songs,” said Jon Singer, Chairman, Spirit Music Group. “The entire Spirit team is honored to become an active partner in developing and protecting Tim’s incredible legacy of music.”

“Tim is one of the most prolific artists in country music and it is a unique opportunity to be able to acquire such a remarkable body of work in a competitive music rights market. We thank Tim for entrusting Lyric Capital Group and Spirit Music Group with his songs and are committed to doing our part to further build on the success of these master recordings,” said Ross Cameron, Partner, Lyric Capital Group.

“Tim McGraw is a timeless artist who makes timeless music. His recordings have helped shape the sound of country music,” said Frank Rogers, CEO, Spirit Music Nashville. “Spirit Music Group could not be more excited to partner with Tim to represent these amazing records that have become important threads in the fabric of country music history.”

“Jon, Ross, Frank and Spirit’s team have shown great dedication to protecting Tim’s body of work, and that laid the foundation for this deal. They understand the special place that Tim has in music and it’s great to be in business with them,” said Scott Siman, management, EM.Co Entertainment Management Company. “Tim and I are looking forward to working with them to find ways to continue to share the music with the fans.”

Though partnerships encompassing master recordings are rare for a music publisher, this is not the first time that Spirit has done such deals. The company also represents both the master and publishing for a portion of the catalog for T.Rex via Marc Bolan and recently announced it acquired the masters and publishing for the majority of the catalog of Ingrid Michaelson.

Major Bob Music Signs Ben Williams

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Pictured (L-R): Major Bob’s Chandler Thurston, Ben Williams, Major Bob’s Tina Crawford.

Major Bob Music has signed songwriter Ben Williams to a publishing agreement. Williams graduated from Belmont University in May and is excited for this next step in his career. Williams’ passion for songwriting comes from his love of lyrics.

“Country music is different. The lyrics, stories, clarity, truth, and ultimate feeling the music gives you inspires me to write every single day,” says Williams.

Williams also recently penned a pop/EDM single with artist Caroline Romano which was remixed by R3HAB, released in May, and is nearing 2 million streams.

Major Bob VP Tina Crawford says, “Ben’s passion for songwriting is paired with a hard work ethic and we are thrilled to start this journey with him.”

Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville Signs Jay Brunswick

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Jay Brunswick.

Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville has added songwriter/producer Jay Brunswick to its publishing roster.

The Pittsburgh native penned Brantley Gilbert’s new single “Hard Days,” which debuted at No. 37 on Billboard’s Hot Country Chart, and Reba McEntire’s latest single “Freedom.”

Sony/ATV Nashville CEO Rusty Gaston stated, “Jay Brunswick is an incredibly talented songwriter that continues to raise the bar for country music, and his career is just beginning to take off. Our entire team is thrilled to welcome Jay to the Sony/ATV family and to deliver the best opportunities for his songs.”

Brunswick said, “Sony/ATV has been nothing short of family to me over the last few years. Tom Luteran and I have been working to make this happen for some time now and the timing could not have been better. I have always wanted to write for both Sony/ATV and Rusty Gaston and now I have the chance to write for both under the same umbrella. I look forward to working with Tom and the rest of the powerhouse team at Sony/ATV and excited to see what the future holds for us all.”

Throughout his songwriting career, Brunswick has written top charting singles by prominent artists including “Beer Me” by Chris Janson, “Heartbreaker” and “American Nights” by Parmalee, “Everybody Lives” by Granger Smith, and “Always Been Me” and “You Ain’t Seen Country Yet” by Josh Thompson. He has also earned five Top 10 Canadian Chart hits such as Matt Lang’s “Water Down The Whiskey,” Jason Blaine’s “Born To Love,” and “What We Weren’t Looking For” by David James.

Recently, Brunswick has been working on several upcoming projects and is set to have songs recorded and released by Heath Sanders, Parmalee, and Jordan Rowe. He is also co-producing new music with rising country artists Patrick Murphy and Chancie Neal.