123 Agency unveils ‘invigorated’ new team, label signings: Exclusive

As it reflects on its first five years, Damian Costin’s 123 Agency is gearing up for the next phase with an expanded artist roster and hungry new team.

The Melbourne-based independent music company adds Pinkish Blu, The Vanns and Hollow Cove to its new label, 123 Music, TIO can exclusively reveal, with all three acts due to drop releases in the coming months.

Pinkish Blu, the Adelaide indie-pop quartet, comes to the imprint with a handful of releases in the bank, including 2018’s ‘Capricorn’ and ‘Lovely,’ and the dreamy, nostalgic number ‘Superstar,’ which arrived last Friday.

Wollongong four-piece The Vanns let it rock on their 2018 single ‘How Was I Supposed To Know’ and their latest ‘Mother,’ lifted from their forthcoming debut album. They’ve been getting the word out on the road, thanks in part to support slots with Catfish and The Bottlemen, Hippo Campus and Ocean Alley.

The Vanns

Also new to the label is Hollow Coves, the rising Brisbane duo of Ryan Henderson and Matt Carins who’ve enjoyed the stamp of approval from Nettwerk chief Terry McBride and Billboard, which recently premiered their touching release ‘When We Were Young’.

Hollow Coves’ 11-track album Moments is due out Oct. 18, and they’re set to support it with a major European tour later this year.

“We have achieved a lot in the last five years,” notes Costin, pointing to the creation of several new companies, including VVV Mgmt and 123 Music, a joint venture launched last year with Sony Music with a remit to discover and deliver “cutting-edge” Aussie talent to a global audience.

The company started life with just two or three staff, and today numbers more than 15 employees. It’s a growing business coming off  a “mammoth year,” Costin explained, as he unveiled a “new invigorated team to take us into a new chapter for 123.”

Those fresh faces include agent Paul Lynch, who recently added Chiara Kickdrum, James Curd & DJ Kiti to his roster and specialises in touring international DJs.

Also, Vienna Bradley, who has served as a part-time agent and handled digital producer and agent assistant duties in recent years, became a full-time senior agent with 123 Agency earlier in 2019.

Will Hollonds, a former employee with Metropolis Touring and TEG Live, also joined as an agent this year, with a roster of both emerging talent and established acts.

Additionally, Mitch Ansell joins from marketing agency Bolster, and will take on duties as digital producer.

And finally, Xanthea O’Connor will be covering worksheet administration. O’Connor was associate producer for this year’s Brunswick Music Festival Industry Development Program.

Costin also noted gender parity is a core focus for 123 Agency:

“We are passionate about gender and cultural diversity, we are conscious of the role our organisation plays in the wider industry we strive for greatness in every respect.”

123 Agency will have a solid presence at next month’s Bigsound summit, where its artists Bakers Eddy, Nancie Schipper and Leonie Kingdom are set to showcase.

“We’ll have lots more to announce as a company shortly,” says Costin, “but for now we can’t wait to see everyone at Bigsound and enjoy the conference to see and hear what’s on offer.”

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.