New Signings & Team-Ups: July 5

Kelly Clarkson joins Warner Music

The next album by US country singer Kelly Clarkson (pictured), who tours Australia in December with Keith Urban, is through Warner Music Australia. It is part of a new worldwide deal with Atlantic Records. In the week before the Atlantic deal was made public, Clarkson teased fans by posting on Facebook live versions of Atlantic hits as Otis Redding’s These Arms of Mine, Foreigner’s I Want To Know What Love Is, Aretha Franklin’s Giving Him Something He Can Feel and Gnarls Barkley’s Crazy.

Since winning American Idol, Clarkson says she entered partnerships “that sometimes worked out and sometimes resulted in the hardest experiences of my life. The loyalty, innovation, and creativeness that Atlantic Records has been consistently bringing to the music industry is incredibly exciting for any artist to be a part of! We have already started creating a record that I have been wanting to make since I was a little girl, and a record that fans have been asking me to make for years. Here’s to the future!”

BMG acquires New York indie The End Records

BMG’s latest record label acquisition is New York based The End Records. Set up in 1988 by CEO Andreas Katsambas, its roster has included Better Than Ezra, Billy Talent, Dead Letter Circus, Everclear, HIM, Hinder, Petula Clark, Terrorizer, The Zombies, American Sharks and Trapt.

Under the BMG deal, The End will retain its staff and offices. Upcoming releases include Billy Talent’s fifth album Afraid Of Heights. In the past two years, BMG has acquired S-Curve Records, Vagrant Records and Rise Records.

123 Agency adds Nathaniel to roster

123 Agency’s latest roster addition is Melbourne-based genre-hopping singer songwriter Nathaniel. Born in Cape Town, South Africa, and moving to Australia with his family at the age of six, his soulful voice made a national impact when he entered the Top 6 of The X Factor. In 2013, his debut single You went Top 5, following its multi-platinum success with Live Louder. Two years he opened on Mariah Carey’s tour, after which he released his Top 5 debut album Yours.

Nathaniel says he’s ready to step up to the never level of his career, working with international writers and producers. “I don’t believe in limitations”, he emphasises “I’m a big dreamer, so I want to keep pushing myself.”

Metallica become face of Brioni menswear

Metallica are the face(s) of luxury Italian menswear Brioni’s campaign for its latest collection. The band sport tuxedos, suits and sunglasses with black-and-white photos taken by Zackery Michael as a group and individually. Their positioning was inspired by the iconic cover of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody.

Abbey Stone pacts a Virgin deal

Melbourne singer/songwriter Abbey Stone is featuring in Virgin Australia’s in-flight entertainment on all domestic and international flights, in a promotion with South Australian Tourism and Virgin Australia. Stone’s show was filmed in the Virgin Lounge at Melbourne Airport four months ago. From that, her original song I’m Still Here was picked up to be placed with nine other young Australian artists on all flights. Stone and her entourage have long picked on Virgin as their preferred airline.

Stone has been flitting between New York, Nashville, Los Angeles and Australia writing and recording. Her US shows have included slots at Nashville’s Bluebird Café and Antiques Archaeology and New York’s Apollo Theatre. At home she is about to headline the Queen Victoria Night Market. She is endorsed by Kawai Pianos and Fender Guitars.

Australia’s Tuned Global creates free app for Indonesia

Australian music mobile engagement company Tuned Global has created Indonesia’s first free music app Nada Kita. With an office in Jakarta, the app stems from Tuned Global’s partnerships with independent labels in the region, as Aquarius Musikindo, Musica Studio’s, MyMusic, Nagaswara, Trinity and VMC.

Nada Kita has several curated stations from local music editors and has a focus on artist engagement. Performers can record video messages for fans that play between tracks, with pans to list concert dates and offer live performances. The app is pre-loaded on new smartphones by phone manufacturer SPC Mobile, and also available on Google Play and the Apple App Store in Indonesia. It will give musicians and labels a share of royalties via advertising and sponsorship..

“Tuned Global and the labels have listened to the concerns of Indonesian people regarding music streaming, to design a music app that is fast and attractive for users,” said Con Raso, Managing Director of Tuned Global.

CGU Insurance comes to Tropfest rescue

After a virtual collapsing last year, short film festival Tropfest (which has a music score component) will return to Sydney’s Centennial Park on February 11, 2017, to mark its 25^th anniversary. It has signed a multi-year sponsorship deal with CGU Insurance and got famed director George Miller onto its board.

In the meantime, Tropfest NZ now looks like going ahead in 2017 after all. The fifth instalment is scheduled for February 18 at the TSB Bowl of Brooklands in New Plymouth. After being axed just last month because of a lack of funds, said its CEO Suzanne Porter, screen production company South Pacific Pictures and Ventura Taranaki have come aboard. The Taranaki Arts Festival Trust runs Tropfest NZ, along with WOMAD NZ and the Taranaki International Arts Festival.

Charlie Puth assigns management to Maverick

Grammy-nominated US singer Charlie Puth has signed with Ron Laffitte at the Maverick management consortium. Puth’s collaboration with Wiz Khalifa, See You Again, hit #1 in the US. Laffitte’s other clients are Pharrell Williams, OneRepublic and Backstreet Boys. Puth was previously managed by Troy Carter of Atom Factory who recently got an executive role at Spotify

Remote Control gets Lucy Dacus for ANZ

Remote Control Records has acquired the Australian and New Zealand rights to US indie-rock singer songwriter Lucy Dacus through her new deal with Matador Records. The 21-year old from Richmond, Virginia, made an impact Stateside this year with her critically acclaimed debut album No Burden. “One of 2016’s best indie rock debuts,” declared Rolling Stone. “An amazing breath of fresh air in an otherwise overwrought genre” offered Noisey. Out digitally now, the album gets a local CD and vinyl LP release on September 9.

Beyond The Valley partners with AIME

The Beyond The Valley festival has announced a partnership with AIME (Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience). Every ticket sold to this year’s event will see $1 going toward the advancement of this enterprise, along with mentoring opportunities and coveted festival slots on offer.

AIME is a structured educational program proven to support Indigenous students through high school and into university, employment or further education at the same rate as every Australian child – effectively closing the gap in educational outcomes. Beth Zucker from AIME explains, “This partnership supports AIME’s goal of seeing 10,000 Indigenous kids through school each year by 2018. By buying a ticket to Beyond the Valley, you’re helping to build the next generation of Indigenous leaders.”

Beyond The Valley’s Filippo Palermo adds, “We’re extremely excited to be partnering with the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience group. This ongoing partnership will comprise of multiple components, including a financial contribution to assist AIME in acquiring resources to help better indigenous student skills, opportunities, belief and confidence to finish high school at the same rate as their peers, as well as increasing university admission rates for indigenous students.

“In addition to this we will be collaboratively working with AIME on giving musicians involved with the AIME unplugged program the opportunity to perform on Central Park, as well as running a competition which sees one band within the program perform on the main stage.”

AIME was founded in 2005 by then 19 year-old Indigenous university student, Jack Manning Bancroft, and 25 college student mentors who worked with 25 Indigenous high school kids. Today, AIME is connecting approximately 6,000 mentees with 1,800 mentors across 34 locations and in partnership with 18 Australian universities.

MTV Australia gets sweaty with Adidas

MTV Australia teamed with Adidas for a mini-series MTV Fit Sessions, featuring young Australian influencers sharing their health and fitness journeys. The 12-part series kicks off with fitness social media identity Kayla Itsines and Australian athlete Morgan Mitchell, with more announced throughout the year. These will be available on MTV Fit, MTV’s digital home of health, fitness and nutrition.

Kayla Itsines

MTV is investing in expanding the Australian digital production and editorial departments to create more content on topics that Australian youth are passionate about. MTV Creative Director Vanessa Zuppicich said, “Our research shows us that Australian youth are more concerned with health and fitness than ever before. We’re excited to partner with Adidas and team up with Aussie influencers to provide young Australians with the education and motivation they need to stay fit and healthy.”

NAIDOC Week gets ABC support …

NAIDOC Week, July 3 to July 10 to celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island culture, history and people, is getting media support from the ABC. On Sunday it kicked off broadcasting Songlines for two hours nationally on Local Radio.

triple j has A.B. Original hosting the breakfast show on Wednesday July 6. On Thursday it announces the winner of the triple j Unearthed National Indigenous Music Awards competition. On Friday, previous NIMA winner, Robbie Miller, comes in for Like a Version. The best Indigenous music will feature on Unearthed and Unearthed High throughout the week.

RN covers indigenous stories by asking listeners to tell them about the place where they belong via the RN homepage. #ABCMyPlace. ABC Extra Digital Radio Is a pop up station on digital radio; mobile, and streaming at abc.net.au/radio featuring key Indigenous interviews, programs and music.

SPLASH, aka Indigenous Language Song Competition, invites schools to work with their local Indigenous community to translate the body song, Marrin Gamu, into the first language of their area, then to record students singing it.

Throughout the week, ABC iView will feature a curated collection of Indigenous programming, including the series premiere of the 24-part Black As where the cast venture into the wilds of Arnhem Land, hunting for adventure and a good feed. Plus, from July 7, every episode of Cleverman will be available on iView.

ABC-TV featured Vic Simms on Compass and the movie Satellite Boy on the weekend, and profiled story-teller David Batty on Australian Story last night.

Tonight (Tuesday July 5) at 9.50 pm, Over Represented: A Vice Special On Indigenous Incarceration sees rapper Briggs going to Reiby, a Juvenile Justice Centre on the outskirts of Sydney, to get an idea of what life is like as a young, Indigenous A-class offender.

…and on community radio

Among some of the celebrations this week on community radio:

Waringarri Radio (WA) hosts an open day on Thursday July 7 for listeners to see what they do. Live music, dancing and language sharing will be part of the day, as well as activities for kids.

Noongar Radio broadcasts live from the Perth Cultural Centre (July 5), from prison with Inside Out Live (July 5), from Perth’s Astor Theatre with Phil Walley Stack – Walk With Me (6 July), Derbaryl Terrigan Family Fun Day (July 6) and the NAIDOC Ball red carpet arrivals (July 7).

Koori Radio (NSW) has daily broadcasts including Blacktown Klub Koori (July 6), Tharawal Aboriginal Corporation NAIDOC Family Fun Day (July 7), NCIE Innercity Family & Sports Day (July 8) and Barangaroo NAIDOC Week Celebrations (July 9).

6dby Larrkardi Radio 97.9fm (WA) does an outside broadcast for their local Derby NAIDOC Funday on Friday July 8.

Brooklyn Brewery expands to record label

New York City beer brand Brooklyn Brewery set up a record label. It will release music recorded at gigs by young indie acts, and is aiming at the UK market. First release are The Graveltones whose show at the Lexington in London late last year is pressed on vinyl to coincide with the band’s upcoming dates this month.