UMA’s branded entertainment agency expands

Universal Music Australia has tapped the person behind Myer’s rebrand for its entertainment agency, BRING.

James Griffiths, who was previously Creative Director at Ideaworks in Sydney, has been appointed to the role of Creative Director at BRING.

Prior to Ideaworks, Griffiths created award winning work for Adidas as part creative network iris‘ All Blacks Sponsorship. He also creatively led the strategic repositioning for Chang Beer globally from Australia.

“It’s an exciting time for the agency,” said Griffiths. “We have a savvy team who are all energised to create world-class campaigns for brands across the region. We’re lucky to have access to some of the greatest artists in the world and if we can bring their creativity together with true innovation, we can really differentiate ourselves in the market by offering brands new ways in which to emotionally connect with their fans.”

UMG’s Roddy Campbell, who was recently promoted to Managing Director, New Business for Universal Music Australia and New Zealand, said:

“We took our time to find the right person and can already see that Griff is going to make a huge impact. It’s an exciting lane within the marketing sector to be working within as more brands look to tap into the unrivalled passion for music and try new things, creating ownable events and content platforms as opposed to the traditional sponsorship approach.

“I feel our team is perfectly placed with experience and capabilities to deliver a top class, end to end creative solution.”

BRING was behind the Lorde live show on Cockatoo Island last month for Optus, which is part of an ongoing events series for the telco. BRING has also facilitated interactive music events for Lion Brand, ROAM which included Dew Process/UMA artist Tkay Maidza.

BRING took out the Bronze Entertainment Lion at Cannes 2017 for its collaboration with HOST on the Air New Zealand “Summer Wonderland” campaign featuring Ronan Keating.

Campbell’s team will work closely with the data and technology division, headed by the recently appointed Stephen Hunt.

Last month BRING also hired Ellie Portch as Account Director. Portch was previously at Bauer Media.

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