capitol records
Following an impressive run in 2023, producer BYNX officially partners with Zack Bia‘s label Field Trip Recordings and Capitol Records. In addition, BYNX will work with Yeat’s Lyfestyle Corporation, who will work with him on the marketing side.
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“BNYX is an exceptional musician, a true artist with a specific vision but, above all, an incredible human,” says Bia, founder of Field Trip. “Yeat brought him into our lives, and he’s turned into family. It is only right we would all partner to bring his music to the world as the first official signee to Lyfestyle Corporation / Field Trip / Capitol Records. We couldn’t be more honored and excited.”
Capitol Music Group chairman and CEO Tom March echoes Bia’s sentiments and is eager to see the Philly producer blossom under their tutelage. “As a producer, BNYX®️ has had a profound impact on both music and culture,” he says. “We’re thrilled to partner with him, his manager Ness, the brilliant Zack Bia, and Field Trip Recordings on the launch of BNYX®’s solo career. It’s a privilege to enter this new era together, continuing our longtime relationship with Zack and the Field Trip team.”
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BYNX expressed his gratitude, telling Billboard: “I’d like to thank God, my manager, and Rick Owens.”
BYNX carved out a formidable lane for himself on the hip-hop side, working with the likes of Drake, Travis Scott, Nicki Minaj and his running mate, Yeat. BYNX produced four records from Yeat’s 2023 album AftërLyfe and Drake’s “Search & Rescue,” which debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 last year.
The partnership with Field Trip and Capitol will enable BYNX to release his debut album and single soon. Fans of the BYNX and Yeat tandem can rejoice, as the producer will join the “IDGAF” rapper on a soon-to-be-announced run of special shows this summer.
Long before signing Nirvana and the Foo Fighters to their respective record labels and, later, becoming AEG Presents’ global touring and talent president, Gary Gersh was a devoted The Band fanatic. While working at Licorice Pizza in California, he saw the influential rock ‘n’ rollers perform numerous times, and as a young Capitol Records employee, he befriended Robbie Robertson, who died Thursday at 80, during The Band’s The Last Waltz farewell concert.
By phone from a Minneapolis airport, Gersh recalls his early encounters with The Band; coaxing Robertson into recording his 1987 self-titled solo debut while working as a Geffen Records A&R man; and long conversations with the guitarist and songwriter in Woodstock, N.Y.
How did you come to be involved with The Last Waltz?
I was a young guy starting out, and The Band were on [Capitol] and doing their thing when they decided The Last Waltz would be the last show. I get up there for rehearsals, and for the show itself, and it was monumental. I watched Robbie in the middle of it all, being different than a musician — he was always talking to cameramen and Mr. [Martin] Scorsese [who directed the 1978 film documenting the event]. It was a beginning of an education. Robbie helped raise me and I was fortunate to have somebody so unbelievably talented and so beautiful as a human being teaching me so much.
What moment do you remember most from that concert?
Robbie was front and center in a way he had never been seen before. Not necessarily the most important member, because the beauty of The Band was the quality of the whole and everybody mattered, but Robbie was the star on screen. Because of the way everything was captured, all of a sudden people were seeing this guy as one of the greatest live guitarists that ever lived.
How did you get to Capitol Records back then?
Gary Gersh photographed on Oct. 21, 2019 at AEG Presents in Los Angeles.
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I had come from a chain of record stores, Licorice Pizza, and Capitol was my first record-company job. The Band had put out a Christmas song [“Christmas Must Be Tonight,” recorded in 1975 and, released two years later] as a single, and I was crazy for it. I was just this guy at the record label, at the very, very bottom, jumping up and down and screaming about The Band. They weren’t the biggest priority at the time, because they weren’t the biggest band, but, to me, they were the most influential band in American music. I saw them play at the Santa Barbara Bowl when I was in my late teens and it was probably well over 100 degrees. Robbie was dressed up in a suit and they were all just dying from the heat, but there they were, just being The Band, and they crushed every time I saw them.
You helped him make Robbie Robertson — how did that come about?
One of the first things I did as an A&R guy was sign Robbie and talked him into making solo records, which, at the time, he wasn’t thinking of doing. I said, “You can’t stop making music. You can do whatever else you need to do, but you can’t stop making music.” I kind of didn’t know what I was talking about, but I think he got that I could be a partner on the ride.
What was making that album like?
He was developing what he wanted his sound to be while we were working on the record. I had always known that [producer] Daniel Lanois was the guy to make the record, and Robbie knew it but had never met him. They hit it off famously. … Daniel pushed Robbie in ways I’m not sure had ever happened before. Robbie had always written multiple verses and had extra lyrics from all the songs. I had never seen that before. There were whole verses being moved in a way that took all of us to see and help develop.
Was there a moment that stands out from that process?
When the first solo album was finished, we mixed the record with [engineer] Bob Clearmountain at Bearsville Studios [in Woodstock, N.Y., site of many Band recordings], which Robbie obviously had a real history at. The day we got to Woodstock, we got a six-pack and he took me over to Big Pink, and we sat on the curb, and I just started asking questions. He was one of the greatest storytellers, whether he was talking about a meal at dinner or a film or music. He talked about how, once they got into the house, they started writing songs from fragments of things. And how Robbie thought each piece was like an actor in a play or a movie, and how they would come and go in a way that made it so cinematic.
When was the last time you saw him?
I talked to him a few weeks ago — he knew my family and knew my wife, and we had young kids and were starting to raise a family, and he had already had one.
Anything else you’d like to add?
He introduced me to so many people — so many musicians — that I had never thought in my life I would know. But he felt it would be part of my education. Van Morrison was just on the music system here [at the airport]. I remember meeting Van because Robbie introduced me to him when they were working on a song [“Wonderful Remark”] for the [1983] King of Comedy soundtrack. I hear things and I’m just reminded everywhere I go. I think that’s the way it is with great teachers. It never leaves you.
Tamla Records, the precursor to the legendary Motown Records, is being relaunched by Capitol Music Group (CMG) and Capitol Christian Music Group (Capitol CMG) as a mainstream imprint specializing in positive R&B and hip-hop music. Supervising the imprint’s roster and staff will be Nashville-based EJ Gaines, current senior vp of marketing for Capitol CMG.
The first partner to sign with the new Tamla is Thomas “Tillie” Mann and his label Encouragement Music. Mann is Quality Control’s longtime mix engineer and collaborator who has worked with Lil Baby, Lil Yachty, Drake and Migos.
CMG chair/CEO Michelle Jubelirer said in a statement, “The relaunch of Tamla broadens our company’s commitment to hip-hop and R&B music, as well as to the artists, label partners and creative executives who have joined Capitol Music Group over the past 18 months. The artists EJ and his team will bring to Tamla will complement the incredible talent across our label group and will have everyone’s support throughout the wider company.”
It was 65 years ago that Berry Gordy Jr. founded Tamla Records in June 1958. The label’s first release was the 1959 single “Come to Me” by gospel singer-turned-R&B artist Marv Johnson. Later renamed Motown, Tamla was also the home of icons Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Smokey Robinson & The Miracles.
“We want to honor the iconic history of the label founded by Mr. Gordy,” commented Capitol CMG co-presidents Brad O’Donnell and Hudson Plachy in the Capitol press release. “And Tillie Mann and Encouragement Music are exactly the kind of partners that we want to work with. EJ is a seasoned executive who we know will guide Tamla along with the support of our overall Capitol CMG staff.”
“Tamla has always been home to incredible music that has shifted culture,” added Gaines. “I’m excited to continue its rich legacy with groundbreaking, mainstream music that is faith-formed and culture-forward. I’m grateful to Hudson, Brad and Michelle for trusting me with this honor.”
In an interview with Billboard, Gaines shared additional insights about the new Tamla and fostering what he calls “the positive sound of the generation.”
Why is now the right time to relaunch this legacy label?
As a Black man in America, a former Wall Street attorney and artist manager, I’ve seen virtually every aspect of the music industry. And it’s very incumbent upon me to use my experience and influence in a way that is going to help the music industry as a whole — but with a focus on helping underserved Black communities. I have two sons, six and three years old, and they need to know that their dad contributed to helping make this world better for them in every way. Music is such a powerful tool and that’s significant to me, especially with this being Black Music Month.
I also love the through-line of how Tamla started with Marv Johnson, a gospel singer who released his first song on the label before doing R&B. That’s something I’ve been trying to communicate ever since I got to Capitol CMG: that gospel music is part of Black music. It’s not separate faith music; it’s not exclusive. It’s part of what we do culturally. And Tamla was just sitting there, acknowledged for its value but not really being used to continue the legacy. So that’s where we’re picking up.
How do you describe the new Tamla?
We have great, tried and true artists on Capitol CMG like Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Ricky Dillard and Brian Courtney Wilson. But what I’ve also started to identify is a bunch of creatives — songwriters, producers and artists — that aren’t doing gospel or faith music that way. They want their music to be competitive with what they listen to outside of the [gospel] genre.
But increasingly, mainstream music has not been a place where Christian creatives can find themselves very easily. That’s because the lines have been drawn so distinctly that in order to go mainstream, these creators feel like they have to compromise their values, messaging and lyricism. They’re finding themselves without a space to live in. They want to find their own positive, non-explicit but not corny lane. Over the past seven years, that lane has become more open and ready. You see playlists on all the DSPs that lean toward very progressive R&B and hip-hop; what they used to call urban gospel. And now with TikTok and Instagram, there are opportunities for these artists to engage their fans without gatekeepers blocking them. But we need to be able to serve these creatives; to make the connection between them and the audiences that are sitting there waiting.
I call it “The positive sound of the generation.” It’s of right now; not dated and very relevant. It’s something that would be acknowledged by the mainstream as legitimate lyrically, sonically and production-wise. It’s not watered down. So what we’re doing is trying to identify significant mainstream partners making music who just happen to be Christians. But they don’t want to be referred to as gospel or inspirational. They’re just artists making music; young, hungry, aggressive and very open-minded as to what music can be. And they want desperately to have a voice to engage with their audiences. And Tamla will be the place where their creativity will be fueled to soar.
Who is the label’s target demo?
It’s the 13-25 age range, but people older will also enjoy the music. But I’m really going back to the young market, the market that’s dictating music consumption.
What’s been the reaction of artists that you’ve approached thus far?
When we tell them what we’re launching, they say it’s the supplemental support that they’ve been looking for … that they thought they would have to be independent. But we’re not going to work to cross these artists over. We’re going to place them there first [in R&B and hip-hop] and legitimize them in that space with the support of Capitol and the Universal Music Group. And programmers have said they’ve been looking for content that was positive but that didn’t compromise on the quality of the music. I’m being very intentional about legitimizing this movement so that people don’t see this as a warmed-over version of what they’ve already seen and heard before.
Halsey and Capitol Records have parted ways, a representative for the singer confirmed to Billboard.
“After eight great years the decision to leave Capitol is bittersweet, but we are excited about exploring a new partnership and sharing new music with fans,” Halsey’s managers, Anti-Pop’s Jason Aron and Anthony Li, said in a statement provided on Saturday (April 15).
Capitol had not yet responded to Billboard‘s request for comment at press time.
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Variety published a statement from the label on the split, which was first reported by Hits: “Everyone at Capitol poured their hearts and souls into helping Halsey achieve their dreams and present their music to the world. We are incredibly proud of all we accomplished together and wish Halsey the very best in all their future endeavors.”
Halsey publicly spoke out against Capitol in May 2022, alleging that the label refused to release their next single, “So Good,” without a viral TikTok campaign attached to it. When her TikTok explaining the situation actually went viral, the artist grew more frustrated that the song wasn’t immediately given a firm release date.
The pop star had said, “My record company is saying that I can’t release it unless they can fake a viral moment on TikTok … Everything is marketing and they are doing this to basically every artist these days. I just wanna release music, man. And I deserve better tbh.”
A Capitol Music Group spokesperson responded to Halsey’s posts at the time in a statement sent to Billboard: “Our belief in Halsey as a singular and important artist is total and unwavering. We can’t wait for the world to hear their brilliant new music.”
After the rocky road to release, “So Good” officially debuted in June 2022.
Most recently, in February, Halsey released a solo version of the Post Malone collab “Die 4 Me.”
Halsey’s latest full-length studio album, 2021’s If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. Her previous efforts all reached No. 1 or 2 on the chart: 2015’s Badlands (No. 2), 2017’s Hopeless Fountain Kingdom (No. 1) and 2020’s Manic (No. 2)
Kodak Black is headed for Capitol Records — he just has to fulfill his obligations to his current label, Atlantic Records, first. That’s according to sources familiar with the situation, who note that Black still has two releases left under his agreement with Atlantic.
The rapper’s eventual move follows last month’s announcement that Orlando Wharton — who previously signed Black to Atlantic — had joined Capitol as executive vp and president of the relaunched Priority Records. Wharton starts the new role early next year.
Representatives for Atlantic and Capitol declined to comment.
Black released his major-label debut album through Atlantic Records in 2017, and has scored 34 entries on the Billboard Hot 100 to date, including “Super Gremlin,” a solo cut that climbed to No. 3 last year. When he moves to Capitol, he will be one of the biggest active artists on the label’s roster.
While Black has enjoyed commercial success, he has also faced a series of charges for sexual assault, drugs, robbery and weapons. The rapper was sentenced to 46 months in prison on federal weapons charges in 2019; former president Donald Trump later commuted that sentence on his last day in office. During a sexual misconduct case last year — Black was accused of sexually assaulting a high school student following a 2016 show — the rapper pleaded guilty to first-degree assault and battery.
While Black’s decision to eventually leave the label where he built his career is notable, entertainment attorneys say it’s not unusual for artists to start having conversations with potential new label partners once they enter into the final stretch of their current recording contract. Recording agreements are typically structured so that an artist is required to deliver a certain amount of music during an initial contract period. Labels can then usually choose to pick up an “option” (they have a set amount of months to mull over the decision), which triggers the release of another advance payment and recording budget for the artist to put towards the next project for that company. If the label decides not to pick up the option, it ends its relationship with the artist.
Historically, managers note, it was common for artists to sign longer-term deals — what the industry likes to call a “one plus four” or “one plus five,” meaning that the label was able to exercise four or five options and potentially keep the artist under contract for many years. Recently, in a world where acts are increasingly able to generate streams on their own without help from a label, the balance of power in some deals has shifted.
It’s more common now to hear about buzzing artists signing a “one plus one,” or even a deal for one album with no options attached, if an act has a lot of streaming momentum. Fewer options means that acts who are unhappy with their record company don’t need to stay with that partner for long if the relationship sours. Matt Buser, a music industry lawyer, says “it’s rough when an artist gets locked in with a team that has lost its appeal, or if the artist loses their champion in the building due to lateral movement or termination — that’s one reason why we try to keep the option number low in negotiations.”
When artists start to search for a new partner while still working with an old one, managers and lawyers alike say they usually try to keep these conversations discreet. If an artist still has music to deliver under his current agreement, but he’s flaunting the fact that he’s hunting for a fresh deal, “depending on the circumstances, it might undermine the enthusiasm of his current label to market and promote that last project,” according to Larry Katz, a veteran entertainment attorney.
There are other political reasons for an artist not to upset a record company before his or her contract is up. A label that feels spurned, for example, might decide to classify an artist’s project as a mixtape rather than an album, according to one manager. That seemingly small decision around nomenclature could mean that the act then has to turn in another entire project, depending on the terms of his or her contract, to fulfill recording obligations. (Debates over what constitutes an album and what constitutes a mixtape are more prevalent in hip-hop than in other genres.)
In addition, lawyers say that some artists make another mistake when they are gearing up to switch labels: They turn in the final album required by their contract and then immediately begin to record music in anticipation of a new deal elsewhere. But many exclusive recording agreements extend for nine to 12 months past the date that the last album was delivered or released — meaning songs that artists cut during this period still belong to their previous label partner. (Contract terms vary, of course, and stars have a lot of negotiating power, which gives them more latitude.)
“Artists may not be aware that in most record deals, the recording services remain exclusive during the entire term, and there’s often a period of time in between the release of the last project and the end of that exclusive term,” Katz says. “If you’re not careful, anything you record during that period is owned by the old label.”
Black released his fourth official album under his Atlantic deal, Back for Everything, in February. According to the rapper’s Instagram posts, he is now planning to release a follow-up, Kutthroat Bill: Vol 1, on Oct. 28.
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