Executive of the Week
Page: 3
When Chappell Roan released her debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, last September, it didn’t immediately crack the Billboard 200. In fact, it took more than six months for the album to debut at No. 127 on the chart dated April 6 — following a boost in exposure after Roan opened on tour for Olivia Rodrigo.
Now, nearly one year later, both Roan’s album and her stardom continue to hit new highs. On the Billboard 200, Midwest Princess has entered the tally’s top five, hitting a new peak of No. 4 after 19 weeks on the chart. Over on the Billboard Hot 100, the pop star currently has six songs scattered across the chart, with her latest single, Good Luck, Babe!” climbing the highest. The hit, which this week entered the top 10 at No. 8, has become Roan’s highest-charting entry to date.
Roan’s chart dominance has been a long time coming, and a moment her longtime manager Nick Bobetsky (State of the Art) has been patiently waiting for. Bobetsky met Roan in 2018, after her previous record label, Atlantic (from which she was dropped), shared some of her unreleased music. “Her immense talent was clear immediately,” he recalls. “She’s always been a true artist.”
Trending on Billboard
Since then, Bobetsky and the team have “focused solely on building the Chappell Roan universe and trusting that the greatness of her and her music would thrive” — just as they are now. And on the heels of a record-breaking Lollapalooza Chicago set, which saw the festival score its biggest-ever daytime crowd, Bobetsky has earned the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Here, Bobetsky talks about the success of “Babe!”, Roan’s festival takeover this summer and more. As he says, “I take great pride in helping shape [an artist’s] runway to success, however long it needs to be.”
“Good Luck, Babe” has become the highest-charting song of Chappell’s career, entering the Hot 100’s top 10. What key decisions did you make to help make that happen?
When Chappell finishes a song she’s excited about, we’ve learned to follow her instincts and hit go; in this case, putting a strategy together with Island to get the song out quickly. Chappell has always been about building, which in turn brings momentum. People became fans on their own schedule over the course of months, having their own moments of discovery. “Good Luck, Babe!” was the first time since her sold-out tours, her album release, the snowball effect she was experiencing, where the broader fanbase could share a fresh moment together. That shared and focused excitement, paired with the incredible song, gave us a strong launch. We’ve been able to not only grow the song since then but the entire album because we’ve continued to stay focused on the same core things — building, and consistent momentum.
Chappell has a total of six songs on the Hot 100 right now. How are you supporting so many songs at once and determining which one to push next?
Chappell’s songs speak for themselves, her performances are second to none, and her universe has never been about one song, one moment, or one driver — and the fact that we have so many songs in the Hot 100 is a testament to that. We aren’t cramming anything down anyone’s throat, and fans are listening to multiple songs at once. In terms of pushing the next song, we are in the incredible position to have a lot to choose from. That said, I don’t actually think it’s about choosing to push one in particular, it’s about paying attention to which one is thriving the most. We have live audience reactions, fans online, streaming numbers to lead us. What excites me the most is the nonlinear nature of it all — that her next song to push is likely to have been out for nearly a year.
Dan Nigro signed Chappell to his Amusement label before she signed with Island. How did you help guide her transition to the major label?
Dan started making music with Chappell during her previous record deal, and he remained committed when she and the label parted ways. We released a series of singles independently and built a very loyal and loud fanbase. We focused solely on building the Chappell Roan universe and trusting that the greatness of her and her music would thrive. It started to get loud, labels started circling, and Dan’s Amusement label was a continuation of their creative collaboration, now in partnership with Island Records where she landed in the end.
Her debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, was released in Sept. 2023 and just this week — almost a year later — hit a No. 4 peak on the Billboard 200. What are you and the team doing to help sustain its renewed momentum — or planning to do still?
Everything in the world of Chappell Roan is about building, staying true to her vision, and embracing the 100% rule — that if the answer is not a true 100% yes, it’s a no. Chappell’s growth is a very special pairing of consistent commitment to momentum, paired with ensuring that every moment is executed to the fullest degree. We’re in an era of tons of noise, the fear of fleeting moments, pressure to say yes at every turn, and our approach is different. She says yes when it’s right for her universe, and people want to keep joining in. The momentum is sustaining itself because it’s real and reflective of incredible music and artistry having real cultural impact.
Chappell’s Lollapalooza Chicago set saw the largest day crowd in the festival’s history across its global franchise. What were you anticipating and how did you help her mentally prepare?
Every festival this summer Chappell has played has been bigger than the previous. We knew this was going to be big, no one knew we’d break records. We work really hard to surround her with visionary creatives, a rock solid touring team and ensuring every element is top-notch. I’m not sure how you can mentally prepare for a moment that big, but she’s born for moments like this.
What kind of boost has she gained from that news-making set?
We’ve seen new daily peaks in consumption and online conversations, but I feel the biggest boost because it feels like mainstream media, fans and the industry alike all saw it coming and were ready to celebrate. It really feels like a, “See, I told you so,” moment — not from us saying it, but from the masses screaming it.
What’s the key to managing a pop star today?
Respect, partnership and belief in the artist. Sure, the strategy, relationships, business decisions and all of that are important, but that’s actually the easier part. When you have a generational pop star, the real key is the shared vision and commitment to their greatness long-term. I take great pride in helping shape their runway to success, however long it needs to be.
It’s been 25 years since Eminem announced himself on the international stage with his iconic, revered 1999 album The Slim Shady LP. The album — technically his second, but his first on major label Interscope — included huge singles like “Guilty Conscience,” “Role Model” and, most significantly, “My Name Is,” which introduced his alter-ego character Slim Shady to the world. His even bigger followup album, 2000’s The Marshall Mathers LP, doubled down with “The Real Slim Shady,” which hit No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spawned one of the most iconic awards show performances of all time, with the bleach-blonde-haired hip-hop superstar lording over his legion of lookalikes.
But it’s been a quarter century since then, and Slim Shady is dead, locked in Eminem’s basement. The final nail came with his latest album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grace), which this week became Em’s 11th album to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, racking up 281,000 equivalent album units and landing the biggest week for a hip-hop album this year so far. In addition to the star power that Eminem brings with any new release, the album’s big first week was also the result of a meticulous, months-long marketing rollout involving Fortnite activations, a mock true crime video, print newspaper obituaries and big-time singles like “Houdini,” which landed at No. 2 on the Hot 100 upon its release. And it helps earn Interscope Geffen A&M senior vp of marketing Jason Sangerman the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Trending on Billboard
Here, Sangerman — who has worked on 11 Eminem albums himself over the course of his career — talks about that extended marketing plan, the collaborations with Eminem and his longtime manager and Shady Records CEO Paul Rosenberg to set the record up, and what comes next. “The great thing about an artist like Eminem is he keeps everyone guessing, and that includes us, so it keeps you operating at the highest level,” he says.
This week, Eminem’s latest album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grace), debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with the biggest first week for a hip-hop album this year. What key decision did you make to help make that happen?
Everything we do when we begin to engage in discussions around the marketing strategy is led by Eminem and his partner and manager Paul Rosenberg. Once we have our initial plan, the Shady Records team and the larger Interscope team begin building it out. There’s a ton of brainstorming and we all work well bouncing ideas off one another — but when it comes to the execution, precision is non-negotiable.
The key to this rollout was thinking and working comprehensively. It always starts with the music. Marshall delivered yet another amazing album; this time it also came with a high-concept narrative woven throughout. We put a plan together with Paul that gave us plenty of runway to activate all the essential components — social platforms, press, radio, DSPs, D2C, gaming, our Complex relationship, IRL pop-ups, etc. The plan not only enabled us to engage his global fanbase, but we created new entry points for prospective fans, which was key to a successful launch.
The concept of this album — killing off the iconic alter ego of one of the most successful rappers of all time — must have both been a marketer’s dream and nearly overwhelming to contemplate. How did you approach setting it up?
The character of Slim Shady and the world built around him is all Marshall’s creation. It’s always a privilege to help provide a tangible experience for the fans based off his ideas, and so a lot of the marketing plan starts directly from Marshall and Paul. The larger Interscope team then creates a space to augment and build upon those innovative ideas. It’s always critical, but especially so given the nature of this particular album, to get the chronology right for each moment. We couldn’t make a move that would potentially give away something planned for a future payoff.
In what ways were you able to call back to the original Slim Shady character from 25 years ago?
It’s so wild to hear “25 years ago,” because Eminem was the first concert I saw when I was growing up. It was the Slim Shady Tour at the House of Blues on Sunset. I still have the original T-shirt. That colorful crayon style Slim Shady logo was one of the pieces that was brought back into the mix for this album. Once “Houdini” was released, there were elements of nostalgia in everything we did, and they became Easter eggs for the album marketing — the “Rap Boy” costume, the blonde hair, a flash mob of “real” Slim Shadys popping up in Washington Square Park in New York, etc.
The Complex “Face Off” piece is of course an integral part of the campaign, and a key element in explaining the concept around the album. It goes without saying that Marshall has earned the right to be very judicious about the way he puts himself out there to the world. Complex came to us with a really creative idea that builds off the album’s narrative and brings it to life in a way that makes sense for him and his fans.
Another important element to all of this is that many of us at Interscope have been working with Eminem and Paul for years. Some of us, like [vice chairman] Steve Berman, since the very first record. So, there’s an institutional knowledge built in among the team that we bring to each Eminem release, and we definitely tapped into that for this campaign.
How were you able to use the singles and music videos to help promote the album and its themes?
The great thing about an artist like Eminem is he keeps everyone guessing, and that includes us, so it keeps you operating at the highest level. Of course, he’s dropped albums recently with little to no warning as surprise releases, but in this case, we were having conversations with Paul and Marshall in Detroit about the best way to roll out this project last year. Given the album’s theme, they wanted there to be true singles along with videos to set the project up. Paul and the team at Shady led those conversations. They’ve always had an extraordinary vision.
Obviously, Eminem’s songwriting is unparalleled, but he’s also a super visual artist. So the video for “Houdini” was crucial to launching this campaign. It has a similar energy to first singles from earlier albums — so right there you have another benefit of the team’s long-term continuity. We had the ability to tap into a collective knowledge base from past releases. The “Houdini” video allowed fans who have always loved Slim to reconnect while introducing the character to a new generation of fans.
“Houdini” was the spark that activated everything we had been planning for so long. Every single person on the team did their part to help mobilize and expand fandom around the track. We always try to build an entire world around a release, and the immediate global reaction to “Houdini” allowed us to pour gasoline on the fire.
How was the rollout for this project different from any other in Eminem’s career — and in your career as well?
This plan started well before the album was announced. If you look back at the Eminem and Fortnite activation from the end of last year, you’ll see that some of the aspects in that collaboration included throwback Slim Shady themes — the popcorn trail started all the way back then. There was a long roadmap leading up to the album release that had storytelling components every week, using every medium that made sense. We used advanced AI technology in some of our visuals, but we also ran a fake “true crime” show commercial on TV to announce the album, and then we took out the Slim Shady obituaries as print-only media in physical newspapers. Some of the music critics at those papers didn’t even see them until they got traction from other outlets. Regarding my career, this is the 11th Eminem project I’ve worked — I’m just lucky to be anywhere around something like this.
Slim Shady is dead. Where does Eminem go from here?
Eminem always likes the element of surprise, and since I don’t need him making an album called “The Death of Jason Sangerman,” I’ll leave that up to him to answer.
Warner Records has had plenty to celebrate already this year. At the midyear mark of 2024, the label finished an impressive third in current market share at 6.30%. That’s a big jump from the same point last year when it ranked fifth, at 5.62%, and represents the label’s best mark at the midway point in years. That was at least partly due to a string of successful singles in the first half of this year from artists as diverse as Benson Boone, Teddy Swims, Zach Bryan, Dua Lipa, Bebe Rexha and David Guetta, each of whom has made a huge mark on the charts in the first six months.
But this week brought even better news with the release of Luminate’s 2024 Midyear Report. Warner Records had the top three most-streamed songs of the first half of the year in Boone’s “Beautiful Things,” Bryan’s “I Remember Everything” with Kacey Musgraves and Swims’ “Lose Control,” respectively. That marks the first time any label has had the top three songs at the midyear mark since 2015, the year that streaming officially tipped the industry back into profitability. This week, the label also held down the top three spots on Billboard’s Dance/Mixshow Airplay chart with Lipa’s “Illusion,” Rexha’s “Chase It” and Guetta and OneRepublic’s “I Don’t Wanna Wait,” representing the first time Warner has ever achieved that feat and the first time any label has done it since 2018.
Trending on Billboard
Both are impressive milestones, representing a creative, radio, streaming and commercial achievement for the label across several formats and genres — and that’s even before the release of Bryan’s latest album, The Great American Bar Scene, which topped the charts at five different formats this week and racked up 137,000 equivalent album units in its first full week of availability. All that helps make Warner Records’ executive vp of promotion and commerce Mike Chester Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Here, Chester talks about those midyear achievements, his work across both radio promotion and overall commerce at the label and how things have changed since he arrived in 2018. “Artists have been tirelessly refining their sound, approach and craft, a dedication now reflected in our success,” he says. “They deserve immense credit for navigating this demanding process and emerging triumphantly, as does the best-in-class team here at Warner Records.”
This week, Luminate’s 2024 midyear report revealed that Warner Records had all of the three most-streamed songs of the year so far, in Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things,” Zach Bryan’s “I Remember Everything” with Kacey Musgraves and Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control,” the first time in at least a decade that one label has held the top three slots. What key decisions did you make to help make that happen?
Global artist development. In today’s interconnected marketplace, it’s crucial to respect each territory outside the U.S. When nurtured properly, these regions can provide a massive platform for launching artists. Take Benson Boone and Teddy Swims, for example. They’ve spent as much time abroad over the past two years as they have in the U.S. This strategic international presence has been instrumental in driving a global audience, leveraging the power of algorithms and trends to expand their reach. Zach Bryan stands out by doing things his way, with integrity and purpose. His ability to connect authentically with his fans is unparalleled.
In addition to your guys’ success at pop, country and rock, Warner has the top three songs on the Dance/Mixshow Airplay chart with Dua Lipa’s “Illusion,” Bebe Rexha’s “Chase It” and David Guetta and One Republic’s “I Don’t Wanna Wait,” a first for Warner and the first time a label has achieved that since 2018. How were you guys able to hit that mark, and how does the dance/mixshow world differ from other formats?
We have dedicated significant effort to emphasizing the dance genre, as evidenced by the launch of Major Recordings and our ongoing commitment to dance music at Warner Records. Foremost, we are fortunate to have exceptional music from artists such as Dua Lipa, Bebe Rexha and David Guetta, who are able to move culture every day. I would like to extend special recognition to Josh Reich [senior vp of Top 40 & dance promotion] whose strategic vision and passion for the genre have been instrumental in our success.
Warner is having a hugely successful commercial year so far, posting a 6.30% midyear current market share, the label’s best mark in years. What do you attribute that to?
There is no doubt that this achievement is a testament to [Warner co-chairman/COO] Tom Corson and [Warner co-chairman/CEO] Aaron Bay-Schuck‘s incredible leadership. Artists have been tirelessly refining their sound, approach and craft, a dedication now reflected in our success. Keys factors have been patience, consistency and providing our artists with the necessary space for proper development. They deserve immense credit for navigating this demanding process and emerging triumphantly, as does the best-in-class team here at Warner Records.
You joined Warner in 2018 as head of promotion, and took on the broader role of head of promotion and commerce in 2021. How have you seen the commercial landscape evolve over that time and how have you positioned your team to be able to capitalize on that?
Interestingly, 2018 was also the year TikTok made its debut in the United States, revolutionizing our world from day one. Since then, the landscape of artist development has seen remarkable shifts, with audience fragmentation, genre evolution and the growing influence of niche subcultures becoming the norm. Beyond the digital realm, the physical product space has also transformed, offering fans more meaningful and collectible items that create a deeper connection to our artists and their music. As streaming growth evolves, we continue to think deeply about how to monetize our music in many different ways.
The year so far has served up a number of intriguing new artist stories, with the likes of Benson Boone, Chappell Roan and Tommy Richman soaring to the top region of the charts for the first time. But perhaps no artist has had a more historic rise in 2024 so far than Shaboozey, whose “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” became his first-ever No. 1 song on the Hot 100 this week — a huge achievement for the artist, his team and his label partner, EMPIRE.
The achievement comes more than a month after the release of Shaboozey’s latest album, Where I’ve Been, Isn’t Where I’m Going, which debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200, easily the best mark of his career. But its significance goes well beyond that. After two guest spots on Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter album helped introduce him to a mainstream audience, Shaboozey released “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” and saw it become the first song in history to reach the top 10 of the Country, Pop, Adult Pop and Rhythmic Airplay charts — a true testament to its cross-genre, or even genre-less, appeal — while making him the first Black man, and second Black artist overall after Beyoncé earlier this year, to top both the Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs charts.
Trending on Billboard
It’s also a big milestone for EMPIRE, which launched its Nashville division in 2019 and started working with Shaboozey a few years ago. After releasing his Cowboys Live Forever, Outlaws Never Die album in October 2022, EMPIRE threw the weight of the company behind the singer, bringing in the full force of its marketing, A&R and global teams, as well as devising the radio strategy that helped to deliver such a historic result. And the achievement helps make EMPIRE COO Nima Etminan Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Here, Etminan, who alongside company founder/CEO Ghazi has built EMPIRE into an indie powerhouse for more than a decade now, talks about the company-wide strategy to help boost Shaboozey’s work, as well as what the recent achievements for his music mean for the industry and for EMPIRE itself. “We’re scratching the surface of an artist with immense talent, depth and longevity,” Etminan says of Shaboozey. “He’s got stories to tell, emotions to share and hearts to touch. I believe that we will be seeing him play arenas across the globe for many years to come and I’m excited to be there for it every step of the way.”
This week, Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” reached No. 1 on the Hot 100. What key decision did you make to help make that happen?
Shaboozey’s project has been an “all hands on deck” experience at EMPIRE. A key decision was to involve every department in every territory early on — they all played a role in this record in one way, shape or form. It’s hard to pinpoint specific decisions with a song this big; it’s a culmination of efforts.
This is Shaboozey’s first No. 1 single, after you guys have spent the past few years working with him. How have you helped him develop to get to this point, and how did you help push the song to these heights?
We saw potential in Shaboozey since our first meeting with him. He was passionate, talented and had a clear vision of what he was trying to achieve, but was still navigating his path to success in this industry. One of the key decisions was made after the release of Boozey’s first album with EMPIRE called Cowboys Live Forever, Outlaws Never Die — he and his manager Abas Pauti called me in late 2022 trying to figure out next moves and we decided to bring him closer into the core EMPIRE umbrella. His potential as a global star was starting to be apparent and we brought in marketing and A&R resources from our San Francisco headquarters to complement what our Nashville team was doing on the ground. We strategized closely with his managers Abas and Jared [Cotter] and the upward curve began with the release of “Let It Burn” in the fall of 2023. It became clear we had something very special on our hands and the building started to rally around him.
This achievement also comes five years after EMPIRE launched its Nashville division. How have you built up and grown that aspect of the business, and how do you continue to support it moving forward?
Our Nashville division got its start somewhat serendipitously in 2019 with Willie Jones. Willie was not active at the time and didn’t have any music outside of an old X Factor audition video that had went viral some years back. He was a Black country artist with an incredible voice and Ghazi and I decided to take a chance and do a deal with him. From there, we started to assemble a staff on the ground and slowly made a name for EMPIRE in Nashville — brick by brick. Ghazi firmly believed that country music was going to follow in urban music’s footsteps with just a few years’ delay — and he was right. The town was ripe for new energy and we were quickly able to sign an impressive roster of artists and developed some amazing talent on both the record and the publishing side. We’ve been pushing Nashville for five years and are planning on continuing to do so.
Shaboozey is the first Black man, and second Black artist overall after Beyoncé earlier this year, to top both the Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs charts. What is the significance of that for you guys and for him?
It’s a sign of the times — genres are merging, styles are blending and the audience’s music taste is broader than ever. Artists don’t need to be put in boxes — whether it be by race, genre or eras. Good music is good music and the listeners largely get to dictate the charts.
The song is the first in history to reach the top 10 of the Country, Pop, Adult Pop and Rhythmic Airplay charts. What was your guys’ radio strategy?
There were many, many doubters of our ability to work this record at radio. The industry loves telling independents that there’s a ceiling to what they can do on their own and this was no different. We were told it can’t be done, and as we like to do, we proved them wrong. We’ve assembled a fantastic team that we had full faith in — and they delivered.
This achievement is also a capstone for an incredible first half of the year for Shaboozey overall, with his two guest spots on Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter and the No. 5 debut of his own album, Where I’ve Been, Isn’t Where I’m Going. How do you push things forward from here?
As cliche as it may sound, this is just the beginning for Shaboozey. The album has a lot of life left in it and some incredible songs that we will work. We’re scratching the surface of an artist with immense talent, depth and longevity. He’s got stories to tell, emotions to share and hearts to touch. I believe that we will be seeing him play arenas across the globe for many years to come and I’m excited to be there for it every step of the way.
You’ve been with Ghazi basically since the beginning of EMPIRE, helping to build this company. What does it mean for you guys to achieve this No. 1?
My path started in hip-hop. I started off as a fan of rap music in Germany, where I grew up, launching DubCNN, a platform focused specifically on West Coast hip-hop. That is what brought me to California, building friendships with some of my favorite artists growing up, and meeting Ghazi in 2008 via Daz Dillinger. My only goal at the time was to find a way to make a decent living doing something in music. No. 1 Billboard records were not on my radar — I liked underground music and I loved to help new artists gain an audience. But I saw the potential of what were doing when I watched Kendrick Lamar go from an unknown mixtape artist when I first interviewed him in 2007, to becoming a household name after his EMPIRE-released Section.80 and ultimately the biggest rapper in the world.
Ghazi and I share a passion for culture, authenticity and doing good business. What matters the most to us is doing things with integrity and leaving a legacy behind that we can be proud of. There’s a lot of foolishness that goes on in this industry; I’ve seen it from afar and I’ve experienced it firsthand. If we weren’t going to do it our way, we’d rather not do it at all. Shaboozey’s success is exactly that. He’s been through the major system, he’s seen behind the curtain, and partnering with someone like him, who shares similar values and ethics, and taking a record all the way to the top is extremely gratifying. However, I’d be lying if I said it was a goal I thought about or set out to achieve — I never chased awards, charts or any sort of outside validation. But I’m grateful for it when it happens.
For the past few months, things seem to have only been getting better for Sabrina Carpenter. Last summer, while opening on Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, she began going viral for the city-specific outros she would tack on to the end of her song “Nonsense,” a true fan-driven hit that reached No. 56 on the Hot 100 and No. 10 on Pop Airplay. Next came “Feather,” off the deluxe edition of her Emails I Can’t Send album, which went even further, reaching No. 21 on the Hot 100 and becoming her first-ever Pop Airplay No. 1 earlier this year.
But that was just the beginning. “Espresso,” her single she released on top of her Coachella performance in April, exploded to No. 2 on the Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Global 200, cementing her as the pop superstar of the moment, crowned accordingly with a performance (and skit appearance) on Saturday Night Live. But her latest single, “Please Please Please,” then went even further — after debuting at No. 2 on the Hot 100 and giving her the top two songs on the Global 200, “Please Please Please” then ascended to the top of both charts, giving Carpenter her first-ever Hot 100 No. 1 and the distinction of replacing herself atop the global charts.
Trending on Billboard
The momentum has been dizzying — with every level conquered, another fell right after. Or, as Island Records vp of A&R Jackie Winkler puts it, “‘Nonsense’ walked so ‘Feather’ could jog, then ‘Espresso’ ran so that ‘Please Please Please’ could start a stampede.” And the success earns Winkler, who originally signed Carpenter to Island and has worked with her ever since, the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Here, Winkler talks about the building success of each of these songs, Carpenter’s evolution as a songwriter, the way that A&R has evolved over the years — and what will come next. “I think this album is going to blow people away,” Winkler says of Carpenter’s forthcoming Short N’ Sweet, due out in August. “If you like ‘Please Please Please’ and ‘Espresso,’ just wait for what’s in store.”
This week, Sabrina Carpenter’s “Please Please Please” reached No. 1 on the Hot 100, her first-ever song to top the chart. What key decision did you make to help make that happen?
Sabrina and Jack Antonoff had known each other personally for some time, so it was a natural progression for them to eventually work together. Given the chemistry that Sabrina and Amy Allen had already built, putting the three of them together felt like the perfect musical combination to undoubtedly yield something exceptional. It’s also fun to share the success of this song with David Gray and Jenn Knoepfle at UMPG who were instrumental in connecting the dots.
“Please Please Please” also hit No. 1 on the Global 200, replacing “Espresso,” which was No. 1 last week. Why do you think these songs are resonating, and working so well, around the globe?
To put it simply, the two songs speak for themselves. The first time I heard “Please Please Please” and “Espresso,” both sounded like hit records to me. The extraordinary nuances of Sabrina’s vocal delivery and quick-witted lyrics, combined with Jack Antonoff and Julian Bunetta’s brilliant productions, all play an essential role in what makes these songs so infectious and undeniable. They are especially bold, and nobody could pull them off as fearlessly and authentically as Sabrina.
Since last year, Sabrina has been on an increasingly-ascendant run up the charts, from “Nonsense” to “Feather” to “Espresso” and “Please Please Please.” How have you worked with her to help her develop her sound in the past year to reach this level?
It really feels like all four songs came at the perfect times in her career. “Nonsense” walked so “Feather” could jog, then “Espresso” ran so that “Please Please Please” could start a stampede. At the core, the music Sabrina makes is perfectly reflective of who she is as a person, and all the quirks and character are what give her such a strong musical identity. Writing with her friends has always felt like the most effortless way to allow her to be herself, so protecting that process at all costs will remain a vital part of her ever-evolving sound.
You originally signed Sabrina to Island several years ago. How have you seen her develop as a songwriter and as an artist since then?
From day one, Sabrina’s superpower has always been knowing exactly who she is and the type of musical collaborators she’s wanted to work with. I’ve witnessed her develop into an extraordinary songwriter who has not only coined entirely new phrases, but also infiltrated popular culture around the world with her lyricism alone. One of the most rewarding parts about seeing her succeed is that none of this has happened by skipping steps or catching a lucky break. It is all owed to her remarkable talent, the music itself and the relentless detail put into every aspect of her creative campaign. [Island co-CEOs] Justin Eshak and Imran Majid are ambitious leaders who strongly encourage our artists and our Island Records staff to take risks musically and strategically, which has made this journey even more gratifying as we continue to charge forward with no limitations.
With such a string of successful singles, how does that influence your approach to her upcoming album?
I think this album is going to blow people away. If you like “Please Please Please” and “Espresso,” just wait for what’s in store. Every ounce of the album oozes with Sabrina’s personality — funny, sincere, cheeky and intelligent, but above all, it’s honest. There isn’t a single song on the album that one could mistake for another artist, which is by far my favorite part.
How has A&R changed over the course of your career, and how has technology changed the role?
Technology continues to be a valuable tool for us to perform our jobs more efficiently. Since the start of my career, our access to information, data and even resources used to break artists have multiplied; however, my approach to signings, choosing singles and pairing creatives has never wavered from following my gut instinct. What will remain constant in A&R is the importance of maintaining genuine relationships, remaining selective and staying true to finding artists with longevity, a point of view and an unparalleled vision.
Now that it’s officially summer, we can start calling 2024 the summer of BRAT. Charli XCX’s sixth studio album, released June 7 on Atlantic Records, has taken the internet, and dance floors, by storm, spawning memes, jokes and posts galore, all colored the fluorescent “brat green” on social media — and that’s before you even get to the music. The record itself is a triumph of dance-pop that has not only ignited Charli’s legions of fans but brought her the biggest debut week of her career, having moved 82,000 equivalent album units in the United States to debut at No. 3 on the Billboard 200.
It’s a testament to the groundswell of support that Charli has cultivated, and that her management team, creative and design teams, and label Atlantic Records have helped nurture. The album arrived with 14 different vinyl variants and a number of exclusive editions, helping to sell 45,000 copies (the biggest sales week of Charli’s career) while becoming nearly inescapable in the cultural discourse. It also proved that Charli is a true innovator who’s much more than the “Boom Clap” and “I Love It” hits of a decade ago, or even the songwriting superstar she’s been for other artists throughout her career. All that hype and success has helped Atlantic’s vp of marketing Marisa Aron earn the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Trending on Billboard
Here, Aron discusses the marketing plan and rollout of BRAT, how Charli helped build hype for the album more than a year ago and the groundswell of support — including a gigantic record-store listening party at more than 170 stores across the country three days before the album’s release — that led into BRAT’s debut. But just as the solstice has only passed this week, there’s much more to come: as Aron puts it, “BRAT Summer has just begun.”
This week, Charli XCX’s BRAT debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 with 82,000 equivalent album units, her biggest first week ever. What key decision did you make to help make that happen?
The success of BRAT is a testament to Charli’s incredible artistry and vision. She not only created the most culturally important pop and dance album of the year but also delivered a masterclass in artistic direction and marketing strategy. Charli has an amazing team, and together with the unwavering support from our team at Atlantic we all worked to execute her vision to the fullest. Our key decision? To trust her implicitly. We fully embraced her vision, her plan, her ideas and helped her bring BRAT to life.
What was the overall marketing plan for the release?
The marketing plan for BRAT is all about amplifying Charli’s authentic voice and connecting directly with her fans. We knew we had an incredibly important album on our hands, one that was innovative, bold, fun, loud and would create a lot of conversation. We wanted to put together a campaign that captured that energy and put BRAT into the cultural zeitgeist. The plan doesn’t end with the album release; stay tuned, there is a lot more to come.
The album also sold 45,000 copies, her largest sales week ever, including 14 different vinyl variants. What was your guys’ approach to physical for this album, and how did it pay off?
The physical release plan was so much fun to put together. It was a collaborative effort between Charli; [creative director] Imogene; design team SPECIAL OFFER, Inc.; Charli’s management team; and our team at Atlantic. From the start, we wanted to create a series of limited-edition drops that would keep fans excited throughout the campaign. It was important that each variant felt unique and special both in design and in the rollout.
We started the campaign ahead of the album and artwork announcement with the limited edition 360_brat vinyl, released at first only to Charli’s followers on her private Instagram. This moment helped set the tone for the rest of the campaign. When the official album pre-order went live, we partnered with major retailers like Target and Urban Outfitters, as well as local record stores, Blood Records and more to create exclusive variants that gave fans more options to choose from.
On Tuesday, June 4th, we unleashed BRAT into the world a little early. Thousands of Charli’s fans went to their local record stores for a first listen, three days before the official release. It was a massive undertaking — Atlantic’s biggest listening event campaign ever — with 179 stores across the country.
BRAT’s physical release wasn’t just about sales figures; it was about creating a deeper connection with fans. From the unique packaging that you have to rip into to get to the music, to the events and limited-edition drops, it is a reminder that in the digital age, the physical album can still be a powerful, personal and meaningful experience.
This album almost immediately became a cultural touchstone, and was a huge talking point online, with fans making memes of the cover art and the color palette seemingly everywhere. What was your approach to the digital marketplace for the project?
The BRAT campaign started in February when Charli threw a legendary Boiler Room in Brooklyn with A. G. Cook, George Daniel, Finn Keane and Doss, drawing a record-breaking 40,000 RSVPs — the most in the history of Boiler Room. There were surprise appearances from Addison Rae and Julia Fox. This was the first time people got to hear a few tracks from the forthcoming album, turning it into one of the year’s most viral moments and really setting the tone for what was to come.
The approach was about creating really memorable moments both online and in real life, from surprise DJ sets, exclusive Club Angel events, single reworks with Addison Rae, Robyn, Yung Lean, Skream and Benga to one of the most talked about music videos of the year (“360”) and so much more. We carefully planned out the timing of it all.
The “brat green” that we all have filling our timelines right now goes back to Charli’s brilliant vision for BRAT artwork. Once the artwork was revealed fans started to recreate it themselves, which inspired us to launch the brat generator. From there, it really started to take on a life of its own. We continued to incorporate brat green throughout all the marketing. One of the most fun pre-album moments in the campaign happened in Brooklyn a few days before “360” was released. Terry [from the digital team] had an amazing idea of painting a huge wall “brat green” during a livestream, and thus the “brat wall” was born.
It’s been 12 years since Charli first hit the Hot 100 top 10 with her feature on Icona Pop’s “I Love It,” and 10 years since Charli’s first solo Hot 100 top 10 with “Boom Clap.” Her career feels bigger now than it’s ever been. How did you energize those day one fans and pull in new ones for the run-up to this release?
Speaking from my own experience, it honestly is just really fun to be a Charli fan. For example, a full year before the album campaign even started Charli brilliantly started a new private Instagram account, @360_brat. What goes down on that account is strictly confidential, so I won’t give too much away. But Charli’s early vision and authenticity has made BRAT an undeniable phenomenon which really resonated with her early fans, and then throughout the campaign brought new fans in.
Much of the conversation in the music business this year has been about superfans — where to find them, how to connect with them and the ways to better cater to them during single and album rollouts. Suffice it to say that the team behind Twenty One Pilots and their latest album, Clancy, took that conversation to heart.
This week, Clancy debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and flew in at No. 1 on both the Top Album Sales and Top Rock Albums charts with 143,000 equivalent album units, landing the biggest rock debut of the year so far in the process, with a campaign that leaned heavily into super-serving the group’s biggest fans. That took the form of exclusive listening parties at independent record stores around the country, a multi-pronged sales strategy that offered more than a dozen different ways of purchasing the album and thinking holistically about each tier of fandom and what they want the most.
The result: Nearly 60% of the album’s first week numbers came from direct-to-consumer (D2C) sales, according to Elektra vp of D2C, streaming and marketing strategy Thom Skarzynski, who worked on the album rollout. And the success of Clancy helps earn Skarzynski the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Trending on Billboard
Here, Skarzynski discusses the fan-led strategies that went into the album release, as well as the career-long buildup that got the band to this point. “We went into the campaign with a refreshed mindset,” Skarzynski says. “It was all about bringing things back to the surface and carrying the story to life for not only the deeply-rooted superfans but also the more casual listeners who may have lost the plot along the way.”
This week, Twenty One Pilots’ Clancy debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on both Top Album Sales and Top Rock Albums. What key decision did you make to help make that happen?
My role at Elektra is multifaceted — depending on the project, I might be involved in marketing, D2C or streaming strategy. In the case of Twenty One Pilots, I was fortunate enough to run point on all three, co-running the overall marketing on this album campaign with Katie Robinson [senior vp of marketing at Elektra], so I truly was able to engulf myself into the whole picture and curate what we needed to happen and when.
That said, the area that I’m most proud of in impacting our debut was what we were able to do via D2C on the band’s store. We took extra care to custom tailor each of our offerings, accounting for every level of fan, what would excite them, and how it would deepen their connection with the band. In the end, D2C accounted for nearly 60% of our first-week activity. Their overwhelming response shows the power of a fan base when they’re being listened to and treated right.
With 143,000 equivalent album units, Clancy nearly doubled the first-week mark from the band’s last album, 2021’s Scaled and Icy. What did you do different this time around to achieve that?
We went into the campaign with a refreshed mindset. It was all about bringing things back to the surface and carrying the story to life for not only the deeply-rooted superfans but also the more casual listeners who may have lost the plot along the way. I must credit the band themselves, management [Chris Woltman and Ashley Pimenta at Element 1] and their creative team [Mark Eshleman and Brandon Rike], as they were true architects in the early teaser campaigns we executed for the core fanbase — sending 1,500 red envelope letters out to fans across the globe, swapping all studio artwork of previous albums to have “red tape” over it. Cryptic moments like that activated their hardcore fans, and from there we just expanded. This album campaign was about bringing every level of fan together and nailing the conclusion to a story the band has been telling for nearly a decade.
The album’s huge sales week was also bolstered by its physical availability — 11 vinyl variants, plus several CD editions and deluxe box sets. What was your approach to the physical sales aspect, and how were you able to pull that off?
Very early on, we connected with the band’s creative director Brandon Rike, and went through ideas and suggestions for this launch — including my absolute favorite, the Clancy Journal — as well as box-set options and how many different vinyl variants we would need to ensure everybody from the fan base had something they loved enough to own. We chose carefully, knowing where each level of fan would be shopping and what they would engage with, and let that be our guide.
We also held listening events at over 175 independent record stores across the country the Saturday prior to album release, which brought out an estimated 20,000 fans. That indie variable was super cool and we were so happy to bring the physical community together to experience the album as one. I am a firm believer that fans want to own an item from an artist they love that they can proudly display or cherish, and that’s what we aimed to offer. Every decision we made was around “thinking like a fan.” Any mindset different from that was unacceptable as we rolled this out.
The album was the final chapter of a conceptual series. How were you able to play into that to help generate excitement among the fan base?
For me, the pressure was on to deliver on behalf of the band and their team, and simply connect the dots wherever possible. This storyline that they’ve built for nine years now is so much bigger than me and I not only accepted that fact but was humbled to be trusted to handle parts of the campaign that played into it. Ultimately, what generates the most excitement are three things: excellent music; a message and lyrics that resonate with people; and bringing fans along on the journey with you.
Clancy also represents the biggest debut for a rock album this year so far. With rock such a sales-heavy format and the industry at large so dependent on streaming, how do you leverage streaming with that sales strategy to deliver such a big debut?
The variety and cadence of the single releases leading up to the album kept the fan base engaged and built up anticipation for the full album. We also had great support from our streaming partners with multiple playlist covers, and excellent positioning in both their new music and flagship playlists across rock, alternative and pop. When it comes to sales itself, we looked at everything mathematically, and strategically pinpointed where we could find wins and where we felt we may have had some challenges. We knew how much we had total control of — D2C, physical retail, indie retail and digital albums — and making each of them the best experience possible maximized our results. We just knew the fan base so well and were able to be strategic with how, when and where we interacted with them.
How are you guys planning to continue to promote the album moving forward?
We are just getting started. “The Craving (single version)” is impacting at Top 40, Alternative and Hot AC radio right now and already getting incredible support. This is also a band that never stops: They have their massive Clancy World Tour which hits arenas and even some stadiums across North America starting in August before going overseas to Australia, New Zealand, Latin America and Europe. In my very first conversation with management back in October, they walked me through a plan that ran through 2026 and beyond. Twelve years in, this is still just the beginning for them.
When Bryan Martin’s “We Ride” entered the top 10 of Billboard’s Country Airplay chart two weeks ago, the raw, stripped-down tune became not only the Louisiana native’s first hit, but it also marked the first time in more than a dozen years that Martin’s label, Average Joes Entertainment, achieved a Top 10.
The song, which rises to No. 9 today (May 31), is Average Joes’ first Top 10 since duo Montgomery Gentry reached No. 8 in March 2012 with “Where I Come From.” That feat came the year after Average Joes’ current president, Forrest Latta, joined the label as a product manager, rising through the ranks to vp of A&R and now president. Founded in 2008 by country rapper Jason “Colt Ford” Brown and producer Shannon Houchins, who is the company’s CEO, Average Joes served as an early label home to such acts as Brantley Gilbert and LoCash, and also has a thriving film and television division, as well as publishing company.
Average Joes hired indie promotion team New Revolution to work “We Ride” to terrestrial radio stations. The radio push was part of a multi-tiered campaign that started more than a year and a half ago with “We Ride,” and its ongoing success earns Latta the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Trending on Billboard
Here, Latta talks about “We Ride’s” slow build at streaming outlets before the move to radio and the patient approach he and his team took to breaking the song. “I don’t think we would be seeing the same level of success without the right team executing in each phase,” he says.
You released “We Ride” in October 2022. When did you decide to take it to terrestrial country radio and how long had it been since Average Joes made a push to terrestrial radio?
We started having conversations about it in May of last year and ended up deciding to pull the trigger with an impact date in September, the same week the record went gold. Prior to this, our last approach to radio was 2017 with “Better Me,” in the wake of Troy Gentry‘s tragic passing. [Gentry, one half of Montgomery Gentry, died in a helicopter accident in 2017.]
Bryan’s music has an honest rawness to it like Zach Bryan, Warren Zeiders, Oliver Anthony and Koe Wetzel. Is there strength in numbers that radio can’t ignore as we see a wave of artists like this telling their truth?
I think the market has shown that it is hungry for this style, and I think country radio does a great job of keeping their finger on the pulse of the market. That said, the level of success of others was not part of our conversation when we made the decision to take “We Ride” to radio.
What were the key steps you took to make it happen? Building out the right team was really important. We met with many people and had to make some tough decisions to get the right people with a strategy that aligned. Ultimately, the strategy took form in three phases — pre-release social push; post-release digital-first approach with our internal team; followed by a big push at radio with the New Revolution team. I don’t think we would be seeing the same level of success without the right team executing in each phase.
This is Average Joes’ first Top 10 on Country Airplay since 2012. What did you hear in the song that made you know you should push it?
We knew we had something when we heard the work tape. Bryan is a great songwriter, and this is a great example of it. The vibe is unique, and the song is uniquely Bryan. We also heard the response from the market. Being able to take a song that already had that kind of data, we didn’t have to ask radio to take as big of a chance on it because it was already a proven winner.
How much of Bryan’s success is how open he is with his very compelling story, including attempting suicide and his struggles with alcohol? And as someone who is newly sober, how did the label take steps to protect his sobriety?
All credit for Bryan’s sobriety goes to him — he’s one of the most determined people I know, and he is doing great so far. We absolutely seek to support him, whether it was helping facilitate treatment by taking a month off from recording, playing shows, and radio promo, as well as providing a safe environment to work in, and making sure he has a healthy team around him.
How important was TikTok to fans learning about the song?
It was huge building up to release. Andrew Davis, our vp of marketing, and his team put together a long lead plan focused on the platform and fought hard for it, even when some of us started to get antsy about setting a release. They deserve a lot of credit for that.
“We Ride” has more than 190 million streams on Spotify, far and away his biggest streaming song. How has streaming helped propel its success, and what was the key component to the digital campaign?
It was a little slow coming out the gates — DSPs weren’t as familiar with Bryan initially — but once they noticed the groundswell, they were quick to jump on board, and really helped grow the song early on.
Will terrestrial radio be part of Bryan’s story going forward?
Absolutely. They have been great partners, and we look forward to continuing that relationship.
When Sabrina Carpenter signed with the Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) in October 2023, she was coming off the critical and commercial success of her 2022 Island Records debut Emails I Can’t Send, a project that established her as a formidable pop hitmaker with a distinct voice and a captivating appeal. But since that album’s release, her career has launched into the stratosphere, with a string of singles — “Nonsense” off the original Emails; “Feather,” which was released on the deluxe of Emails in August 2023; and, most recently, April 2024’s “Espresso” — that have each reached higher on the charts than the last, building her into a mainstream dynamo with song-of-the-summer hitmaking potential.
It’s been “Espresso,” however, that has truly captured the zeitgeist. The song zoomed onto the Billboard Hot 100 with a No. 7 debut, eventually reaching No. 4, but has done even better globally, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart — where it spends its second week this week, establishing it as a bona fide international hit. And through the work of her label at Island and her publishing company UMPG, that’s marked the highest chart placement of Carpenter’s career — and help earned UMPG co-head of U.S. A&R and head of UMPG’s global creative group David Gray the title of Billboard’s Executive of the Week.
Trending on Billboard
Here, Gray discusses the work UMPG has done with Carpenter in the six months since bringing her into the pubco, what sets her apart as a songwriter and the company’s global outlook. “She has always had a vision for herself as an artist and songwriter,” Gray says. “It’s rewarding to see her succeed at a global level and get all of the credit she deserves.”
This week, Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” spends its second week at No. 1 on the Billboard Global Excl. U.S. chart and its fifth week in the top 10 of the Hot 100. What key decision did you make to help make that happen?
Overall at UMPG, we work to support our songwriters’ ideas and decisions in any way we can, whether putting together strategic writing sessions or working to secure great synch opportunities globally.
Sabrina signed with UMPG last October. What were your first conversations like with her about her music and where she wanted to go?
Sabrina talked about how the Emails I Can’t Send album was a step up from where she was before and she was ready to take it up to the next level from there. She has always had a vision for herself as an artist and songwriter. It’s rewarding to see her succeed at a global level and get all of the credit she deserves.
What sets Sabrina apart from other pop stars as a songwriter, and how have you helped to emphasize that?
Sabrina has such a unique and brilliant songwriting voice, both lyrically and melodically. All the years of doing sessions, working hard, taking songwriting very seriously and perfecting her craft has made her not only the artist in the writing session… but she is also an A-list-level songwriter talent-wise.
For the past two years you’ve headed up UMPG’s global creative group. How has that changed how you work with songwriters, and in what ways does it help your global reach?
At UMPG, we have always recognized that there are amazing writing opportunities for songwriters outside of their own territories. The number and quality of these writing opportunities has accelerated in the last few years. The communication between territories that the Global Creative Group provides is essential to making sure our writers get the best of these opportunities.
How are you preparing to deal with AI in the publishing world?
It’s still nascent in the broader creative community, but we know AI offers opportunities and risks. We embrace AI, just as we have other technology innovations in the past, but only AI technology that is ethical and artist-centric — in other words, only if it supports songwriters and protects their rights.
Last year, an unknown artist named Tommy Richman stunned as a guest on Brent Faiyaz’s Larger Than Life, appearing on “Upset” alongside FELIX! (The song reached No. 12 on Hot R&B Songs last November.) But now, Richman, who is signed to Faiyaz’ ISO Supremacy label, is making a much larger impression with a hit of his own.
On April 26, Richman released the bouncy “Million Dollar Baby,” on which he flexes his falsetto and genre-blurring sensibilities. The song debuted with 38 million official U.S. streams in its first week of release (April 26-May 2), according to Luminate. “Million Dollar Baby” also scored Richman his first Hot 100 entry, debuting at No. 2 — behind only Taylor Swift and Post Malone’s “Fortnight.” The song also debuts atop the Steaming Songs chart, making Richman the first artist since Olivia Rodrigo with “Drivers License” in 2021 to launch a solo first entry atop the chart.
As previously reported by Billboard, the song’s grand entrance resulted in a boost for Richman’s discography; not including “Baby,” Richman’s catalog posted nearly 2.1 million on-demand U.S. audio streams (across April 26-29), a gain of 106% from the four-day period before. And now, in its second week, the song not only remains at No. 2 on the Hot 100, it climbs to No. 2 on the Billboard Global 200 and reaches No. 1 on the TikTok Top 50, as it continues to gain steam.
Trending on Billboard
The Woodbridge, Va.-born artist was the first to sign to ISO Supremacy (in partnership with PULSE Records). In addition to scoring a feature on Faiyaz’s last album, Richman also opened for the label boss on his 2023 F*ck the World, It’s a Wasteland Tour. And now, Darren Xu, COO of ISO Supremacy, earns the title of Billboard‘s Executive of the Week.
Despite much of this success seemingly coming out of nowhere, Xu can’t help but look back knowingly, having always believed Richman would reach this moment. As “Baby” continues to grow — thanks in large part to TikTok, where the song has soundtracked 218.3K clips and counting — his team is focused on the future. As Xu, says: “It’s going to be all gas, no brakes.”
Since the Hot 100 began in 1958, only five other acts have debuted in the chart’s top two with no prior history on the chart. Why is “Million Dollar Baby” connecting so strongly?
I feel like “Million Dollar Baby” is a real testament to the climate of social media today. It really shows that if you make good music, it will reach the right audience. Tommy is creating new sounds and the music will speak for itself.
Tommy was the first artist signed to Brent Faiyaz’s ISO Supremacy — what were Tommy and the team looking to gain in signing with Brent?
There was a mutual respect and collaborative energy between the two of them from day one, so the connection just made sense. We knew we’d all win big.
What’s the key to managing an emerging star today?
Don’t let people rush or pressure you into taking steps you don’t need to, and prioritize the artist’s taste and vision.
How are you planning to keep momentum going — for the song and Tommy more broadly?
You guys are going to have to just stay tuned and keep an eye on what we do next. All I can say is it’s going to be all gas no brakes.