Business
The Beatz Goes On (Music Week)
Swizz Beatz didn’t just want a vinyl collection, he wanted the means to make vinyl for people to collect. He wanted to share his love of physical music, and one genre in particular, beyond his own family. This is how he became not only a collaborator but also a co-partner/co-owner in a fast-growing music company.
Enter: high-end luxury vinyl brand 12On12 and its founder and chief creative Claudia Moross. She first diagnosed the opportunities for not just vinyl but, rather, super-collectibles while working at Cutting Edge Group, which owned the film soundtrack label Varese Sarabande. A commercial opportunity was forming, but it needed a spin to make it unique. Moross settled on the notion of limited-edition records lovingly curated in a manner that revealed a lot about the people putting them together.
"For me, I was like, 'How can we raise some awareness on such a great genre?' I want to create a jazz label, so let's start with it on wax with 12On12 and our partnership."
“Well, first and foremost, the company is extraordinary,” Swizz explains of his reasoning with getting on board with 12On12. “I started off as a DJ so I collected vinyl, but I always wanted to be an owner in a wax company — 12On12 was the perfect opportunity because not only do they deal with vinyl, we’re dealing with art and lifestyle, too. This is the perfect time for people to see something like this come together, and for my first offering to be jazz.”
Full article available here.
Legendary Producer Swizz Beatz To Release Limited Edition Vinyl ‘Long Live Jazz’ On February 25 (Forbes)
Swizz Beatz, the Grammy winning producer, has partnered with 12on12 to release 1,000 hand numbered vinyl albums of Long Live Jazz on Friday, February 25. Incorporated with the album on the sleeve is artwork from Swizz’ private collection of Kwame Brathwaite photos. This project is meant to build a new category of collectibles which are part music, and part art.
The partnership with 12on12 builds from their prior collaboration in creating limited album releases for Travis Scott in partnership with Saint Laurent and with RUN DMC.
Swizz Beatz says, “Jazz has always been magic to our ears. I feel like it should definitely get more attention. This is the first step to pay homage to the great craft & art. Photography is also one of the best expressions of art and should be shown more often. Art & music are brothers and sisters so I thought it was a great match. I’m a big fan of Kwame and I also love that I’m able to share pieces from my collection through music.”
The partnership with 12on12 builds from their prior collaboration in creating limited album releases for Travis Scott in partnership with Saint Laurent and with RUN DMC. Founder and Chief Creative of 12on12 Claudia Moross adds, “Our goal is to create transcending experiences through music and art, the combination of playing the record while exploring the thoughtfully curated artwork commissioned for the sleeve allows for a precious moment of cultural enjoyment. 12on12’s are very much pieces of art that can be collected and treasured. With Swizz’s finger on the pulse and his well-documented history within music and art, the brand will be upping the ante as we look to work with the very best artists, both visual and musical, to curate future Vinylworks. I am really looking forward to the next chapter for 12on12 and with the expertise and passion Swizz Beatz brings to the table I’m really excited for what’s to come for the brand.”
Swizz Beatz is not only the latest curator to work with 12on12 but he also comes on board as their new business partner. Acquiring a strategic stake in the high-end luxury vinyl brand, Swizz continues to build on 12on12’s reputation for unique ‘Vinylworks’ and bespoke limited collector’s editions by compiling his own exclusive 12” vinyl compilation.
For Long Live Jazz, Swizz has selected a truly interesting playlist:
Side A
Until the Real Thing Comes Along by JD Allen
Doubts 2 by Ibrahim Maalouf
Osmosis Part III by Paul Motian, Bill Frisell, Joe Lovano
Side B
Call Out My Name by New Masters feat. Immanuel Williams
Never Let Me Go by Houston Person
I’ve Grown Accustomed To Her Face – Live by Wes Montgomery
Side C
In A Sentimental Mood by Sonny Rollins feat. The Modern Jazz Quartet
Little Girl Blue by Jeremy Pelt
Doubts by Ibrahim Maalouf
Side D
Alone Together – Rudy Van Gelder Remaster by Kenny Dorham
‘Round Midnight (Mono Version) by Miles Davis
In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning by Bill Frisell, Thomas Morgan
Whether it be in music, fine art, sports, business, or culture, Swizz Beatz consistently challenges and changes the status quo. The Bronx native started disrupting back in 1998. Straight out of the gate, he produced one of the most popular hip-hop songs in history: DMX’s double-platinum “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem.” He has sales of over 350 million albums worldwide with a bulletproof discography highlighted by classics such as JAY-Z’s “Jigga My N****” and the GRAMMY® Award-winning “On To The Next One,” Beyoncé’s “Ring the Alarm,” Lil Wayne’s “Uproar,” and dozens of others. Billboard touted him in the Top 20 of “The 50 Greatest Producers of the 21st Century,” and Kanye West christened him, “The best rap producer of all time.” In addition, Swizz graduated from Harvard Business School’s OPM Program and made history as New York University’s first “Producer in Residence.”
PRE-ORDER HERE
Full article available here.
Swizz Beatz: the super-producer behind the music of Jay-Z, Kanye West and Beyoncé (The Times)
It is just another ordinary day in the Razor House, the glass clifftop masterpiece in California dubbed “the coolest house in America”. Its owner, Swizz Beatz, the Grammy award-winning record producer, is juggling phone calls as he paces up and down beside the infinity pool that overlooks the Pacific Ocean.
He lives in Iron Man’s futuristic house and is married to Alicia Keys – no wonder Swizz Beatz, the ‘best rap producer of all time’, is stunned by his own success
They are the ultimate music power couple. Keys, 41, needs no introduction; her husband, Beatz, 43, born Kasseem Dean, is less well known but equally successful. Named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2021, he is the producer behind some of the biggest musicians of our day, including Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Kanye West. Fuelling sales of more than 350 million albums worldwide, he has been hailed by West as “the best rap producer of all time”.
Full article available here.
Elite producer/Verzuz founder Swizz Beatz reveals new partnership & release with vinyl brand 12on12 (MusicWeek)
Legendary producer/Verzuz founder Swizz Beatz has today (February 14) announced that he is joining forces with the high-end vinyl brand 12On12.
12On12 prides itself on “living at the intersection of music, art and pop culture” by providing an outlet for cultural icons to curate the soundtracks to their lives.
The firm invites musicians like RUN DMC and Travis Scott to choose 12 tracks that they feel soundtrack their lives and provide the canvas of vinyl to put together a unique package of music alongside a piece of commissioned artwork.
Beatz will not only follow in the steps of Run-DMC and Travis Scott x Saint Laurent in delivering a curated “vinylworks set” – a bespoke collectors’ edition album detailing his influences – he is also joining the company as their new business partner.
For his debut curated set, Swizz Beatz is releasing Long Live Jazz – an exclusive 12” vinyl only compilation featuring photography from his own private collection (The Dean Collection), as the unique work of art for the record. The piece of art selected for the cover image ‘Untitled (Grandassas in Car)’ was shot in 1968 during a Garvey Day Celebration in New York by Kwame Brathwaite
Swizz Beatz’s 12On12 debut is a limited edition deluxe premium double gatefold package that is hand-numbered to a run of 1000 copies featuring “a meticulously selected track list celebrating Swizz’s love and passion for jazz across its four sides.”
Included on Swizz’s tracklist are Miles Davies’ Round Midnight and Kenny Dorham’s Alone Together, as well as a reworking of The Weeknd’s hit single Call Out My Name by a group of today’s leading jazz musicians – the New Masters featuring Immanuel Wilkins.
Speaking about his 12On12 partnership with Music Week, Swizz Beatz said: “The company is extraordinary. I always wanted to be an owner in a wax company – 12On12 was the perfect opportunity because not only do they deal with vinyl, we’re dealing with art and lifestyle, too. This is the perfect time for people to see something like this come together, and for my first offering to be jazz.”
12on12 have also partnered with Vinyl Me, Please (VMP) for the release of ‘Long Live Jazz to ensure they reach a large, dedicated base of fans.
12on12’s founder & chief creative Claudia Moross said: “Our goal is to create transcending experiences through music and art, the combination of playing the record while exploring the thoughtfully curated artwork commissioned for the sleeve allows for a precious moment of cultural enjoyment. 12On12’s are very much pieces of art that can be collected and treasured. With Swizz’s finger on the pulse and his well-documented history within music and art, the brand will be upping the ante as we look to work with the very best artists, both visual and musical, to curate future Vinylworks. I am really looking forward to the next chapter for 12On12 and with the expertise and passion Swizz Beatz brings to the table I’m really excited for what’s to come for the brand.”
Swizz added: “Jazz has always been magic to our ears. I feel like it should definitely get more attention! This is the first step to pay homage to the great craft & art. Photography is also one of the best expressions of art and should be shown more often. Art & Music are brothers and sisters so I thought it was a great match. I’m a big fan of Kwame and I also love I’m able to share pieces from my collection through music!”
Swizz Beatz’ Long Live Jazz limited edition vinyl is available for pre-order now, with orders shipping from February 25.
You can see the full tracklisting of Long Live Jazz below:
TRACKLISTING
Side A
- Until the Real Thing Comes Along by JD Allen
- Doubts 2 by Ibrahim Maalouf
- Osmosis Part III by Paul Motian, Bill Frisell, Joe Lovano
Side B
- Call Out My Name by New Masters feat. Immanuel Williams
- Never Let Me Go by Houston Person
- I’ve Grown Accustomed To Her Face – Live by Wes Montgomery
Side C
- In A Sentimental Mood by Sonny Rollins feat. The Modern Jazz Quartet
- Little Girl Blue by Jeremy Pelt
- Doubts by Ibrahim Maalouf
Side D
- Alone Together – Rudy Van Gelder Remaster by Kenny Dorham
- ‘Round Midnight (Mono Version) by Miles Davis
- In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning by Bill Frisell, Thomas Morgan
Full article available here.
The Vinyl Comeback: How 12on12 are bridging the gap between music and art (City A.M.)
Whilst many of us have turned to popular streaming platforms, like Spotify or Apple Music, to consume our music, there appears to be a renaissance in CDs and vinyl records.
A company that is trying to jump on this bandwagon is 12on12.
12on12 is an exclusive high-end vinyl brand, which stands for 12 tracks on a 12” vinyl.
The firm invites musicians like RUN DMC and Travis Scott to choose 12 tracks that they feel soundtrack their lives and provide the canvas of vinyl to put together a unique package of music alongside a piece of commissioned artwork.
Figures released by the music trade body British Phonographic Industry showed that vinyls accounted for nearly a quarter of album purchases in 2021, hitting the highest levels since 1990.
Speaking to 12on12 founder Claudia Moross, she told City A.M.: “I was inspired to start 12on12 in 2015 when I began to notice the huge resurgence in vinyl as collectibles. What the medium of vinyl provides that CD, cassette or digital can’t, is not only a higher quality sound but a much larger space for self-expression in the artwork and packaging.”
Another key feature of vinyl is that, unlike a digital playlist, it is not easy to skip or shuffle songs.
“It’s beauty is in putting a record on and sitting and listening right through while perusing the artwork and sleeve – it would be incongruous to have a slash metal track followed by a folk song. The compilation has to be curated by the cultural icons in a way that provides a certain experience for the listener – this is all a part of the creativity of the projects”, she added.
Moross said that the resurgence of vinyl is rooted in the fact that consumers are now craving “physicality and superior sound quality of music that was lost due to the digital era”.
In particular, she finds the huge growth in the under 35 year-old age group particularly interesting.
“I believe a big part of this is due to the fact they grew up in the time of mp3s and digital downloads and didn’t have the experience of buying their first CD, putting it on, listening to it from top to bottom while reading the liner notes and lyrics”, she told City A.M.
In terms of future ambitions, she said the plan is to create experiential activations that tap into nostalgia, and to create luxury merchandise, collaborating with creatives and licensing the 12on12 brand.
She said this would only happen when “the time is right”, and explained that the new partnership with Grammy-award winning producer Swizz Beatz, which was announced today, would help facilitate this.
Swizz is not only acquiring a strategic stake in 12on12, but he will also build on its reputation for unique ‘vinylworks’ and bespoke collectors’ editions following previous collaborations.
He will be compiling his own exclusive limited edition 12” vinyl only compilation featuring a selected tracklist celebrating Swizz’s love and passion for jazz across its four sides.
“One of our ultimate goals is to be to vinyl what Supreme is to skateboarding, we want to build a trusted pop culture brand in the music and visual art worlds and will expand from there”, Moross said.
Full article available here.
Cutting Edge Invests in ITV's The Ipcress File (Deadline)
Altitude Television’s big-budget six-parter has already pre-sold to AMC+ and producer Andy Mayson said “Cutting Edge’s involvement and expertise has ensured the authentic sounds of the 60s feature.”
Music financier Cutting Edge Media Music has invested in ITV’s adaptation of Len Deighton’s The Ipcress File and will take full music rights to the upcoming series.
The highly-anticipated series comes from Oscar-nominated screenwriter John Hodge and Emmy-winning director James Watkins, and stars Joe Cole, Tom Hollander and Lucy Boynton. Cole stars as Harry Palmer, a Cold War army sergeant who turns to spying in order to avoid prison, cutting his teeth on The Ipcress File. The book was adapted in 1965 into a hit film starring Michael Caine as Palmer.
Full article available here.
The National Theatre and Cutting Edge Media Music Form Exclusive Partnership (Broadway World)
The National Theatre and Cutting Edge Media Music have formed an exclusive partnership to develop and share the music in all the productions created by The National Theatre.
In early 2020 Cutting Edge acquired Broadway Records, founded by Van Dean and which is believed by many to be the leading independent soundtrack label servicing the Broadway community. Since inception Broadway records has released hundreds of cast albums including favourites like “Anastasia”, “Matilda”, “The Color Purple” and “A Sondheim Disco Fever Dream”.
Founded in the UK in the early 2000’s The Cutting Edge Group have become the leading independent music for media business in the US and UK. During the last decade, they have been involved with more than 1000 films, TV shows and games, working for and on behalf of the most important creative talent in the industry.
The move into live theatre completes the Cutting Edge offering and the partnership with The National Theatre, which produces work seen right across the world, is a cornerstone.
Cutting Edge will release the soundtracks to The National Theatre’s world-class theatrical productions through its musical theatre record label, Broadway Records, including the release of the original soundtrack to Hex, a new musical based on the classic fairy-tale Sleeping Beauty directed by Rufus Norris with music by Jim Fortune and The Lehman Trilogy, a National Theatre co-production with Neal Street Productions, directed by Sam Mendes, with music by Nick Powell which tells the story of a family and a company that changed the world. Further soundtracks to be released include All Kinds of Limbo, inspired by the National’s production of Small Island, an immersive performance employing virtual reality and holography that features music by Nubiya Brandon and Raffy Bushman; and Trouble in Mind, Alice Childress’s masterpiece from the 1950’s directed by Nancy Medina, again with music by Nubiya Brandon and Raffy Bushman.
“This partnership with Cutting Edge marks the start of an exciting new chapter for music at The National Theatre. This collaboration will allow us to release and publish music in a state-of-the-art way and give audiences worldwide access to the brilliant music of the many composers and musicians we work with. I’m delighted that Hex will be one of the first releases and I am looking forward to many more projects to come.” –Rufus Norris, Director of The National Theatre.
Cutting Edge will also provide The National Theatre with access to its premium music services and resources from its operations in New York, London and Los Angeles, and administer The National Theatre’s future music publishing rights.
“From the moment I watched “Albert Speer” at The National Theatre, when I was twelve years old, I have loved the theatre. Our Partnership with The National Theatre is a dream come true and working closely with Rufus, the NT’s Creative Director of Music Marc Tritschler and the team at The National Theatre is a true privilege for all of us at Cutting Edge.” –Tara Finegan, COO Cutting Edge.
“The partnership will allow The National Theatre to develop its music strategy and support its development of musical theatre as well as grow Cutting Edge’s presence in live entertainment. The National Theatre produces some of the world’s greatest plays and musicals, and it is a tremendous honour to be their record label partner. Their work consistently inspires us and we are thrilled about all of the exciting music projects in the works and yet to come.” –Van Dean, CEO Broadway records.
Full article available here.
NATIONAL THEATRE TO RELEASE MUSIC IN DEAL WITH BROADWAY RECORDS (Daily Telegraph)
Music from all National Theatre shows will be released under a new partnership with Cutting Edge Media Music.
Cutting Edge will release recordings to the National Theatre’s shows through its musical-theatre record label Broadway Records, which the company acquired in 2020.
This will include the original cast recording to Hex, which is directed by Rufus Norris with music by Jim Fortune, and The Lehman Trilogy, which was directed by Sam Mendes with music by Nick Powell.
Others to be released through the partnership will include All Kinds of Limbo with music by Nubiya Brandon and Raffy Bushman, which is an immersive performance inspired by the National’s production of Small Island, and Alice Childress’ Trouble in Mind, which also has music by Brandon and Bushman.
The National Theatre has joined forces with Broadway Records to release its soundtrack back catalogue to capitalise on the music streaming boom.
Cutting Edge Media Music operates as a a financier, publisher and record label, and has provided music services to theatre productions including Matilda, The Color Purple, Anastasia and My Fair Lady on Broadway, as well as feature films, television shows and video games.
Norris said: “This partnership with Cutting Edge marks the start of an exciting new chapter for music at the National Theatre.
“This collaboration will allow us to release and publish music in a state-of-the-art way and give audiences worldwide access to the brilliant music of the many composers and musicians we work with. I’m delighted that Hex will be one of the first releases and I am looking forward to many more projects to come.”
Cutting Edge will also provide the National Theatre with access to its music services and resources, and administer the organisation’s future music publishing rights.
Broadway Records chief executive Van Dean said: “The partnership will allow the National Theatre to develop its music strategy and support its development of musical theatre as well as grow Cutting Edge’s presence in live entertainment.
“The National Theatre produces some of the world’s greatest plays and musicals, and it is a tremendous honour to be its record label partner. Its work consistently inspires us and we are thrilled about all of the exciting music projects in the works and yet to come.”
Details from the Telegraph available here.
CUTTING EDGE AND BLANTYRE CAPITAL COMMIT $125M TO ACQUIRE FILM AND TV MUSIC RIGHTS (Music Business Worldwide)
UK-based Cutting Edge Music Holdings has partnered with affiliates of London-based investment firm Blantyre Capital to acquire music publishing rights owned by composers who write music for film and TV.
The partnership has committed an initial $125 million to the strategy and a third (33%) of this sum has already been invested in music rights for productions aired by what Cutting Edge says are major networks and streaming platforms.
The four catalogs of rights purchased to date include what Cutting Edge says are successful franchises with productions broadcast on networks / streaming platforms including: Fox, FX, ABC, CBS, Disney, Paramount, HBO, TNT, Warner, NBC Universal, Hulu, Starz, Netflix, Amazon and Apple.
Blantyre manages long-term committed capital in excess of €1.6 billion (approx. $1.8bn) on behalf of institutional investors including public and private pension plans, endowments, foundations, and family offices.
Founded in the UK in the early 2000s, Cutting Edge operates as a financier, publisher, and record label.
Led by founder and CEO Philip Moross, the company provides a range of music services to such films and TV titles Stranger Things, Bridgerton, The King’s Speech, Moonlight, Drive, Star Trek: Discovery, Fury, John Wick, Sicario, Whiplash, Hacksaw Ridge, and The Walking Dead; Broadway shows Matilda, The Color Purple, Anastasia, and My Fair Lady; and triple-A video games such as: Sunset Overdrive, Assassins Creed Valhalla, Red Dead Redemption and Cyberpunk 2077.
Cutting Edge’s divisions include Lakeshore Records (Soundtracks), Music.Film (Film & TV Music Licensing Platform), Broadway Records (Musical Theatre), Cutting Edge Music Publishing (Music Publisher), and White Stork (Custom Music House).
The firm reports to have published and released the music for over 400 feature films, TV shows, and games.
CEG’s previous musical theatre releases include Matilda, The Color Purple, Anastasia, and The Lightning Thief.
Cutting Edge also operates a wellness label, myndstream, which is home to artists who it says have collectively amassed billions of streams across Spotify, Apple, Pandora, and Amazon.
Back in 2018, Concord Music acquired movie soundtrack and score label Varèse Sarabande from Film Score Records, an investor group led and managed by The Cutting Edge Group. As part of the deal, Cutting Edge itself became a client of Concord Music, which started to provide distribution, marketing, and label services to the firm on a worldwide basis.
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Cutting Edge Music Holdings And Blantyre Capital Team For $125M Acquisition Of Film And TV Music Rights (Deadline)
One-third of the total investment has been earmarked for projects on major networks and streaming platforms. While specific names of projects and talent were not immediately made available, the companies said multiple franchises are part of the transaction. Titles are part of the slates of networks, studios and platforms including Fox, FX, ABC, CBS, Disney, Paramount, HBO, TNT, Warner Bros, NBCUniversal, Hulu, Starz, Netflix, Amazon and Apple.
Cutting Edge Music Holdings and London-based investment firm Blantyre Capital have joined forces for a $125 million acquisition of music publishing rights owned by film and TV composers.
Cutting Edge, which was founded nearly two decades ago in the UK and now has offices in New York and LA, has become a player in film and TV financing via its stakes in music. The company has become known for its moves in independent film, closing deals in 2018 for films like After the Wedding, starring Michelle Williams and Julianne Moore. With streaming sending music catalog valuations sky-high and setting off a scramble for rights, the company has aligned with pre-eminent composers and other creative partners.
Over the past decade, Cutting Edge has been involved with more than 1,000 films, TV shows and games. The company provides a range of music services to such film and TV titles as Stranger Things, Bridgerton, The King’s Speech, Moonlight, Drive, John Wick and The Walking Dead. Its Broadway roster includes Matilda, The Color Purple, Anastasia and My Fair Lady. Video games have included Sunset Overdrive, Assassins Creed Valhalla, Red Dead Redemption and Cyberpunk 2077.
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