Tom Corson: Last News

APPOINTMENTSUniversal Music’s Verve Label Group in the US has promoted Jamie Krents to President of Verve, Impulse! and Verve Forecast Records, while Dawn Olejar has been named Executive Vice President and General Manager of the group at large.Warner Records in the US has hired Dalia Ganz as SVP Digital Marketing. She joins from Disney. “Dalia is a widely respected expert and bold innovator in the digital space who knows how to adapt in a constantly changing landscape and isn’t afraid to break the mould to try something new”, says Warner Records COO Tom Corson.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Tom Corson, co-chairman and COO of Warner Records, will be honored by the cancer research and treatment organization City of Hope with its annual Spirit of Life Award. For more than 50 years, the music industry has united around the Spirit of Life campaign, raising nearly $170 million to support City of Hope’s lifesaving research and care.

JISOO has set up her solo record deal!

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music It’s been a challenging year for Warner Music, with a major overhaul at its Atlantic division and change throughout its business and the industry overall, but it’s safe to say the company is ending 2024 on an up note. Its Warner Records has successfully completed a multi-year turnaround with hits from Zach Bryan, Teddy Swims, Benson Boone and more — and saw its chief execs Aaron Bay-Schuck and Tom Corson named Variety’s Hitmakers executives of the year — and Atlantic is coming off a flurry of hits from Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga, Coldplay, Rose and Variety‘s Hitmaker of the Year Charli xcx. In publishing, its Warner Chappell division has three of its writers up for the songwriter of the year Grammy — Jessi Alexander, Raye, and of course Amy Allen, who was named Hitmakers songwriter of the year.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music “It was pretty dire,” says Warner Records co-chairman-COO Tom Corson of his first few months at the label. A veteran executive who’s held senior roles at A&M, Capitol, Columbia, Arista and J Records, Corson came to Warner after a very successful run as COO of RCA Records.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Warner Music Group announced Tuesday that Gregg Nadel will become co-chair and co-president of Warner Music Nashville, taking a position alongside Cris Lacy as one of the leaders of Warner’s Nashville operations. Nadel (pictured above) succeeds Ben Kline, who was described as deciding to step down after a decade with the company. Kline and Lacy had been elevated to co-chairs and co-presidents at the beginning of 2023, jointly following in the footsteps of John Esposito, after that longtime label topper announced his retirement in 2022.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Omar Apollo, Brandy Clark and Coco Jones performed and three people were honored Tuesday night at the first T.J. Martell Foundation since 2019, which raised more than $1.3 million for cancer research. The honorees included Warner Records Co-Chairman and COO Tom Corson, who received the Lifetime Music Industry Award; Def Jam Chief Creative Officer and executive VP Archie Davis, who received the Rising Music Superstar Award; Grammy Award-winning and Tony-nominated songwriter/producer Shane McAnally, who received the Spirit of Music Award. The event was hosted by Gala Co-Chairs and Board Chairman John Esposito, Tunji Balogun, Aaron Bay-Schuck, Robert Carlton, Steve Gawley, Laura Swanson and Julie Swidler.

FIFTY FIFTY have signed a new partnership with American label Warner Records.The new partnership comes shortly after FIFTY FIFTY went viral on TikTok with their sophomore single ‘Cupid’. The English version of the song, also known as the ‘Twin Ver.’, has since peaked at number 50 on the Billboard Hot 100.“We are grateful to Warner Records for the opportunity to discuss innovative ways to bring FIFTY FIFTY to the forefront of the music industry,” said Sung-il Ahn, co-CEO of FIFTY FIFTY’s label ATTRAKT, per Billboard.“We are thrilled to find that our thoughts and visions align with an artist-centered approach, and we are eager to explore potential avenues for success together,” he added.Meanwhile, Warner Records’ COO Tom Corson and CEO Aaron Bay-schuk said: “We are thrilled to partner with FIFTY FIFTY to amplify their global smash single ‘Cupid’ and we know there is much more to come.”The duo, who are also co-chairmen of the American record label, added that the Warner Records team are “excited to create additional opportunities for this powerhouse K-pop girl group”.In a statement, FIFTY FIFTY said that they are “honoured to be working with Warner Records, and we are excited to see what the future holds for us.

Thania Garcia Warner Records today announced the launch of its first-ever flagship electronic dance music label, Major Recordings. Headed by Sam Mobarek, the label’s first signing is duo the duo Parisi, in partnership with Parlophone’s FFRR imprint. Mobarek will report to Warner Records’ co-chairman/ COO Tom Corson and co-chairman/ CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck. Mobarek has nearly two decades of experience in branding and marketing, most recently running Mob Creative, which she also founded. Prior to Mob, Mobarek led the marketing department at Ultra Music, working with Calvin Harris, Steve Aoki, Pitbull, and deadmau5; she also ran the pop imprint Lefthook under Sony Music while still a student at New York University’s Stern School of Business, and held posts at live music company SFX (now Lifestyle) as well as Beatport. In recent months, she and her team have been working with Warner’s partners on such acts as the Blessed Madonna, Eliza Rose, Luude, Skin on Skin and more.

Steve Boom — who, as MusiCares chair, also played a huge role in the organization’s distribution of more than $25 million in pandemic relief to the music community — will be honored as the UJA’s Music Visionary of the Year with a luncheon on June 7 at New York’s Ziegfield Ballroom. He will be saluted for his professional and philanthropic leadership, and the UJA will amplify its substantial efforts in confronting antisemitism and helping those in need. Previous recipients have included SiriusXM’s Scott Greenstein, Sony Music Group CEO Rob Stringer, Republic Records co-founders Avery and Monte Lipman, iHeartMedia chief Bob Pittman, Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek, Warner Records co-chairman and COO Tom Corson and Atlantic Records co-chairman and COO Julie Greenwald.

Mo Ostin, the industry giant and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer who led Warner Bros. Records for nearly a quarter-century and worked with some of music’s all-time biggest names — from Frank Sinatra, Jimi Hendrix and Neil Young to Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell and the Grateful Dead — died overnight in his sleep. He was 95. Warner Records Co-Chairman Tom Corson and Aaron Bay-Schuck announced the news today but gave no other details.

Chris Morris Music ReporterMo Ostin, who presided as a top executive at Warner Bros.-Reprise Records for more than three decades, during which the artist-friendly company enjoyed a glittering, hit-making run, has died of natural causes. He was 95.“Legendary music executive Mo Ostin passed away peacefully in his sleep last night at the age of 95,” said Warner Records’ co-chairman/CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck and co-chairman/COO Tom Corson. “Mo was one of the greatest record men of all time, and a prime architect of the modern music business.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe Clive Davis pre-Grammy gala has been called off for this year, but that’s not stopping the legendary mogul from throwing a big party — his 90 th birthday is April 4, the day after the big show, and he’s throwing a star-studded bash at Casa Cipriani in New York two days later, on Wednesday the 6th, a rep for Davis confirms to Variety. The event is sure to include a guest list that outshines even his famously star-studded pre-Grammy parties — while many of these names are longtime Friends of Clive, the New York Post says invitees include Alicia Keys, Swizz Beatz, David Foster, Katharine McPhee, Pat Houston, David Geffen, and entertainment lawyer Allen Grubman, as well as label heads such as Monte Lipman, Tom Corson, Rob Stringer and Julie Greenwald. Davis wrote on the invite: “I personally hope you will one day be told that the next birthday you celebrate will be your 90th.

Mike Wass Jenna Raine, who went viral on TikTok in 2021 with wide-eyed ballad “See You Later (10 Years),” has inked a deal with Warner Records and signed on with SB Projects. The 17-year-old’s major-label debut EP, also called “see you later (10 years),” arrives today. It includes a new version of the titular hit featuring JVKE and an equally optimistic new song “2%,” which references the percentage of high school sweethearts that end up getting married.“After hearing ‘See You Later (10 Years),’ I wanted to immediately know more about the young artist,” Warner Records co-chairman and CEO Aaron Bay-Schuck tells Variety.

Ethan Shanfeld Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter and producer Astn, who went viral on TikTok for his R&B remix of Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever,” has signed with Warner Records.The R&B breakout star, whose real name is Austin Sanders, dropped his debut EP as Astn, “Tell Your Friends,” in 2017. Today marks the release of his first song with Warner, titled “Gradually.”“The song poses the question: Is it more agonizing to see someone you love vanish from your life all of the sudden, or slowly detach from you over time?” Astn said in a statement.

Neil Young has demanded that his music be removed from Spotify in protest at its Joe Rogan Experience podcast, which has been accused of spreading misinformation around COVID-19.It follows a recent open letter signed by more than 250 scientists and medics that stated that the Spotify exclusive podcast has “a concerning history of broadcasting misinformation, particularly regarding the COVID-19 pandemic”.That letter insisted that Spotify itself – as the distributor of the podcast – has responsibility here, because by distributing Joe Rogan’s tedious ramblings it is helping to “damage public trust in scientific research and sow doubt in the credibility of data-driven guidance offered by medical professionals”.Echoing a number of the specific criticisms contained in that letter, earlier this week Young penned his own note on the matter. Posted to – but subsequently removed from – the musician’s website, Young’s note addressed his manager Frank Gironda and the boss of his label, Tom Corson at Warner Records.He wrote: “With an estimated eleven million listeners per episode, JRE – which is hosted exclusively on Spotify – is the world’s largest podcast and has tremendous influence.

Neil Young, just posted a message for Spotify: he’s out if the misinformation continues to spread! Per Pitchfork, the musician released a statement on his website on Jan. 24 to his manager, Frank Gironda, and Warner Bros. co-chairman and Chief Operating Officer Tom Corson demanding they remove his music from the streaming platform due to its “spreading fake information about the vaccines — potentially causing death to those who believe the disinformation being spread to them.”

Warner Records, in partnership with CMNTY RCRDS, has signed masked artist RMR, who last month scored a viral YouTube hit with the video for his song "Rascal," a reworking of Rascal Flatts’ 2000 track “Bless the Broken Road.” The deal was announced Friday (April 10).

Months before the November 2019 premiere of the Disney+ show High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, in which emerging actor-musician Joshua Bassett stars as Ricky Bowen, his manager helped him land a meeting with Nate Albert, executive vp A&R at Warner Records. Bassett arrived with a dozen demos ready to perform on guitar.