THE BIG STORY
On the map: Atlas Artists and Parlophone unveil plans to break artists with new JV
Duncan Ellis & Ben Smallwood join forces with Parlophone, as co-presidents Mark Mitchell and Nick Burgess herald the major's artist development era...
— BY BEN HOMEWOOD — T Your
essential primer for the month ahead
he executive team behind Atlas Artists’ new joint venture with Parlophone have told Music Week that their label offers a new avenue for breaking UK artists. Atlas founder Duncan Ellis and creative director Ben Smallwood are flying high after the management company steered Celeste to a No.1 finish for her debut album Not Your Muse (36,631 sales, OCC). Parlophone co-presidents Mark Mitchell and Nick Burgess promised that, together, they will “break new music at an incredibly challenging time”.
Having opened a records and publishing arm in 2017, Atlas Artists launches its first major label JV with three acts, Croydon singer Rachel Chinouriri, South London rapper Kam-Bu and indie band Newfamiliar. Celeste will continue to release via Polydor. Ellis started Atlas Artists in 2014, having previously founded Scruffy Bird Management, which launched the careers of Foals, Everything Everything, Lianne La Havas and more. He said that he and Smallwood, who both contribute to A&R, pride themselves on work rate and attention to detail.
“It’s not good enough just having a good voice or talent, you can’t rely on that, you’ve got to add other things into the equation,” said Ellis. “We fight hard and we will do that with the label. It’s a massive opportunity; the next chapter in Atlas’ story. Management is at the heart of all this, it’s an evolution of what we’ve always done – dedication to our artists and wanting to work with unique talent.” Ellis said that he and Smallwood have “realised a dream”, revealing that the idea took shape during the first lockdown last year. Conversations with Warner Music Group’s global CEO of recorded music Max Lousada and UK chairman and CEO Tony Harlow led them to discussions with Parlophone. “Parlophone made the most sense for so many reasons,” said Ellis. “It felt like the best fit musically, historically and culturally. We want to work with a diverse range of music and talent and Parlophone is in tune with that.” Smallwood said that the label plans to offer a “major set-up operating with a little more patience”. Atlas worked with Celeste for two years before licensing her music to Polydor, and Ellis said that their campaign for the BRIT Rising Star and BBC Sound Of 2020 winner – which pivoted towards sync and TV after the pandemic delayed her LP – shows what they can do for new acts. “There will be similarities with the paths we take, but it’s a very nuanced business,” said Ellis. “Rachel Chinouriri is doing
Major players: Nick Burgess (left) and Mark Mitchell
incredibly well on TikTok and racking up millions of views, the key is how we translate that to other areas. If Celeste’s path was TV and sync and Rachel’s is TikTok, then how do we translate what’s happening on TikTok in to the real world? This is about compelling artists who write exceptional songs, if you get those right, you can build amazing campaigns.”
Chinouriri has three million likes on TikTok and 205,819 monthly listeners on Spotify, where Kam-Bu has 33,166 and Newfamiliar – formerly known as Skinny Living – have 6,189. Smallwood, Ellis, Mitchell and Burgess predicted cross-platform growth for all three. “We know the patience and attention to detail that it takes to break an artist these days,” said Smallwood. “It’s the ability to start earlier, operate for longer and build up properly. The chance to have success in different lanes across different parts of the market – rather than just being, ‘This or that kind of label’ – is really exciting. We want to make everything look and feel as good as it sounds, too.” Parlophone’s Mitchell praised Ellis and Smallwood’s expertise,
telling Music Week that the JV is a boost for the major, which scored a Top 20 album with Ashnikko earlier this year and is developing a range of acts including S1mba, The Snuts and Dutchavelli. “There’s a lot of artist development going on, a lot of new artists in their formative years,” said Mitchell. “The days of just spending a bit more money on releases [are gone], that doesn’t achieve anything nowadays. It’s about having a bit more authenticity in your voice, your message and your narrative and that’s exactly what Duncan and Ben spoke about. They had very similar views to us on how to develop artists and we want to work with smart people and people who identify talent at a good age.”
Parlophone also operates JVs with Disturbing London and GRM Daily, and the co-presidents said such ventures add expertise to the major’s emerging music-driven approach under their management. “Duncan and Ben are really special,” Burgess said. “Duncan thinks like an A&R and that’s what really interested us. He understands that you’ve got to get the music right and that it’s about identification. He and Ben make our jobs easy, they do the heavy lifting and we make sure the music gets to market in the right way.”
Burgess sees Atlas Artists as the perfect home for new artists: “It’s an incubator creating bespoke campaigns without the pressure of a major weighing too heavily, all artists should want that.” Burgess believes Atlas will build a reputation for launching artists’ careers in any genre. “We’re in the business of breaking new music, that’s what we’re designed for at Parlophone and that’s what Atlas is designed for,” he said. “If we can break two or three artists in the next couple of years, that’s exactly what we’re looking for.”
06 | Music Week
musicweek.com
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