Stand-Alone Label Group Will Include Elektra, Fueled By Ramen, Roadrunner, Low Country Sound & Black Cement Labels
Mike Easterlin & Gregg Nadel Named Co-Presidents
Label Group to Launch with Fully Staffed Team
A stand-alone, fully staffed label group to be known as Elektra Music Group will be launched on October 1st. Elektra Music Group will include Elektra, Fueled By Ramen (FBR), Roadrunner, Low Country Sound, and Black Cement Records – which will each be nurtured as a unique, independent label brand. Heading the new label group will be Co-Presidents, Mike Easterlin and Gregg Nadel, who will report to Atlantic Records Group Chairman & CEO, Craig Kallman, and Chairman & COO, Julie Greenwald. At launch, Elektra Music Group’s roster will include notable artists such as twenty one pilots, Zac Brown Band, Sturgill Simpson, Brandi Carlile, Fitz and the Tantrums, Paramore, Slipknot, Panic! At The Disco, Coheed and Cambria, Kaleo, Gojira, and others.
From day one, Elektra Music Group will boast a 60-plus member team embracing all key music company functions, including A&R, Artist Development, Business & Legal Affairs, International, Marketing, Promotion, Publicity, Sales & Streaming, and Video. The departments will be led and staffed by current members of the Atlantic, Elektra, FBR, and Roadrunner teams, as well as new hires. Personnel details will be announced in the coming weeks.
“Elektra Music Group will be 100% dedicated to developing the careers of authentic artists and helping them realize their visions,” said Easterlin and Nadel. “The company will embody the same independent spirit that is at the root of each of our core labels. Elektra, Fueled By Ramen, Roadrunner, Low Country Sound, and Black Cement were all founded by entrepreneurs who did it for the love of the music and a belief in their artists, and that philosophy will remain the driving force behind everything we do. We’re going to have an extraordinary roster, backed by the most ambitious, innovative team in the business. To have the opportunity to run our own stand-alone company is a dream come true, and we want to thank Julie and Craig for having such great faith in us. We can’t wait to get started.”
“The birth of Elektra Music Group is all about creating opportunity for artists,” said Greenwald and Kallman. “It opens up a new door to bring more game-changing talent into the WMG family, while giving them the personal attention that is our hallmark. Just as importantly, it will allow some of the most outstanding members of our team to run their own shop and their own departments, taking their careers to new places. Mike and Gregg have evolved into amazing leaders and masters of long-term artist development – they understand it, they live it, and they excel at it. With decades of A&R and marketing experience under their collective belts, and joined by an outstanding new staff, they will make great partners in building Elektra Music Group into a major industry force.”
“Our whole approach is to create environments that give artists and entrepreneurs the freedom and support to pioneer the future of music,” said Max Lousada, CEO, Recorded Music, Warner Music Group. “From the outset, Elektra Music Group will be a dynamic community of credible artists and distinctive label cultures. Gregg and Mike are a dream leadership team, able to combine adventurous A&R, bespoke artist development, and full-force global marketing. It feels great to be bringing back the iconic Elektra brand as a major, stand-alone company for the first time in 15 years.”
Mike Easterlin has been President of FBR and Roadrunner Records since January of 2016. He had previously served as General Manager of both labels since 2012. Under his leadership, FBR has been behind the breakthrough success of Grammy winners twenty one pilots, Paramore, and fun., as well as artists such as Panic! At The Disco, Young the Giant, and others. Roadrunner remains the world’s premier home for hard rock and metal, with a genre-defining roster including the likes of Slipknot, Theory of a Deadman, Trivium, Coheed and Cambria, and Gojira. Easterlin originally joined Lava/Atlantic as SVP of Promotion in 2005, having previously held posts at Virgin Records and Island Def Jam.
Gregg Nadel has been President of Elektra Records since January of 2017, having served as the label’s General Manager since 2015. A 21-year veteran of the Atlantic family, he joined the company straight out of college in 1997. Moving up the A&R ranks, he went on to sign Grammy winners, Zac Brown Band and Sturgill Simpson, acclaimed Icelandic band, Kaleo, and others. As Atlantic’s SVP of A&R & Marketing, Nadel spearheaded all three album campaigns for global superstar, Ed Sheeran. In addition, he forged the partnership between Elektra and Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb’s Low Country Sound label, whose artist roster includes the critically acclaimed Brandi Carlile, Anderson East, Brent Cobb, and others.
