The Press Release:
In 2022, industry veterans David Rath, former head of A&R at the esteemed Roadrunner Records, and Cees Wessels, founder of Roadrunner Records, formed Blue Grape Music. The name will be familiar to rock music fans, as it was the merchandise company also launched by Wessels.
With a rich history of working with bands such as Nickelback, Slipknot, Type O Negative, Killswitch Engage, Fear Factory, Sepultura, Turnstile, and more — bands that truly broke ground and went on to have long, successful, platinum-plus careers — Rath and Wessels are bringing their wealth of expertise to a new era of bands and a new era of the music industry.
Rath spent 21 years in the A&R and Creative Departments of Roadrunner Records, having been A&R on albums by Slipknot, Korn, Gojira, Coheed and Cambria, Slash, The Amity Affliction, Trivium, Stone Sour, Dream Theater, and Megadeth, and where he oversaw music videos from Nickelback, Theory Of A Deadman, Killswitch Engage, Jerry Cantrell, and Slipknot. Rath helped guide the label through multiple changes in ownership and management, after which he oversaw the signings of platinum-selling acts Young The Giant and Vance Joy for Atlantic and Elektra Records. As the head of the A&R department at Roadrunner, Rath most recently signed and A&R’d Grammy nominated acts Turnstile and Code Orange, along with White Reaper and Motionless In White, both of whom recently scored #1 Alternative and Active Rock radio hits. Prior to Roadrunner, Rath, a graduate of Villanova University, was the Director of The Philadelphia Music Conference and drummer for the Columbia Records band Heavens Edge.
The new label strives to empower its artists with the support and tools needed to create the kind of music and art that inspires the culture and propels it forward.
The current staff also includes Roadrunner alumnae Suzi Akyuz as SVP of Marketing, and Paolo D’Alessandroas Executive VP of International.
Distributed by Sony Music’s The Orchard, Blue Grape’s artists have the muscle and reach of a major with the attention and dedication of an indie. With a global staff, each artist’s team is carefully crafted to best serve their creative vision and goals.
“My time with Cees developing some of the most important bands in music history was the most valuable in my career to date,” says Rath. “I couldn’t ask for a more knowledgeable partner to begin this journey with.”
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PiercingMetal Thoughts: So I am a wee bit late to this news as it was first published on their official website about a week and a half ago. That being said, when I saw a couple of my regular publicity contacts sharing the news I went right to the source and snagged it as well. This surely is some good news and so awesome to learn that the label is planning on sticking with the heavy for the most part. As expected, once they start issuing press releases about artist signings and touring events I will be sure to share them here with the readership. I wish the team all the best of success and look forward to supporting their artist roster. What do you readers think about this news? Are you curious enough to support it? Chime in down below because its always great to hear any topical additions to the news. See you next time, please stay safe out there.
Official: https://bluegrapemusic.com/
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/bluegrapemusic