In music biz terminology, Atlantic ‘won’ the Grammys with no less than 13 gongs at yesterday’s ceremony in New York. That fact certainly didn’t escape the attention of Max Lousada, Warner Music Group‘s global CEO of Recorded Music. MBW caught up with him earlier today in NYC – and we asked what in his opinion gave Atlantic, and label heads Julie Greenwald and Craig Kallman, the edge at last night’s big event. Here’s what he told us…
Atlantic’s brilliance is completely reflected in their success at the Grammys.
Julie and Craig’s ability to achieve volume in a bespoke way is critical to their success.
They have an appetite and excitement for a hugely diverse array of music across many different genres. And they never lose the desire to deliver for their artists in a creative, dynamic, and award-winning way.
I’ve been working with Julie and Craig for over 14 years. Having passion, romance, belief, and never becoming jaded about what we do – that sustained enthusiasm for the small wins and the long road – is something they instill both in their team and their artists.
Their ability to have clear and direct conversations with talented artists to achieve better outcomes is really impressive. They’ve mentored a brilliant team and created an artist development culture which builds genuine foundations for careers while forensically delivering hits.
When you’ve worked with someone for more than 10 years, you see every side of them. If you’re still excited to speak to each other each day about music, and about possibilities for artists, there’s something very powerful in that. All three of us are close, and that’s firstly because there’s such history, and secondly there’s such respect.
My job is to support their continuous growth in the future, and to offer them strong opportunities and backup whenever they need it.
Together, we will continue to make a big impact on a global scale, because Atlantic’s artists and their music cascade throughout the world.Music Business Worldwide
