Atlantic Records has promoted three of its top A&R execs.
Brandon Davis and Jeff Levin have both been upped to Senior Vice President, A&R, while Riggs Morales (pictured) has been named Senior Vice President, A&R & Artist Development.
Morales, who is based in New York, reports to Atlantic Chairman & CEO Craig Kallman, while Davis and Levin, who are both based in Los Angeles, report to Atlantic President of A&R Pete Ganbarg.
Brandon Davis joined Atlantic nine years ago as an assistant in the A&R department. In 2015, he partnered with producer Ricky Reed to sign and develop nascent superstar Lizzo.
Among his other projects, Davis helped A&R the smash original soundtrack album for The Greatest Showman, the world’s best-selling album of 2018, as well as serving as Associate Producer on The Greatest Showman Reimagined.
Davis was featured on Billboard’s 2019 40 Under 40 list and named one of Variety’s 2019 Hitmakers.
“Brandon, Jeff, and Riggs are three of the most astute and accomplished A&R execs in the business.”
Craig Kallman and Pete Ganbarg, Atlantic
Jeff Levin started at Atlantic in 2010 and has since A&R’d a wide range of artists across Warner Music Group. Among his signings is Melanie Martinez, whose RIAA platinum debut album yielded a dozen platinum or gold singles.
Most recently, he A&R’d Ben Platt’s debut album, Sing To Me Instead, and signed Oliver Tree, who scored RIAA gold with his single, “Alien Boy.”
In addition, Levin has worked with Warner Chappell Music, A&R’ing the multi-platinum single, “Me, Myself & I” by G-Eazy and Bebe Rexha, as well as signing Logic to a worldwide publishing deal. Levin also A&R’d Rexha’s debut album, which included the platinum single, “I’m A Mess.”
Rigo “Riggs” Morales joined Atlantic in 2014, where he guided Grammy-nominated releases from Wiz Khalifa and Janelle Monáe as well as the signing of the Original Broadway Cast Recording of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s groundbreaking hip-hop musical, Hamilton, on which he served as Associate Producer.
The album is now 6x platinum with 21 RIAA gold and platinum singles, while the accompanying Hamilton Mixtape debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and is certified RIAA gold. Prior to Atlantic, Morales served as VP of A&R for Eminem’s Shady Records, where he was A&R on the label’s seminal releases, including 8 Mile, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, and Recovery, including the No. 1 diamond-certified single, “Love The Way You Lie.”
He began his career as a noted music journalist, writing for The Fader and Vibe and serving as a music editor at The Source, where he introduced a number of previously unknown artists, including Eminem.
Morales’ recent signings includes acclaimed singer/songwriter Tayla Parx.
Craig Kallman and Pete Ganbarg said: “Brandon, Jeff, and Riggs are three of the most astute and accomplished A&R execs in the business.
“From Hamilton to Lizzo, from The Greatest Showman to Melanie Martinez, they’ve been behind some of the most important and diverse artists and projects we’ve championed over the past few years.
“What they have in common is not only great ears, but the ability to discover original talent, nurture artists, and foster true creative thinkers over the long haul, helping build real careers and develop game-changing releases.
“We’re very happy to announce these richly deserved promotions for three long-standing and hugely valued members of the Atlantic family.”Music Business Worldwide
