Armada Music, which claims to be the biggest independent dance music label in the world, has hired Jason Ellis (formerly of Positiva) as Global Senior A&R Director.
Ellis will also serve as an Acquisition Consultant for BEAT Music Fund, Armada Music’s recently-launched dance music investment arm.
As Global Senior A&R Director, Ellis will be responsible for sourcing and developing up-and-coming talent, and will consult on future acquisitions as BEAT continues to scale.
He will be based in Armada Music’s London office.
For over 20 years, Ellis was at the helm of Universal Music Group-owned UK dance label Positiva Records, which during his tenure generated over 80 million single sales, 3.5 million album sales and 4 billion streams in the UK alone.
He most recently served as Managing Director, combining the role with senior A&R duties at Virgin, Virgin EMI and most recently EMI Records, where he signed Swedish House Mafia, Eric Prydz and Jonas Blue, whilst overseeing campaigns for the likes of Avicii, Gorgon City, Sub Focus, David Guetta and deadmau5.
Amsterdam-based Armada Music – the indie label behind such dance/techno legends as Chicane and Paul Van Dyk – launched BEAT Music, in April and revealed plans to spend $100 million on M&A in its first two years.
At the time, BEAT, which stands for “Best Ever Acquired Tracks,” announced two acquisitions:
- The master recordings catalog of KMS Records, which was founded by house and techno legend Kevin Saunderson.
- The master and publishing catalogs of musician, DJ and producer ARTY, a.k.a. Alpha 9.
Earlier this month, Madeleine van Schendel joined Armada as Chief Growth Officer, while Jop Bonnike, formerly General Manager, was promoted to Chief Operating Officer, and Michel Peek from Head of Publishing to General Manager Publishing.
“Having Jason on board to steer the A&R direction for both BEAT and Armada will be invaluable as we strive to build the greatest legacy of dance music,” —
Maykel Piron, Armada Music
“Having Jason on board to steer the A&R direction for both BEAT and Armada will be invaluable as we strive to build the greatest legacy of dance music,” said Maykel Piron, CEO of Armada Music & CEO of BEAT Music Fund.
Fundamentally it’s all about building and nurturing the best music and artists. I can’t wait to get started!”
Jason Ellis
“Joining Maykel and the team at Armada and the recently launched BEAT Music Fund feels like the natural next step in my career, given the exciting opportunity to utilise my considerable network and experience built up over many years,” said Ellis.
“It’s a very exciting time for both companies on many levels, but fundamentally it’s all about building and nurturing the best music and artists. I can’t wait to get started!”
Music Business Worldwide
