The Trenches, a digital promotion and viral marketing firm, has inked an exclusive partnership with Republic Corps Collective, Universal Music Group’s East Coast-based group of labels.
The deal covers work across major labels Republic Records, Mercury Records, Island Records and Def Jam Records, The Trenches said Wednesday (October 23).
The Trenches is also simultaneously launching its own record label division, Trenches Records.
Founded in 2020 by Tom LaScola, The Trenches has created digital campaigns for artists including Noah Kahan, Post Malone, Wyatt Flores, Conan Gray, and more. Its work with folk-pop artist Noah Kahan has resulted in his TikTok presence growing to 2.6 million followers with over 703 million video views during the Stick Season campaign.
The Trenches has also collaborated with Mercury Records on Post Malone’s F-1 Trillion album campaign, creating a digital strategy that combined artist content, influencer initiatives, fan page development, and a proprietary CRM approach. The album, Post Malone’s sixth studio album, secured the position as the top country album of 2024.
The Trenches operates from offices in New York, Nashville, and Los Angeles.
The Trenches’ new label division, Trenches Records, will serve as “an incubator that exists at the intersection between culture and data for artists as identified by the team, within the REPUBLIC Corps Collective system,” the company said.
The partnership with Republic Corps comes seven months after Universal Music reorganized its East Coast-based labels, including Def Jam, Island, Mercury, and Republic, into a “central operational hub” called Republic Corps. The move was part of a broader restructuring of UMG’s US-frontline labels.
UMG at the time said each individual label “maintains and operates with full independence and creative autonomy.”
Earlier this month, Mary Catherine Kinney was appointed Executive Vice President of Artist & Label Strategy at Republic Corps.
Music Business Worldwide