Warner Chappell Music (WCM) has struck a new partnership with Analog Metaverse, a boutique rights management company and music publisher founded by Grammy Award-winning producer Salaam Remi.
The collaboration will see WCM jointly administer the majority of Analog Metaverse’s extensive music catalog, which includes works by Remi himself and music legends such as Dennis Brown, Don Blackman, Bobby “Digital” Dixon, and Terri Walker.
Founded in 2022, Analog Metaverse says it reimagines the traditional rights management model. The company says it ensures artists, creators and estates receive their fair share while maximizing the value of their works for generations to come. Led by Remi, Kwame Kandekore (Head of Legal and Business Affairs) and Josephine Westphal (Vice President of Royalties and Administration), Analog Metaverse offers a suite of services including licensing, film/TV placements, artist management, royalty collection, and business affairs.
The Analog Metaverse catalog, curated by Remi and his team over the past two years, comprises more than 2,000 songs spanning various decades and genres. Notable tracks in the catalog include Girl On Fire by Alicia Keys, Money In My Pocket by Dennis Brown, All I Want Is You by Miguel and J. Cole, Fu-Gee-La by The Fugees, and Here Comes the Hotstepper by Ini Kamoze, which recently topped the US iTunes Reggae Songs Chart. The catalog also features the Ivor Novello Award-winning song Stronger Than Me by Amy Winehouse, along with eight other co-writes between Winehouse and Remi.
Remi, a ten-time Grammy nominee and Grammy Award winner, brings a wealth of experience as a record producer and music executive to the table.
“Having the benefit of being a songwriter and publisher myself, I fully understand the importance of having partners who not only appreciate the wonderful creations of the icons from the last few generations but also can help us carry them into the future,” Remi said.
“My Analog Metaverse team—Kwame, Josephine, and I—recognize how valuable partners like {Warner Chappell Co-Chair and CEO] Guy Moot and the entire Warner Chappell team are in shepherding these classics to new audiences.”
Moot added: “I’ve personally known Salaam for more than three decades, and it’s such an honor to be entrusted to shepherd not only his own life’s work, but that of legends like Dennis Brown. Carianne [Marshall, WCM Co-Chair/COO] and I are very intentional about the catalogs we work with and really think about how we can grow and tend to them, both today and for the years to come.”
“There’s a lot of synergy between our approach and Analog Metaverse’s mission, and it’s great to be joining forces to help writers and their estates realize their full potential.”
“There’s a lot of synergy between our approach and Analog Metaverse’s mission, and it’s great to be joining forces to help writers and their estates realize their full potential.”
Guy Moot, Warner Chappell Music
For WCM, the partnership marks its latest after signing a deal last week with 300 Publishing, the publishing division of Warner Music Group label 300 Entertainment, to jointly sign both emerging and established songwriters.
Less than a month ago, WCM became the exclusive global admin partner of Tom Petty’s storied song catalog, which covers Petty hits including Wildflowers, Free Fallin’, Learning to Fly, Refugee, Here Comes My Girl, and I Won’t Back Down.
Music Business Worldwide