Sony Music Entertainment and Artist Legacy Group, LLC Enter Groundbreaking New Joint Venture Agreement to Provide Comprehensive Brand Management Services

NEW YORK, Oct. 29, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Music Entertainment ("SME") and Artist Legacy Group, LLC ("ALG") have entered into a groundbreaking joint venture agreement it was announced today by Adam Block, President of Legacy Recordings, SME's catalog music division.

The venture, which will operate under the ALG name, will engage in all business aspects of artist brand management including--but not limited to--licensing, branding strategy and merchandising focusing initially on artist estates. ALG will provide artist and estate brand management services to Legacy Recordings and other front line SME labels while also remaining open to opportunities outside the SME eco-system.

ALG principals Ashley Austin and Scott Austin will provide their services and expertise to the joint venture, which will be based in New York City and operate under the auspices of SME's Commercial Music Group ("CMG") with SME's interest in the venture being managed by Mr. Block.

SME/CMG and ALG will pool resources and work together to provide comprehensive brand management services to active artists, musicians, their estates and music-related business concerns looking to establish creative blueprints that enhance and extend their traditional branding initiatives.

In addition, ALG will work with Arcade, SME's in-house creative agency, and Threadshop, SME's in-house merchandising company, to provide access to a variety of services as an extension of its core business.

"SME/CMG's vision for expanding its service offerings to include brand management and development is an incredibly intuitive and forward-thinking strategy," said ALG CEO Ashley Austin. "ALG prides itself on proactive protection and promotion of our clients' unique legacies, and we are thrilled to embark on this joint venture. Working closely with Adam Block and the SME/CMG family will allow for the creation of new and exciting opportunities across the board."

Scott Austin, ALG's Chief Operating Officer elaborates, "Intellectual property rights management plays an integral role in successful, comprehensive marketing strategies in today's entertainment industry. By working closely with Sony Music affiliates, ALG will provide unparalleled levels of service to our clients and maximize the impact of campaigns surrounding their name, likeness, media and other content."

"The venture is particularly exciting for Legacy because it will allow us to offer easy access to a broader, more mutually beneficial menu of services to our artists," said Mr. Block.  "Legacy has spent the last 25 years refining our skills at developing and reinforcing the ideas of our artists and their music and video content--for the context of this conversation, helping to develop and build our artist's 'brands'--with the limited rights most of our contracts allow.  Combining our experience with ALG's growing expertise in the broader brand management space, as well as our in-house merch company, Threadshop, and our creative agency, Arcade, we see a terrific opportunity to create even greater awareness and opportunities for the artists and estates we'll work with."

Services provided by ALG will include sourcing and securing merchandising opportunities, social media management, sourcing and securing print (book, magazines, posters) and/or film opportunities (e.g. biopics) and more.

Current ALG clients include legendary music photographer Mick Rock; the estate of The Who's drummer Keith Moon; and Max's Kansas City, the iconic New York music venue which served as the epicenter of pop art, punk, glam rock and underground cultural cool from 1965-1982.

Artist Legacy Group is a full service boutique firm specializing in Estate and Brand Management for legendary musicians, iconic brands and pop culture heroes. Founded in 2013 by Ashley Austin, Nicole Ihasz and Cathleen Ihasz, ALG strives to preserve the integrity of its clients' legacies while simultaneously elevating profile and generating revenue in new and relevant ways.

About Sony Music Entertainment:

Sony Music Entertainment is a global recorded music company with a current roster that includes a broad array of both local artists and international superstars. The company boasts a vast catalog that comprises some of the most important recordings in history. It is home to premier record labels representing music from every genre, including Arista Nashville, Bazmark Records, Beach Street Records, Black Butter Records, Bystorm Entertainment, Columbia Nashville, Columbia Records, Day 1, Descendant Records, Epic Records, Essential Records, Essential Worship, Flying Buddha, Fo Yo Soul Recordings, Freesolo Entertainment, Kemosabe Records, Latium Entertainment, Legacy Recordings, Louder Than Life, Masterworks, Masterworks Broadway, OKeh, Polo Grounds, Portrait, RCA Inspiration, RCA Nashville, RCA Records, Relentless Records, Reunion Records, Sony Classical, Sony Music Latin, Star Time International, Syco Music, Vested in Culture and Volcano. Sony Music Entertainment is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. 

About Legacy Recordings: 

Legacy Recordings, the catalog division of Sony Music Entertainment, is home to the world's foremost library of historically significant commercial recordings, a peerless collection of works by the most important musical artists of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries.  Across a variety of platforms, the label offers contemporary music fans access to thousands of meticulously restored and remastered archival titles representing virtually every musical genre including popular, rock, jazz, blues, R&B, folk, country, gospel, Broadway musicals, movie soundtracks, rap/hip-hop, world music, classical, comedy and more.

SOURCE Sony Music Entertainment