If issues had gone to plan, Alex Kennedy would have been an England rugby star.
He was a extremely promising participant for Henley Hawks – and his brother Nick made all of it the way in which to the worldwide aspect – however a critical knee damage noticed Alex compelled into taking part in retirement in his early twenties.
Because it seems, rugby union’s loss was very a lot the music business’s achieve. As a result of, 20-odd years on from that damage (which nonetheless provides him gyp now), he finds himself Managing Director of Believe UK. And, beneath his route, Consider is lastly able to emerge from the scrum of impartial contenders – and put some crunching tackles in on the majors.
“Retiring [from rugby] was one of many hardest issues I’ve executed,” he says, a tad ruefully. “As a result of I actually thought I had a superb likelihood of creating it. However to have the ability to get into music and have what’s now a 20-year profession shouldn’t be a foul substitute, that’s for positive.”
After all, if his rugby profession had turned out like his music business CV, he would have performed in each place on the pitch. From retro grunt work within the business’s entrance row to fancy-dan showmanship out on the wing in some high-profile roles, Kennedy has executed all of it.
After a primary business job licensing music for cover-mounted CDs for magazines and newspapers, he moved into movie and TV, digitising content material and licensing it to then-nascent companies corresponding to iTunes and Blinkbox. Then he pitched up as head of publishing at Omnifone, the pioneering music firm that helped make streaming a factor (“For me, from day one, streaming was non-negotiable,” he says. “I used to be like, ‘That is 100% the longer term’”).
He received out of Omnifone earlier than the corporate crashed in 2016 and joined Sky TV as head of music licensing. Whereas there, he additionally helped launch the Sky Arts Periods present and realized the talents that may later – along side Doc Brown, who Kennedy went to school with and manages – see him work on the adverts that put Simply Eat, considerably unfeasibly, along with Snoop Dogg and Katy Perry.
From there, Kennedy turned Head of Industrial Improvement at Sky Tickets, immersing himself within the stay sector in an try and crack the ticketing market. Like most such makes an attempt, it fizzled out and he left Sky to go travelling for six months. When he returned, he discovered jobs arduous to return by. So he did some consultancy, then received a “crash course in e-commerce” as chief business officer at Music Glue, serving to to steer it by way of the pandemic, earlier than becoming a member of Consider in April 2022.
Alongside the way in which, he additionally launched (and finally bought) Givvit, a social treating app that was too far forward of its time to succeed, however helped introduce him to the world of start-ups, funding and Silicon Valley. Which means he has expertise in nearly each sector the music business has to supply.
It’s the position at Consider, nonetheless, that he describes as his “dream job”, maybe as a result of the corporate can be supremely versatile. From its DIY artist platform TuneCore to its legendary steel label Nuclear Blast, and from label and artist providers/options to distribution, Consider’s affect extends proper throughout the business.
Kennedy has spent the final year-and-a-half present process a “baptism of fireside” as he will get to grips with a burgeoning firm that had international revenues of €415.4 million in H1 2023, has places of work in over 50 territories and employs over 1,800 individuals worldwide.
Regardless of that scale, up till now Consider UK – like a stealthy rugby flanker – has operated primarily on the blind aspect of the British business. It doesn’t escape separate UK figures, however Kennedy says the expansion price has no less than matched that of the worldwide firm (which was up 17.9% in H1) lately. It’s actually beginning to see success: Welsh singer-songwriter Novo Amor has blown previous 1.5 billion international streams, whereas Consider UK’s shut collaboration with dance label Cr2 Data and Consider’s international dance division b:digital has delivered an enormous worldwide hit with Matt Sassari’s Give It To Me.
Such successes are gas to Kennedy’s plan to make the corporate as high-profile right here as it’s in France, Germany and quite a few different worldwide territories – and provides the most important labels a run for his or her cash. So, it’s excessive time this rucker-turned-rocker sat down with MBW over an English breakfast and defined why it truly is time to consider in Consider…
Given the dimensions of the corporate, why has Consider UK slipped beneath the business radar?
In all probability we haven’t executed sufficient speaking about ourselves. However we’re not a lot of a ‘pretend it till you make it’-type enterprise; we’re extra like, ‘Ship after which exit and speak about it’. And it’s the suitable time within the UK to speak in regards to the dimension of enterprise and stage of shoppers we’ve received, future plans and methods. We’ve proven we will compete towards all of the totally different companies on the market.
So, why ought to the business take note of Consider?
We’re a significantly sized different to the most important labels. If you happen to’re an impartial enterprise or an independent-minded exec, artist or file label, then you have got a foundational enterprise that is ready to ship on a worldwide scale. It makes lots of sense to return and discuss to us as a result of, with TuneCore, our artist distribution enterprise, our artist providers enterprise and our label distribution enterprise, we offer you just about every part alongside the gamut.
“We haven’t received the good thing about deep catalogue, so now we have to stay or die by the service ranges we offer.”
We’ve developed an actual premium stage of service in all these totally different areas. We haven’t received the good thing about deep catalogue just like the majors, so now we have to stay and die by the service ranges we offer and the funding we make in our platform and our groups. Having that [service] on the prime stage means we will actually ship for individuals, and we retain shoppers for a really very long time.
What are you able to inform us about your new methods?
We already signal artists and labels, and repair them. My view is, we must also be partnering with execs and different expertise on the market who need to construct their very own companies. We are able to JV with them and construct these companies in a a lot leaner trend than they could do on their very own.
I’ve been spending lots of time attending to know a number of the attention-grabbing characters within the enterprise which have perhaps run a significant label, however now need to personal their very own factor. Or up-and-comers, younger entrepreneurial managers who’re taking care of huge artists however perhaps need to construct their very own rights enterprise. That third pillar by way of entrepreneurs is the place we’re actually going to focus now.
Have you ever signed anybody up but?
We’re getting perilously near signing a pair however, as a result of it’s a brand new mannequin, it’s taking some time to get all of it lined up. We don’t need to simply throw a couple of bets on the market and see what occurs; we’ve executed rather a lot to verify the mannequin we’re providing goes to be very highly effective for these entrepreneurs.
All people’s received a fantastic thought, however it is advisable make sure that the people who find themselves bringing it by way of have the scope to really develop a enterprise, as a result of it’s not simple – and it’s getting rather a lot tougher.
It feels like a probably dangerous enterprise to be in…
After all, however what we’ve needed to do for Consider to develop is get hyper-good at assessing and managing threat. If you happen to take a look at the variety of artists we signal versus those we’re profitable with, we’ve received an excellent ratio. The place, if you happen to take a look at a number of the extra conventional fashions, it’s a ‘one [hit] in 10 to pay for the remaining’-type of factor. We don’t have that luxurious, now we have to have a a lot larger hit price.
What’s your ratio?
[Laughs] That’s a commerce secret, however we additionally must have a really excessive ratio due to the phrases that we provide, that are extremely artist and label-friendly, so our margins are slimmer. If we don’t get it proper x occasions out of y, then we’re out of enterprise.
We’ve got to be excellent at people who find themselves going to achieve success. Meaning being affected person and never chasing tendencies – sure there’s been some stuff signed off TikTok which may have a long-term profession, however there’s additionally been lots of stuff that could be a one-hit marvel at finest, and some huge cash has been wasted. We are able to’t afford to get into that.
How necessary is independence lately?
Whenever you see the majors shopping for up AWAL – and PIAS is [now 49%-owned] by Universal – there’s no actual scale [independent] distribution companions on the market for indie labels. Indies need to be impartial, so there’s an actual pressure having to work with an ADA or whoever else.
With the ability to provide, at scale, a really aggressive service that we really consider is healthier than what the opposite guys provide, is actually heartening for impartial labels, as a result of they know they’ll keep impartial and so they don’t must compromise.
Historical past reveals us that profitable impartial music firms are likely to get snapped up by the majors. Gained’t that simply occur to Consider?
It might be impossible: we’ve damaged by way of that essential mass the place perhaps it will be engaging, and now it’s extra like we’ve received our sights set on catching as much as the majors over the subsequent 5 to 10 years.
If you happen to take a look at the place we’ve made our investments and our bets, they’re within the territories which can be rising to such an extent that, in 2030, international locations that we’re huge in are going to be a number of the largest international locations on this planet monetisation-wise: India, China, Brazil, Mexico, but additionally Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines. A whole lot of these territories have 80-90% home listening, so the house for the historic Anglo-American dominance is diminishing fairly shortly. That’s one other space for us to be assured in getting much more scale.
Britain isn’t a kind of markets, so the place does that go away Consider UK?
[Laughs] I in all probability have one of many trickier jobs for Consider MDs! The UK is a market that may be very a lot affected by transatlantic crossover. As a result of we share the identical language, American content material takes up lots of UK listening, so it’s a problem for us. However it does additionally work the opposite means: lots of the content material that we work with within the UK will get listened to rather a lot in America.
We’re on the market making an attempt to signal as many UK artists and labels as we will, with the standard to verify we will push home product as a lot as doable. What could be nice is that if we had a authorities who would assist the humanities extra, like they do in Canada, Spain or France, as a result of, with out their help, you’re struggling to get as a lot high quality developing by way of the ranks. It’s cost-prohibitive to be an artist now.
It’s been some time because the final British international breakthrough star. Can Consider produce one?
I’d very very similar to to assume so. It’s more and more difficult due to the quantity of music that’s now obtainable and the precedence that markets are displaying to home music. The mannequin the place you have got an Ed Sheeran or an Adele and so they do insanely properly in 100-150 totally different international locations… we’d not get that as a lot sooner or later. What you’re extra more likely to get is numerous mid-level artists doing very properly of their native territories after which some breakouts doing properly in clusters of territories. You may get regional superstars fairly than international ones sooner or later.
TuneCore allows lots of DIY artists to launch their music. What do you consider the majors’ issues in regards to the market being flooded with ‘inferior’ product?
Flooding the market is an excessive means to have a look at it. I don’t know that there needs to be a line that claims a observe an artist creates isn’t of a adequate high quality, so individuals don’t deserve to listen to it – as a result of how do you then introduce music into the world?
A few of the quotes I’ve heard saying you shouldn’t permit sure music onto platforms, [are coming from] those that signed artists from TuneCore with a view to construct them into the subsequent huge artists. So, it feels barely hypocritical to say these artists shouldn’t be allowed to be heard. High quality is within the ears of the beholder and we should always let individuals take heed to the music they need to take heed to.
It does imply issues are extra aggressive: to get your music listened to, you need to have higher music, higher advertising, higher promotion and higher providers. Possibly that’s their concern, that they don’t have the requisite groups to have the ability to get their music heard as a lot as they need them to…
b:digital delivered a worldwide hit with Matt Sassari’s ‘Give It To Me’
You’ve had lots of success with dance music. Is that an space that’s been ignored by others?
Effectively, they’re undoubtedly not ignoring it anymore – every week you’ve received a brand new imprint or one thing happening!
It’s enormous for us – b:digital is forming the connective tissue between all our native places of work to assist globalise a dance hit and it’s working phenomenally properly.
It’s helped us make some actually attention-grabbing new signings within the final six months, with individuals like Hospital Data and Rinse Data, and we’ve received some extra to announce later within the 12 months.
They sit with individuals like Cr2 Data and Shogun and the opposite wonderful dance labels now we have. And it’s a really international music; the lyrical content material might be comparatively low, so the barrier to entry to hear to bop music is kind of low. Within the international world we stay in now, dance hits is usually a lot extra exportable than hip-hop written by a man from East London, the place the lyrics aren’t comprehensible to somebody in Mississippi.
You got here in with a quick to energy mergers and acquisitions. How’s that coming alongside?
It’s been good up to now. You’ve seen us purchase Sentric within the final 9 months – we’re working actually arduous within the background to combine that after which we’ll speak about it correctly. The M&A stuff takes some time however, relaxation assured, we’re having some actually attention-grabbing conversations. The intention is to make some offers that we’ll be very proud to announce within the subsequent 12 months.
The place do you finally need the UK firm to take a seat?
Our ambition is to change into one of many largest territories for Consider globally. Our intention is to be seen because the fourth main, the impartial main, each for artists and for labels, in order that they know there’s a house for them that has equally as a lot firepower, if no more than these guys, to energy their enterprise.
“It’s not inconceivable that we will develop to roughly the place Warner are within the UK.”
If you happen to take a look at a time horizon of the subsequent seven or eight years, it’s not inconceivable than we will develop to roughly the place Warner are within the UK. It’s a must to have lofty ambitions, and that’s what our ambition could be.
You’ve moved round rather a lot. Are you at Consider for the lengthy haul?
I’d wish to assume so – so long as they’ll have me! With lots of the transferring I’ve executed, and the itchy ft I’ve had, it’s been with a view to assemble an actual broad vary of expertise to present me the flexibility to do a job like this. However now I’ve received it, I’d like to be right here for a extremely very long time. I can see an enormous trajectory from the place we at the moment are. It’s going to be very thrilling to be a part of this enterprise for the subsequent 5 to 10 years.
