Just two days after Record Store Day, the company Vinyl Me, Please has announced that it is building an audiophile-grade vinyl pressing plant in Denver that is scheduled to open by the end of 2022 for production, tours and special events. The news also comes after years of a vinyl-manufacturing backlog that has caused the delay of vinyl copies of many releases.
“Quality control and availability are critical to maintaining and expanding our leadership position in the vinyl industry,” said VMP CEO Cameron Schaefer. “With this in mind, we’ve decided to press records in a way that provides an incredible experience for our customers and visitors to our plant.”
According to the announcement, the 14,000 sq. ft. pressing plant will be located in the RiNo neighborhood of Denver across from AEG’s concert venue, Mission Ballroom, and is being built as an experiential space where music fans can tour the facility, see first-hand how records are made, and explore music together in this extraordinary environment. The plant will be led by veteran record-maker Gary Salstrom, and guitarist/ Acony Records co-founder David Rawlings will be a partner and “Chief Groove Officer” for the plant.
Courtesy Vinyl Me, Please
+ As the world continues to await her sophomore album, singer Sky Ferreira has signed with global independent music publisher Third Side Music. Nearly a decade since her innovative pop debut “Night Time, My Time,” the singer has given recent signs that its follow-up may finally be on the way: She released her last single “Downhill Lullaby” in March 2019 and on March 31, 2022 she teased on YouTube () and her social media that something is coming soon. Ferreira was signed to the exclusive global publishing administration deal by Brontë Jane, Third Side Music’s VP of creative/director of A&R. She joins a roster that includes Sofi Tukker, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Blonde Redhead, and BadBadNot Good.
“Sky is an unparalleled career artist who has proven to be a true visionary with her craft time and time again. I’m honored to welcome someone so incredibly singular to the TSM family,” said Jane.
+ The Recording Academy and its Black Music Collective are launching the “HBCU Love Tour,” a national tour of historically Black colleges and universities that aims to inspire students to pursue a career in music, educate prospective music industry professionals on career paths and opportunities within the music industry, and bolster Black representation within Grammy U and Academy membership. Led by the Recording Academy Board of Trustees, including chair Tammy Hurt and vice chair Rico Love along with CEO Harvey Mason Jr., the tour is kicking off with a pilot program on April 28 in Washington, D.C. with Howard University Students. Love will host the program, including a networking hour with Recording Academy and Howard University leadership, panels featuring Grammy-nominated rapper Cordae, the powerhouse songwriting-production team of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and more. The evening will also include a performance from the first ever HBCU Love Contest Winner and Howard University’s own, Precious Jewel, who was one of the 40 student singers, songwriters, and instrumentalists from Howard University to submit for an opportunity to showcase their talent in-person and to win a cash prize.
+ Republic Records has promoted Glenn Mendlinger to EVP of Republic Records and president of Imperial Music, as announced today by co-founders Monte Lipman and Avery Lipman. In the months since his appointment to the helm of Imperial was announced, Bo Burnham won a Grammy Award for “All Eyes On Me,” recent signing Stray Kids just debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and Twice scored two back-to-back Top 10 debuts on the Billboard Top 200.
Monte said, “In a very short period of time, Imperial has achieved historic milestones under Glenn’s leadership. His tenacity and sense of urgency have yielded unprecedented results, capturing the imagination of the independent music community.”
+ Sony Music Publishing has promoted Nick Bral to VP of creative. Based in Los Angeles, he reports directly to Senior Vice President Creative Jennifer Knoepfle. Since joining the company as an A&R assistant in 2013, he has worked closely with Dan Nigro — who he helped sign to the company in 2018 and who recently achieved international acclaim for his collaborations with Olivia Rodrigo on her debut album, “Sour” — Conan Gray, Wallows, Rob Bisel, Mike Sabath, and others.
Knoepfle said, “Nick has made great strides in identifying, signing and developing talent in his time at SMP. He is dedicated, focused, and goes above and beyond for his writers and artists time and time again.”