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Mon. May 15/08
TAG Literary Update
Two impressive debuts on the New York Times Best Seller List this week include Literary clients Wahida Clark with her book "Payback With Ya Life" at #30 and Nikki Turner's "The Black Widow" at #35.
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| Mon. May 15/08
Classical Supergroup Blake Win Album of the Year at Classical Brits
Classical singers Blake, the foursome that formed on Facebook last summer, have won the prestigious NS & I Album of the Year Award at the Classical BRITs 2008. And the group can also announce that they will be doing a fourteen date tour of the UK with Katherine Jenkins, starting on 1st December and running through to 22nd December, in addition to their existing stately homes tour with Katherine this summer.
The group have gone from forming on the social networking site to winning a publicly voted award in under a year, a meteoric rise to fame more frequently achieved by pop musicians such as Amy Winehouse or Duffy. And the group are in good company with past winners, as music legend Sir Paul McCartney won the award last year for his classical work Ecce Cor Meum (Behold My Heart). It is only the second time in the history of the Classical BRITs that a debut album has won this award.
The boys, who formed via social networking site Facebook, were tonight overwhelmed by the occasion. ‘We’ve been working so hard over the past few months for this award, it’s just fantastic that the fans turned out to vote for us. We’re hugely grateful to all our supporters, have had a fantastic night, and just want to thank our mums – who have encouraged and supported us all the way!’
‘We can’t wait to get touring with Katherine Jenkins too, first over the summer, and now in December too – it’s brilliant to be performing with a star of Katherine’s calibre, and we’re excited at the opportunity.’
Katherine Jenkins says ‘I would like to congratulate Blake on winning the NS & I Album of the Year Award, and I am pleased to announce that they will be joining me as special guests on my winter tour.’
Blake’s debut album topped the classical charts when it was released in November. It has now gone gold, selling over 150,000 albums in the UK alone, and the group are to complete a tour of Japan in the upcoming months. They are the classical singers of choice – celebrities from Keira Knightley, to Will Smith, to Shirley Bassey have all paid testament to the extraordinary voices of these new stars of the musical world. And tonight’s award proves that Blake are also the people’s choice.
Editor’s note: Blake are Stephen Bowman, Jules Knight, Ollie Baines and Dom Tighe. The NS & I Album of the Year Award is a voted for by Classic FM listeners and readers from a list compiled of the ten best selling classical albums of the year.
Newly announced dates, with Katherine Jenkins:
December 1 Sheffield, City Hall
December 2 Glasgow, Clyde Auditorium
December 4 Newcastle, City Hall
December 5 Preston, Guildhall
December 7 Oxford, New Theatre
December 9 London, Royal Albert Hall
December 10 Plymouth, Pavilions
December 12 Birmingham, NIA
December 13 Bournemouth, International Centre
December 15 Brighton, Centre
December 17 Nottingham, Royal Centre
December 18 Manchester, EN Arena
December 20 Harrogate, International Centre
December 22 Cardiff Arena
Dates already announced:
June 6 Hampton Court Palace with Katherine Jenkins
June 17 Hampton Court Palace with Katherine Jenkins
June 22 Belvoir Castle, Leicestershire, with Katherine Jenkins
July 3 Waddeson Manor, Buckinghamshire, with Katherine Jenkins
July 5 Hayward’s Heath, Sussex, with Katherine Jenkins
July 6 Brentwood, Essex, with Alfie Boe and All Angels
July 8 Newmarket Race Course with Natasha Marsh
July 9 Kempton Park Best Of British Show with The Irish Guards
July 12 Thetford, Norfolk, with Katherine Jenkins
July 19 Westonbirt, Gloucestershire, with Katherine Jenkins
July 26 Broadlands Estate, Hampshire, with Hayley Westenra and All Angels
July 27 Quex Park, Margate, with Katherine Jenkins
August 1 Dorford Park, Wednesbury with Katherine Jenkins
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Mon April 14/08
Tim Borror, Dave Kaplan Named V.P.s
The Agency Group New York is pleased to announce that Dave Kaplan and Tim Borror will both be promoted to Vice Presidents. In addition to joining the Management Team, Tim and Dave will continue to oversee the live touring careers of their artist rosters.
“Dave and Tim have proven themselves to be valuable members of our team; their enhanced roles will further capitalize on their strengths.” – Steve Herman, CEO North America.
With 15 years experience in the industry, Tim was a co-founder at Face The Music booking. Tim, along with his partners at FTM, discovered and developed bands like In Flames, Lamb Of God, Killswitch Engage, Opeth, and Thursday. He also had a hand in providing a fresh start to veteran rockers like Clutch, Hatebreed, Danzig, and Gwar who are now more successful than ever.
Prior to joining The Agency Group in 2002, Dave Kaplan ran his own agency, Easy Action Industries, and was also a Promoter and Talent Buyer for the San Francisco area. Dave now has a roster of eclectic and notable talent that includes The White Stripes, Be Your Own Pet, The Black Keys, Blonde Redhead, The Raconteurs, Nicole Atkins, The Raveonettes, and Roky Erickson & The Explosives. |
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Mon April 7/08
10 Juno Award wins for TAG!
The 2008 Juno Awards took place last night in Calgary, Alberta and TAG Canada took home 10 awards, 5 of which went to the lovely Feist. Congratulations to the artists and their agents and assistants!
Winners:
ABORIGINAL RECORDING OF THE YEAR
Derek Miller THE DIRTY LOOKS
ALBUM OF THE YEAR (SPONSORED BY CRIA)
Feist THE REMINDER
ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Feist
COUNTRY RECORDING OF THE YEAR
Paul Brandt RISK
MUSIC DVD OF THE YEAR
Pierre & François Lamoureux, Billy Talent, Pierre Tremblay, Steve Blair 666 LIVE
Performer: BILLY TALENT
NEW GROUP OF THE YEAR
Wintersleep
POP ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Feist THE REMINDER
R&B/SOUL RECORDING OF THE YEAR (SPONSORED BY SIRIUS SATELLITE RADIO)
Jully Black REVIVAL
SINGLE OF THE YEAR
Feist 1234
SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR
Feist “MY MOON MY MAN” | “1234” | “I FEEL IT ALL” |
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Tues. March 11/08
James Rubin and Jules De Lattre Join The Agency Group
The Agency Group London is pleased to welcome new agents James Rubin and Jules DeLattre to the company.
Jules DeLattre, age 27, is originally from France and graduated with an MA from Edinburgh University. He co-founded multi-purpose music company Best Kept Secret and has been the head of the booking department for the past four years, where he was responsible for 60 international artists. While at The Agency Group, Jules will continue to specialize in urban, world, and reggae artists. His current roster includes The Black Seeds, Breakestra, Candi Staton, Horace Andy, Babyhead, Dwele, Groundation, The New Mastersounds, Shape of Broad Minds, Souljazz Orchestra, and Willie Isz.
At the age of 28, James Rubin has already had a hand in the promoting and booking sides of live touring. He was the co-founder of Australian touring company Melting Pot Productions, where he spent five years touring artists across New Zealand, Australia, and Asia. After relocating to London, James became one of the head agents for Best Kept Secret where he handled the bookings of the Live and DJ acts throughout the UK, Europe, Asia, and Australia. James’ focus will be on electronic, indie, and urban music. His roster consists of Platinum Pied Pipers, Shapeshifter, Aesop Rock, Thieves Like Us, Malakai, The Coup, Spektrum, Swollen Members and more.
“I’m delighted to have Jules and James join the U.K. office. They’ll bring a whole new sphere of musical artists to the office as well as compliment the current staff and roster.” – Geoff Meall, Director.
James and Jules are both currently available and fully operational in the London office. |
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Fri. March 7/08
The Agency Group Canada wins Agency of the Year
The Agency Group won the Agency of the Year award last night during Canadian Music Week's Music Industry Awards! |
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Tues. March 4/08
The Agency Group adds Speakers Department
The Agency Group will further expand its scope with the acquisition of Roth Talent Associates (RTA), a speaker’s bureau founded in 2000 by Andy Roth. Effective immediately, Roth, along with his staff, will join The Agency Group in its Los Angeles office to form its new Speakers Department, a perfect complement to its Literary arm, headed by Marc Gerald.
“As The Agency Group continues to develop the various services to our clients, I am absolutely delighted that Andy Roth has joined us to form our new Speakers Department. I'm sure many of our clients will benefit from this new division and over time, together with our Literary arm, we look forward to developing this division on a worldwide basis.” – Neil Warnock, CEO.
Andy Roth has been an agent in the speaker’s industry for 16 years. Prior to forming RTA, he was a Vice President of Greater Talent Network in New York. Roth is very proud of the diverse roster of artists, athletes, writers, musicians, business leaders and personalities he has accumulated. Many of the speakers have been immortalized in films, on television and in books, such as the real Coach Carter (portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson in on screen version), Harold Jones (the Southern football coach from the film “Radio”), Alison Bechdel (award-winning comic artist and author of the acclaimed graphic novel “Fun Home”), Lance Bass (former N*SYNC star and author of Out of Sync), Sergio Arau & Yareli Arizmendi (filmmakers of “A Day Without A Mexican”), and Harvey Pekar (iconic creator of “American Splendor”).
“I’m really looking forward to broadening our speaker offerings at The Agency Group. There are some innovative and non-traditional speaking opportunities for both the musicians and writers represented currently by the Agency Group, as well as for venues and promoters.” – Andy Roth, Speakers Department Director.
Speakers Department contact information:
The Agency Group
1880 Century Park East, Suite 711
Los Angeles, CA 90067
Phone: (310) 385-2800 Fax: (310) 385-1220
Director: AndyRoth@theagencygroup.com
Agent: EricaLangston@theagencygroup.com
Assistant/Client Services: GiovanniBrewer@theagencygroup.com |
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Mon. March 3/08
The Agency Group names Ralph James President of the Canadian office
The Agency Group is pleased to announce that Ralph James has been promoted to President of the Canadian operations. He will continue to actively oversee his roster of active and emerging artists.
“Ralph has been instrumental in building a major roster of talent for The Agency Group, both in Canada and internationally.” – Steve Herman, CEO North America.
“His new position reflects his dedication to the company and his clients. His diligence since forming the Canadian Company with Jack Ross has been extraordinary, and has manifested itself in the enormous growth of the Canadian Company.” – Neil Warnock, CEO.
Ralph began his career as the bass player for Platinum-selling rock band Harlequin, touring for over a decade. In 1996 he, along with Neil Warnock and Jack Ross, launched the Canadian office. He began with a small roster of Canadian artists, but also signed then-unknown acts such as Nickelback, Three Days Grace and Billy Talent, among others.
In the same nature as the artists he’s developed, Ralph’s career has continued to flourish. He’s won multiple awards including Canadian Music Week’s Booking Agent of the Year Award five times. Most recently, Ralph had the honor of being the first Canadian to be nominated for the Bobby Brooks Agent of the Year Award in 2007 and 2008.
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Thurs. February 14/08
Three Grammy Award wins for TAG
Congratulations to The White Stripes who took home two Grammy Awards on Sunday night including “Best Rock Performance By A Duo or Group With Vocals” and “Best Alternative Music Album” and Duncan Sheik who won “Best Broadway Recording” for Spring Awakening. |
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Tues. February 5/08
The Agency Group earns 36 Juno Award Nominations
The Juno Awards, Canada's answer to the Grammys, will take place in Calgary, Alberta on April 6 and The Agency Group's Toronto office has 36 nominations for their artists:
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Tues. January 15/08
3 Brit Awards nominations for The Agency Group
Congratulations to the 2008 Brit Awards nominees! The Agency Group is happy to announce that we have three artists up for awards this year:
Muse "Best British Live Act
Feist "Best International Female Solo Artist
The White Stripes "Best International Group"
The ceremony will take place February 20th at London's Earl Court. |
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Wed. January 9/08
Brian Culbertson to support Barry Manilow
Brian Culbertson will be the supporting act for Barry Manilow during his "An Evening of Music and Passion" arena tour this January and February. Dates include:
01/11/08 Saint Paul, MN - Xcel Energy Center
01/12/08 Chicago, IL - United Center
03/29/08 Atlanta, GA - Philips Arena
03/27/08 Raleigh, NC - RBC Center
02/08/08 Columbus, OH - Nationwide Arena
02/09/08 Washington, DC - Verizon Center
02/14/08 Los Angeles, CA - Staples Center
02/15/08 San Jose, CA - HP Pavilion At San Jose
02/19/08 Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center
02/23/08 Sunrise, FL - Bank Atlantic Center
02/24/08 Miami, FL - AmericanAirlines Arena
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Mon. December 10/07
The Agency Group has 18 Grammy Nominations!
BEST NEW ARTIST:
Feist
Paramore
BEST FEMALE POP PERFORMANCE:
Feist “1234”
BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM:
Feist “The Reminder”
BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE BY A DUO OR GROUP WITH VOCALS:
Nickelback “If Everyone Cared”
The White Stripes “Icky Thump”
BEST HARD ROCK PERFORMANCE:
Evanescence “Sweet Sacrifice”
BEST METAL PERFORMANCE:
As I Lay Dying “Nothing Left”
Shadows Fall “Redemption”
BEST ROCK INSTRUMENTAL PERFORMANCE:
Rush “Malignant Narcissism”
BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM:
The White Stripes “Icky Thump”
BEST ROCK SONG:
Jack White (The White Stripes) “Icky Thump”
BEST COUNTRY SONG:
Bill Anderson (with Buddy Cannon & Jamey Johnson for George Strait) “Give It Away”
BEST BOXED OR SPECIAL LIMITED EDITION PACKAGE:
My Chemical Romance “The Black Parade”
The White Stripes “Icky Thump”
BEST ALBUM NOTES:
Ricky Jay “Ricky Jay Plays Poker”
BEST SURROUND SOUND ALBUM:
Porcupine Tree “Fear Of A Blank Planet”
BEST SHORT FORM MUSIC VIDEO:
Feist “1234”
Congratulations to all the nominated artists and their hard-working agents!
The Grammy Awards will air February 10, 2008 at 8:00 pm ET/PT on CBS. |
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Wed. December 5/07
The Agency Group’s nominations at the 19th annual Pollstar Concert Industry Awards
The Agency Group has been nominated, once again, for “Booking Agency of the Year” at this year’s Pollstar Concert Industry Consortium Awards. Also nominated is Neil Warnock for “UK Booking Agent of the Year” and Ralph James for the “Bobby Brooks Booking Agent of the Year”, Paramore & Feist are nominated for “Best New Touring Artist” and Breaking Benjamin & Three Days Grace are up for the award for “Most Creative Tour Package”. |
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Wed. December 5/07
Great news for Paramore!
Paramore has been nominated for the “Best New Artist” Grammy! They have also recently attained Gold status in the USA for their latest album “Riot!”. |
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Wed. December 5/07
Shane Yellowbird big winner at Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards
The Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards were held in Toronto on Fri. November 30 and The Agency Group had three artists win five awards between them, including Shane Yellowbird – “Best Male Artist”, “Best Country Album”, “Best Album of the Year”, Derek Miller –“Best Rock Album”, and Digging Roots – “Best Songwriter”. |
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Wed. December 5/07
Paul Brandt to receive the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award
Paul Brandt will be the first to receive the “Allan Waters Humanitarian Award” in April, following the Juno Awards. The newly named award recognizes an outstanding Canadian artist who has positively enhanced the social fabric of Canada. |
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Fri. November 30
Hinder Receives Rising Star Award
Since the release of the CD ‘Extreme Behavior’, Oklahoma’s own super rock group Hinder has been rewriting rock history. The band, one of this year’s top selling rock groups, performed a special acoustic set of their hits at the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Concert in Muskogee on Thursday, November 1st. The group was honored with the Rising Star Award during the annual induction ceremony that night. |
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Fri. November 30
Katherine Jenkins Releases Live DVD
On 19th November, in addition to releasing her new album 'Rejoice', Katherine will also release one of the most talked about concerts of the year on DVD. Filmed at the first ever Katherine In The Park, on 8 July 2007, this DVD captures a beautiful summer's evening, the amazing backdrop, an audience of thousands, Katherine at her very finest and some fabulous special guests. |
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