There were just three debut albums in the US last year which went Gold.
One of them came from ex-One Directioner Zayn (RCA) – a solo debut from an established artist.
The other two albums were from newcomers: Charlie Puth’s Nine-Track Mind and Kevin Gates’s Islah.
The latter also became the only debut LP to go Platinum in the market in 2016.
Both of these records were released on ‘independent major’ Atlantic imprint, Artist Partner Group – based in Los Angeles and run by founder Mike Caren.
Today, Caren announced that he’d promoted two execs at APG – Miles Beard and Jeff Vaughn – to Vice Presidents of A&R at the company.
Vaughn (pictured, left) was previously Senior Director of A&R at APG, while Beard (pictured, right), who was nominated for MBW’s Young Executive of 2015 Award, rises from Director of A&R.
Since the launch of APG in 2013, both execs have signed and/or worked closely with artists such as Charlie Puth, Kevin Gates, Young Thug, Kehlani, David Guetta, Flo Rida, Jason Derulo, and others.
“Miles and Jeff have been essential players in our explosive success – from signing amazing artists to making fantastic records.”
mike caren, apg ceo and founder
APG CEO and Founder Mike Caren said: “Miles and Jeff have developed into musical experts with an incredible work ethic.
“They’ve both been with me since before we started Artist Partner Group four years ago, and they’ve been essential players in our explosive success – from signing amazing artists to making fantastic records.
“Our mission at APG is to provide the most creative, nurturing environment for the next generation of stars – artists, songwriters, producers, and A&R execs alike.”
“Miles and Jeff have superb musical instincts and the ability to turn those instincts into hits. [They are] two of the brightest young lights in our business.” angie pagano, apg gm
Artist Publishing Group General Manager Angie Pagano added: “Miles and Jeff have superb musical instincts and the ability to turn those instincts into hits.
“We’re very happy to announce these well-deserved promotions for two of the brightest young lights in our business.”
Vaughn, who began his career in the mailroom at talent agency UTA, A&R’d breakthrough hip-hop star Kevin Gates’ 2016 RIAA platinum debut album Islah which hit No.2 on the Billboard 200 chart and yielded two RIAA double-platinum singles.
He was instrumental in signing Young Thug as well as R&B artist Kehlani, whose mixtape You Should Be Here was Grammy-nominated in 2016.
Most recently, Vaughn signed the viral dance smash, JuJu On That Beat by Zay Hilfigerrr & Zayion McCall.
He also signed and re-launched multi-platinum artist Sage The Gemini and is co-A&Ring the upcoming Fast 8 soundtrack.
Beard began his music career at the age of 13 as a DJ, which eventually led him to a regular stint at 102.7 KIIS-FM in LA.
He joined Caren’s APG in 2012 and was responsible for signing Charlie Puth, whose No.1 collaboration with Wiz Khalifa, See You Again, was the world’s top-selling single in 2015.
Beard oversaw Puth’s RIAA gold debut album, Nine Track Mind, which features a trio of platinum-plus singles.
He also co-A&R’s David Guetta, and worked on his multi-platinum smash, Hey Mama feat. Nicki Minaj.
Among Beard’s other A&R credits are Pitbull’s Timber feat. Ke$ha, Flo Rida’s GDFR and Good Feeling, and Jason Derulo’s Talk Dirty feat. 2 Chainz.
He also managed the writers of Thomas Rhett’s Die A Happy Man and Machine Gun Kelly & Camilla Cabello’s Bad Things.
Music Business Worldwide
