Beggars Group, home to indie labels such as XL Recordings, Matador, 4AD and Rough Trade, has named Nabil Ayers as its US President.
Ayers’ appointment follows the departure of US President Matt Harmon, who after 24 years at Beggars, has decided to step down to pursue other opportunities, according to the company.
Additionally, Claire Taylor has been upped to General Manager.
Ayers has been the US Label Manager of 4AD since 2009. Simon Halliday will continue to lead 4AD in his role as Worldwide Managing Director.
Ayers is also the former co-owner of Seattle’s Sonic Boom Records.
As a drummer, Ayers has performed in The Long Winters and Tommy Stinson.
He also has his own record label, The Control Group/Valley of Search, and has written about race and music for The New York Times, NPR, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, and GQ.
His recently announced memoir, My Life in the Sunshine, will be published on June 7, 2022 by Viking/Penguin.
Claire Taylor, meanwhile, has been with Beggars since 2007, and is shifting over from her role as Head Of Product Management.
Beggars says that Taylor’s “outstanding” work in this area “has provided her with insight into every aspect of the label’s operations”.
“We are very grateful to Matt for his contributions over two decades.”
Martin Mills, Chairman of Beggars Group, said “We are very grateful to Matt for his contributions over two decades which have brought us such success, but equally excited about Nabil and Claire’s elevations, as we look forward to an even brighter future.”
“My 13 years at 4AD have prepared me well for a move down the hall.”
Nabil Ayers
Nabil Ayers, added: “My 13 years at 4AD have prepared me well for a move down the hall.
“And I am proud to work for a company whose roster and staff are growing more exciting and diverse with each passing year.
“I can’t wait to work more closely with the amazing staff and artists at Matador Records, Rough Trade, XL Recordings, Young, and the 40+ years of Beggars catalog while continuing to work closely with my 4AD family.”
“I am thrilled to be stepping into my next role at Beggars.”
Claire Taylor
Claire Taylor, said: “I am thrilled to be stepping into my next role at Beggars.
“Getting to work across a team of such talented staff and inspiring artists is what has made me proud to be a Beggars employee since my first day on the job.”
MBW reported in October 2021 that revenue dipped slightly for Beggars Group in 2020.
Across the course of the year, Beggars Group turned over GBP £61.66 million ($79.2m), inclusive of its share of joint venture partnerships like XL and Matador.
That figure was down slightly on the £63.1m Beggars turned over in 2019.
In 2021, Beggars Group also entered into a partnership with Ben Turner and Simon Astall, partners behind the London-based music supervision company Earworm Music, to launch a music supervision, licensing and composition company, called Colourbox Music.Music Business Worldwide
