Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) has signed a global administration deal with Robbie Williams’ publishing company, Farrell Music.
The agreement includes Robbie Williams’ existing catalogue and future works.
British superstar singer/songwriter Robbie Williams is one of the UK’s most prominent entertainers and one of the best-selling artists of all time. He first found massive fame with Take That from 1989 to 1995 and later became a hugely successful solo artist.
With Take That, Williams and his bandmates released three multi-platinum hit albums and toured the world to much acclaim. Among their biggest songs include ‘Back For Good’, ‘Patience’, ‘Never Forget’ and ‘Pray’.
Setting the stage with his 1997 solo debut Life Thru a Lens, Williams scored the first of many hit singles with the anthemic Angels, an enduring UK classic that became his breakthrough worldwide hit.
His second album I’ve Been Expecting You was a career peak, certified ten-times platinum and breaking into new markets with the timely Millennium. With each successive album, Williams released numerous other No.1 singles including Rock DJ, Somethin’ Stupid, and Candy.
In 2013, he released Swings Both Ways which went two-times platinum in the UK, followed by his eleventh album The Heavy Entertainment Show. The latter debuted at No.1 in 2016, making him the most successful British solo act in Official Albums Chart history, with over 70 million records sold worldwide.
Before the end of 2019 Williams is to release his thirteenth studio album and first Christmas record; a double album of festive covers and original songs. The announcement arrives after news that Robbie will sing the theme song for Channel 4’s Christmas TV adaptation of classic children’s book ‘The Tiger Came To Tea’.
“It’s such a pleasure to be reunited with Robbie and his management team at ie: music after so many years. I first signed Robbie as a young, fresh faced member of Take That back in the early 90s when I was at Virgin Music and even then, he was a huge personality and a pleasure to work with.”
Mike McCormack, UMPG UK
Williams has won 18 Brit Awards (including those won with Take That), more than any other artist in music history, five Ivor Novello Awards, including Songwriter of the Year in 1999 as well as two VMA awards and two NME awards. He was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2004, among many other accolades.
In the summer of 2018, Williams performed at the FIFA World Cup opening ceremony, issuing Under the Radar, Vol. 2 (part of his non-album compilation series) a month later. He also joined the judges’ panel for the 15th season of the UK X Factor. A third addition to the Under the Radar series arrived in 2019.
UMPG UK MD Mike McCormack said: “It’s such a pleasure to be reunited with Robbie and his management team at ie: music after so many years. I first signed Robbie as a young, fresh faced member of Take That back in the early 90s when I was at Virgin Music and even then, he was a huge personality and a pleasure to work with.
“He’s gone on to become a global superstar and an incredible songwriter – so it’s a privilege to represent all these great songs and the new material he will be writing in the future.”Music Business Worldwide
