KWATMAN RE-LAUNCHES THE FIRM

Jeff Kwatinetz has announced that he's re-launched his entertainment company The Firm, which works in music, film, TV and sports. The first clients will be longtime client Ice Cube and the National Basketball Players Association.

Cube, who's been in Kwatinetz's fold for 18 years, is of course now immersed (in his capacity as producer) in promoting the hugely buzzing Straight Outta Compton. He'll also be appearing in Ride Along 2 and Barbershop 3 next year, and has several other film projects in development.

Other clients include Dead Sara, Five Knives and P.O.D. The Firm team includes GM Jeremy Summers (who served as an EVP/CMO at Interscope before joining Kwatinetz) and Angelica Cob-Baehler (previously an EVP at Epic and EMI).

Kwatinetz and team are developing various revenue opportunities for the NBPA, most recently having launched the first-ever Players Awards.

In unveiling the new incarnation of the company, Kwatman emphasized he was motivated by industry feedback about the lack of a hands-on, creatively driven company in the space. Consolidation, he says, "has made it hard to find a top management company that isn't a division of a larger entertainment conglomerate."

Kwatinetz and Summers will continue to oversee Prospect Park Records (the roster of which includes Five Finger Death Punch, whose new set arrives on 9/4). PP's existing TV properties will remain under its banner, while new film and TV ventures will be under The Firm, overseen by partner Josh Barry.