Quantcast
Andy's gang—Sr. VP Mark DiDia, Sr. VP Promotion Dan Hubbert, recently named Sr. VP John Polk and holdover Priority Exec. VP Andrew Shack—is now starting to see some results from its collective efforts.

CAPITOL GAINS UNDER SLATER

Label Is Rejuvenated by Andy’s Gang and New Records From Coldplay, The Vines, Kylie Minogue, Dirty Vegas and Slum Village
The power has returned to the Tower.

It’s been a hectic18 months since producer/manager Andy Slater was hired as President/CEO of Capitol Records by then-EMI head Ken Berry (see hitsdailydouble.com, 3/27/01).

Last October, Berry merged Priority Records into Capitol, which necessitated a full-scale integration of the two companies (see hitsdailydouble.com, 10/5/01), before Berry himself was fired and replaced by one-time PolyGram chief Alain Levy (see hitsdailydouble.com, 10/14/01). At that point, Levy and his appointed right-hand man David Munns gave Slater a resounding vote of confidence.

So, while it may have taken a little while, Andy's gang—Sr. VP Mark DiDia (see hitsdailydouble.com, 10/23/01), Sr. VP Promotion Dan Hubbert (see hitsdailydouble.com, 7/2/01), recently named Sr. VP John Polk and holdover Priority Exec. VP Andrew Shack—are now starting to see some results from its collective efforts. The label’s string of recent and current hit acts includes Coldplay, set to debut Top 10 next week, as well as Top 20 Slater signing The Vines, platinum-plus dance diva Kylie Minogue, Motor City rappers Slum Village and club smash Dirty Vegas.

The new team's first success was Aussie songbird Minogue, who came to the label with worldwide success but little profile in the U.S., the album debuted at #3 back in March (see hitsdailydouble.com, 3/5), and has since gone on to sell more than 750k OTC to date.

Aussie garage-rockers The Vines were a labor of love for Slater, who—with VP A&R Ron Laffitte—signed them worldwide and decided to kick-start the record by initially releasing it on EMI U.K. label Heavenly. Capitol then cultivated the transatlantic buzz to grab a Top 15 bow on the HITS Top 50 Album chart, with more than 50k in first-week sales and 230k to date OTC (see hitsdailydouble.com, 7/17).

Meanwhile, Barak/Priority’s Slum Village and Dirty Vegas, a U.K. dance duo whose song "Days Go By," received massive exposure in a Misubishi car commercial, have also found their audiences.

Next week, Coldplay’s A Rush of Blood to the Head, the highly anticipated follow-up to the band's platinum-plus Parachutes, will hit the Top 10, with a projected sales total of around 120k.

Without much fanfare, Slater and Co. have built up an impressive international rock stable that includes both Radiohead and Doves, in addition to Coldplay and The Vines. And with such promising projects as OK Go and Lisa Marie Presley on deck, these days, things look mighty fine at Hollywood & Vine.

NEAR TRUTHS: SPRING BLOOMS
Here come the big guns. (3/28a)
THE COUNT: COLDPLAY IS HOT, COUNTRY'S COOKIN' IN THE U.K.
The latest tidbits from the bustling live sector (3/28a)
CITY OF HOPE TAPS MARCIANO FOR TOP HONOR
This year's philanthropic model (3/28a)
TRUST IN THE TOP 20
Hip-hop is no longer hibernating. (3/28a)
UMG BROADENS SPOTIFY OFFERINGS
Sir Lucian and Daniel are in harmony. (3/28a)
THE NEW UMG
Gosh, we hope there are more press releases.
TIKTOK BANNED!
Unless the Senate manages to make this whole thing go away, that is.
THE NEW HUGE COUNTRY ACT
No, not that one.
TRUMP'S CAMPAIGN PLAYLIST
Now 100% unlicensed!
 Email

 First Name

 Last Name

 Company

 Country
CAPTCHA code
Captcha: (type the characters above)