GHOST BUSTING OUT AT EPIC

As we told you late last year, but no one seemed to believe us, look for the imminent announcement of Amanda Ghost as the new head of Sony’s Epic Records, replacing the outgoing Charlie Walk. Ghost will join the company on Feb. 16 and be responsible for overseeing the overall management and creative direction.

Sony Music Entertainment head Rob Stringer, to whom she'll report, will be involved in the running of the label, which now includes about 60 employees and a roster under 30 acts.

"I am delighted that Amanda has chosen to bring her creatie vision and flair to the Epic label," said Stringer. "In the changing environment of the music business, record labels undoubtedly need to be complete partners with the artistic community and Amanda will be the perfect executive to meet that challenge."

Added Ghost: "I'm very excited to be working with Rob Stringer and joining a label as iconic as Epic. Historically, it has stood for pop music in as broad and exciting a sense as possible.

"I'm not a conventional choice as a music business executive, but it is testament to the new mood at Sony, where content is now king, and the music business is being put back in the hands of creative talent such as myself. I'm here to draw on my experiences as an artist, songwriter and producer to make the new and existing artists signed to Epic as brilliant and successful as possible."

Label execs Jacqueline Saturn, Adam Granite and Lee Stimmel will form the core of the company.

Ghost is a London-based singer/songwriter originally signed to Warner Bros. Records in the U.S., who released her debut album, Ghost Stories, back in 2000. She was also the co-writer for James Blunt’s “You’re Beautiful,” Beyonce and Shakira’s “Beautiful Liar” and Jordin Sparks’ “Tattoo.”

Ghost contributed a number of songs to Beyonce’s current album, I Am… Sasha Fierce, including “Disappear,” “Ave Maria” and “Satellites.” She was nominated for a Golden Globe for co-writing “Once in a Lifetime,” an original song on the Cadillac Records soundtrack sung by Beyonce.

She has released her own records in the U.K. on her record label Plan A, distributed through Universal. During that time, she starteed a publishing label and music production company, where she signed new and developing artists, most recently Hugo Chakra, who is licensed through Jay Z's record label Roc Nation.