Date Signed: Feb. 1, 2017
Label: UMG/Verve Label Group
Type of Music: Soul/Jazz/Funk
Management: Barbara Sealy - SB Music Mgmt.
Booking: Jesse Rosoff, James Wright, Mary Petro - United Talent Agency (UTA)
Legal: KHPS, Peter Paterno, Brent Canter
Publicity: Carleen Donovan - Donovan Public Relations Web: milesmosley.com
A&R: Mike Viola, Jamie Krents
In 2012, when bassist and vocalist Miles Mosley headed into the studio with the powerhouse Los Angeles jazz fusion collective the West Coast Get Down, he and his bandmates––including drummer Tony Austin and saxophonist Kamasi Washington––had no idea he was taking part in what would become an epic global phenomenon.
Those sessions, which came in the wake of their longstanding residency at The Piano Bar in Hollywood drawing SRO crowds, resulted in The Epic, which was billed as the debut studio album by Washington, earned huge critical accolades and led to extensive touring in North America, Australia, Japan and Europe.
"They talked about... why my diverse, heavy hard-hitting soul sound would be a good fit."
Mosley’s performances in Central Park and at the Monterey Jazz Festival caught the attention of three execs with the Verve Label Group: Danny Bennett (President and CEO), Mike Viola (VP of A&R) and Jamie Krents (SVP, International Marketing and Label Development).
Krents was familiar with Mosley via the bassist’s work with the late Chris Cornell, and Viola knew him from his sessions with pop songwriters, including Dan Wilson. When Mosley’s longtime manager Barbara Sealy sensed interest from the label, she had the foresight to release the popular “Abraham” as a digital single to spark buzz and get a reading on the kind of audience Mosley’s vibe would reach. Sealy’s longtime working relationship with Krents helped pave the way to carve out the deal.
The bassist says, “They talked about the direction of the new label and why my diverse, heavy, hard-hitting soul sound would be a good fit. They’re on a mission to re-invent Verve, furthering its legacy with artists capable of hard-hitting festival performances and younger skewing music that expands beyond their jazz roots.”
Mosley’s eclectic full-length debut is Uprising. “The through-line,” he says, “is songs that address common human emotions that encourage them to express their feelings while realizing they’re being experienced by someone else in the world.”
Looking for more of Music Connection's Signing Stories? Click HERE!
Shadow Of Doubt by Miles Mosley on VEVO.
