<\/p>\n
Craig Kallman<\/a>\u2018s journey in the music industry has come full circle.<\/p>\n The veteran A&R executive has just been promoted to Chief Music Officer at Warner Music Group<\/a>, a role that will see him provide strategic A&R expertise across the company\u2019s global operations.<\/p>\n He\u2019s also reimagining Big Beat, the label he originally founded in 1987 and was acquired by Atlantic Records<\/a> in 1991.<\/p>\n The appointment marks a significant evolution for Kallman, who spent nearly 35 years at Atlantic, including two decades as Chairman and CEO of the label, and most recently<\/span><\/a>, as Chief Music Officer of the Atlantic Music Group.<\/p>\n During his tenure at Atlantic, he helped shape the careers of stars including Bruno Mars, Cardi B, Lizzo, Wiz Khalifa, Kodak Black, and Lil Uzi Vert.<\/p>\n Now, based in New York and reporting directly to WMG CEO Robert Kyncl<\/a>, Kallman will work across WMG\u2019s portfolio \u2013 including Atlantic Records, Warner Records<\/a>, Warner Chappell, Rhino, ADA, and the company\u2019s catalog acquisition initiatives.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m incredibly excited to be able to plug into all the different divisions of the company and really be helpful creatively on every level,\u201d Kallman tells MBW from his office in New York, against a backdrop of a portion of his vast collection of records (over 2.2m at last count).<\/p>\n His expanded remit includes identifying signing opportunities for WMG\u2019s labels, scouting M&A opportunities for the company\u2019s $1.2 billion joint venture<\/span><\/a> with Bain Capital, and working with international territories to identify emerging trends and talent.<\/p>\n \u201cMy whole career, I\u2019ve always tried to find unique artists that were doing something different.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The first signing under the reimagined Big Beat is Elkan<\/b>, a Sierra Leone-born artist and producer who produced Drake and PartyNextDoor\u2019s hit NOKIA<\/i>. Elkan released his debut EP, The Baby Bundle<\/i>, on December 12 via Atlantic Records.<\/p>\n \u201cAs my first signing, Elkan is a statement of intent,\u201d says Kallman. \u201cHe\u2019s uncategorizable \u2013 you cannot pigeonhole him into any one thing.\u201d<\/p>\n That search for \u201cuncategorizable\u201d talent reflects Kallman\u2019s broader approach to A&R, which emphasizes instinct and artistry in identifying unique artists.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m definitely trying to look as much as I can where no one else is looking,\u201d Kallman explains. \u201cMy whole career, I\u2019ve always tried to find unique artists that were doing something different.\u201d<\/p>\n Here, Craig Kallman discusses his new role at Warner Music Group, his vision for \u201cBig Beat 3.0\u201d, why long-term artist development must remain a priority for major labels, and the global markets he\u2019s watching most closely\u2026<\/p>\n It\u2019s a real elegant, full-circle moment for me. I started as an indie label guy \u2013 as DIY as it gets \u2013 in 1987, and built [Big Beat] up until 1991. Then I was very fortunate to have [Atlantic co-chairs] Ahmet [Ertegun] and Doug [Morris] bring me in and buy the company. Being able to be mentored and learn under those two, and then spend the next 34 years at Atlantic, was an incredible journey.<\/p>\n \u201cElkan is really one of the most creative and, for me, one of the most exciting signings of my career.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The opportunity that Robert [Kyncl] gave me \u2013 and [Atlantic Music Group CEO] Elliot [Grainge] \u2013 to reactivate and reimagine Big Beat at the same time is going to be a fantastic new 3.0 [era] for Big Beat. I\u2019m just over the moon about the first artist that I\u2019ve signed, Elkan. He\u2019s really one of the most creative and, for me, one of the most exciting signings of my career.<\/p>\n I met him originally a couple of years ago as a producer. I heard literally one song that got me very intrigued because it was a really unique and creative production. I flew him to America to meet him and get in the studio with him. We spent pretty much all night in the studio from about 11pm till about four in the morning, just listening to his music, talking about music, and we just hit it off.<\/p>\n \u201cI HAD NO IDEA HE WAS AN ARTIST. THE MINUTE HE PLAYED ME HIS SONGS, [HE] KNOCKED ME OFF MY CHAIR. THIS KID IS A GENIUS<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n I had no idea he was an artist at the time \u2013 I just knew him as a producer. But [months later] he says, \u201cOh, by the way, I\u2019m an artist, I want you to hear what I\u2019m doing,\u201d and [he] knocked me off my chair. I mean, it was literally like, \u201cOh my God, this kid is a genius,\u201d and a true one-of-one. It was incredibly creative, and unlike anything I\u2019ve heard \u2013 uncategorizable. You cannot pigeonhole him into any one thing.<\/p>\n It was one of those [moments where it\u2019s like], \u201cYou can\u2019t leave the building, we\u2019ve got to do this.\u201d Fortunately, he felt like he really wanted to be with me, so it was a great union. I think it\u2019s going to be a big year for him in 2026.<\/p>\n 100%. I\u2019m definitely trying to look, as much as I can, where no one else is looking. My whole career, I\u2019ve always tried to find unique artists that were doing something different, whether it was finding a producer unlike anyone, or recording artists that had really special, unique qualities.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve been able to shine and identify talent early, and then we put our helmets on and start bashing through walls for the artist on both a creative level, an A&R level, and on the marketing level.<\/p>\n That\u2019s definitely how I\u2019m looking at Big Beat 3.0 \u2013 to really [look] where no one else is going.<\/p>\n 100% genre agnostic. I\u2019m looking at hard rock things, alternative rock things, pop things, R&B, hip-hop, dance music \u2013 across the board. I\u2019m really looking to be very multi-genre and tasteful and hopefully [find] some unique-sounding artists.<\/p>\n I\u2019m in a fortunate position to be able to work with both companies and see who\u2019s most excited about things.<\/p>\n If neither is excited, I can bring it through ADA, our [independent] system, and develop it until they\u2019re ready. I have lots of options and avenues, which is great, to have the versatility and the agility inside the company to build a new roster.<\/p>\n Since this just recently started, I\u2019ve been sitting with [Warner Chappell Music<\/a> CEO] Guy Moot<\/a> and Elliot [Grainge] and [Warner Records Co-Chairman & CEO] Aaron [Bay-Schuck], Tom [Corson, Warner Records Co-Chairman & COO], plus [Global Catalog President] Kevin Gore and [ADA President] Alejandro [Duque] for ADA and the Latin division.<\/p>\n I\u2019m really finding the ways in which I can be helpful and add value \u2013 whether it\u2019s helping sign artists, bringing artists to the labels that I\u2019ve identified that might not be right for Big Beat, and helping on the songwriter side [by] identifying things for Warner Chappell.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019M LOOKING FOR CATALOGS FOR US THAT MAKE SENSE ON A GLOBAL LEVEL, [AND] INTERFACING WITH ALL THE MAJOR TERRITORIES.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n [I\u2019m also] finding catalogs. We have this new partnership with Bain [Capital] and a war chest there to actively search for catalogs. I\u2019m looking for catalogs for us that make sense on a global level, [and] interfacing with all the major territories as well.<\/p>\n For me, it\u2019s always trying to see what\u2019s coming down the road and being ahead of the curve. An example is we [identified] the opportunities that were coming out of Africa [early on].<\/p>\n Being early on the Afrobeats genre, for instance, where we were able to sign Burna Boy<\/b> at a very early stage, I think that\u2019s still so key and intrinsic for all the labels inside Warner.<\/p>\n \u201cIT\u2019S TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT\u2019S COMING AROUND THE CORNER THAT WE NEED TO REALLY PLANT OUR FLAG IN AT THE EARLIEST POINT.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The fact that [the labels are] run by real record men \u2013 Aaron and Elliot are both true, honest record men [who] fully understand what it means to sign things early and champion them.<\/p>\n It\u2019s trying to figure out what\u2019s coming around the corner that we need to really plant our flag in at the earliest point, and then roll up our sleeves and do the hard work to bring that to the public. [We want to] bring things that are genre-defining, boundary-breaking, [with] creativity at its height. Those are the fundamentals that have always been the cornerstone of how I\u2019ve tried to [approach A&R].<\/p>\n There\u2019s interesting music coming out of so many different countries now. We\u2019re seeing [developments] on the K-pop side and out of Japan \u2013 two major markets that are virtually the size of the European Union now.<\/p>\n As they are evolving to be extremely bilingual and often in English, those are two very potent territories. We\u2019re going to continue to see a really interesting evolution of the music coming out of there that isn\u2019t just your traditional boy band, girl band, pop factory types of artists. We\u2019re going to see alternative artists and a wide cross-section of music coming out of there.<\/p>\n Obviously, India is a very interesting territory that\u2019s making more and more inroads, certainly as it migrates from Canada down to the US as well.<\/p>\n \u201cELKAN is DEFINITELY GOING TO PUT SIERRA LEONE ON THE MAP.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The continent of Africa as a whole is producing so much interesting music \u2013 not just West Africa and not just Nigeria, [but also] South Africa, Mali\u2026 Elkan happens to be from Sierra Leone, which is [a territory that hasn\u2019t received as much attention]. He\u2019s definitely going to put Sierra Leone on the map, let me tell you right now.<\/p>\n Everything that continues to evolve coming out of the Latin world is tremendously exciting.<\/p>\n Alejandro has done an amazing job on our Latin division, and now with him helming ADA at the same time\u2026 all of the Latin markets are producing incredibly rich, unique talent. Whether it\u2019s Mexico, Puerto Rico, or Latin America, all of those territories continue to evolve, and we\u2019re going to see many more unique things come out of [them].<\/p>\n It\u2019s a great question. I think it\u2019s profoundly important that the majors, and certainly Warner Music Group, become even more known for [long-term development] than we\u2019ve been in the past.<\/p>\n So many elements of the music business are being democratized, particularly distribution, and the competition gets wider and wider as distributors try to become more like majors and majors [lean] into wider distribution avenues beyond just the traditional ways that we sign artists\u2026<\/p>\n \u201cTHAT\u2019S WHAT\u2019S GOING TO SET US APART \u2013 AND THAT\u2019S WHAT\u2019S GOING TO BE ATTRACTIVE FOR ARTISTS WHO ARE UNDECIDED ABOUT WHETHER THEY NEED TO SIGN TO A MAJOR OR NOT.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n That\u2019s what\u2019s going to set us apart \u2013 and that\u2019s what\u2019s going to be attractive for artists who are undecided [about whether] they need to sign to a major or not.<\/p>\n I think it\u2019s one of the cornerstones and foundations of why an artist would want to sign to a major: because we have patience, because we have the ability to consistently invest in artist development, and also do that on a global scale.<\/p>\n Our reach and our financial ability to continue to invest as artists grow and blossom, and we give them sunlight and water; that\u2019s what is going to continue to set us apart from all the other avenues that artists have as choices. It\u2019s so important to the future of Warner Music Group, for sure.<\/p>\n That Warner Music Group is the most potent company to break artists on a global scale and grow our existing artists\u2019 fan bases on a worldwide basis. 2025 was a fantastic year for breaking new artists \u2013 both Warner and Atlantic did a tremendous job.<\/p>\n Continuing that winning streak and even enhancing and expanding the tear that Warner Music has been on this recent year is 100% the goal.<\/p>\n Having been able to hear a lot of the music that\u2019s coming, I\u2019m really excited about what\u2019s coming next.<\/p>\n The most overriding situation we all find ourselves in [regarding] the identification of new artists is [that] everyone has great data departments now. We\u2019ve all got fantastic, brilliant people looking at the metrics of what\u2019s moving, what has velocity, what is getting to first base or second base without us and then us jumping in. We\u2019re all very often chasing the same things.<\/p>\n \u201cWE NEED [TO RELY] A LITTLE LESS ON THE THINGS THAT HAVE VELOCITY\u2026 [AND MORE ON] RELYING ON ONE\u2019S EARS AND ONE\u2019S INSTINCTS.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n What is important is [to rely] a little less, necessarily, on the things that have velocity. There\u2019s a huge role and opportunity there, but there\u2019s also [the value of] relying on one\u2019s ears and one\u2019s instincts for believing in something and then throwing down, putting the X on the back, putting all the chips on the table, and backing it. We need more of that.<\/p>\n For me, that was honestly Elkan. I hope Elkan can become an example of how the tried-and-true A&R methods can still work alongside the more data-driven decisions.<\/p>\n Music Business Worldwide<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.musicbusinessworldwide.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Craig Kallman\u2018s journey in the music industry has come full circle. The veteran A&R executive has just been promoted to Chief Music Officer at Warner Music Group, a role that will see him provide strategic A&R expertise across the company\u2019s global operations. He\u2019s also reimagining Big Beat, the label he originally founded in 1987 and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2204361,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2204360","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Craig-Kallman-on-signing-\u2018uncategorizable-artists-reimagining-Big-Beat-and.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2204360","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2204360"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2204360\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2204362,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2204360\/revisions\/2204362"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2204361"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2204360"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2204360"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2204360"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
How does it feel to step away from your singular Atlantic focus into this wider strategic role at WMG?<\/b><\/h6>\n
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Tell us about Elkan. What did you see in him that made him the right statement of intent for this new era of Big Beat?<\/b><\/h6>\n
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Are you looking for more \u2018uncategorizable\u2019 artists like Elkan? What\u2019s the A&R strategy for Big Beat moving forward?<\/b><\/h6>\n
In terms of genre, are you focusing on anything specific, or is it completely agnostic?<\/b><\/h6>\n
Big Beat signings will go through either Atlantic or Warner Records. How will you decide which label works on which artist?<\/b><\/h6>\n
Turning to the Chief Music Officer role \u2013 practically, what does that look like day-to-day? Will you be sitting in on A&R meetings across the different divisions?<\/b><\/h6>\n
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Looking across Warner Music Group\u2019s different labels and divisions, Where do you see the biggest opportunities in A&R capability that you want to amplify or address?<\/b><\/h6>\n
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You mentioned spotting things early and looking at opportunities globally, like with Afrobeats. What other markets or territories are you most excited about?<\/b><\/h6>\n
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You\u2019ve built a reputation for long-term artist development. How do you protect that approach in today\u2019s environment, where there\u2019s increasing pressure on artists and A&R teams?<\/b><\/h6>\n
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What\u2019s at the top of your to-do list as you go into 2026? What would you like to achieve by December 2026?<\/b><\/h6>\n
If you could change anything about the music industry going into 2026, what would it be and why?<\/b><\/h6>\n
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