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New Warner appointments: Robert Kraft, Kris Ahrend

By | Published on Thursday 5 December 2013

Warner Music

Some Warner Music appointments for you, and yesterday the mini-major confirmed that Robert Kraft, who previously oversaw music for movie and TV projects at Fox Music, will join its Warner Bros Records division in the US as Soundtracks Consultant.

In his new role Kraft will seek sync and soundtrack projects for artists across the label’s roster, with the aim to “bring together WBR artists, score composers and film directors to foster new types of creative collaboration”.

Confirming the appointment, Warner Bros Records overseer Cameron Strang told CMU: “Great soundtracks are culturally impactful moments that help both the music and the movie win new fans. There are few executives who have thrived as successfully at the interaction of music and film as Robert has, and his appointment underscores our commitment to providing our artists with a range of world-class services that help forge long-term careers and build loyal followings”.

Kraft himself added: “Soundtracks are an area that I know and love, and this great opportunity comes at a time of renewed excitement about music for visual media. WBR’s legacy includes many landmark soundtracks, from ‘Purple Rain’ to ‘The Matrix’ and ‘The Dark Knight’, so I’m delighted to help grow the label’s reputation as the pre-eminent player in the soundtrack arena. I am thrilled to work with Cameron Strang, the label’s talented team and the incredible range of new and legendary artists at Warner Bros Records”.

Kraft’s appointment follows the news earlier this week that Kris Ahrend had been promoted to the role of SVP Recorded Music Rights Administration at Warner Music’s US business. He will oversee a newly established division at the company that will encompass royalty and licensing management for the firm’s US catalogues, plus catalogue-related legal affairs. Ahrend previously had a senior business and legal affairs role within Warner’s Rhino US division.

Confirming that appointment, Warner’s CFO for Recorded Music, Matt Flott, said “By uniting Kris’s expertise with these complementary departments, we are creating a single interdisciplinary team that will be able to address the administrative and rights-related needs of our US business units efficiently and effectively. Since joining the WMG family nearly eight years ago, Kris has demonstrated the legal savvy, leadership skills, and commercial vision that make him ideally suited to lead this effort. I congratulate him on this well-deserved promotion”.



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