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Universal appoints new GM for Verve in US
By CMU Editorial | Published on Tuesday 8 May 2012
Universal’s Verve Music Group in the US appointed a new GM last week, in the form of Robert Smith, who was most recently Senior Vice President of A&R for Concord Music Group, and previously had a marketing role at another Universal division, Geffen. Smith will be involved in expanding out the musical remit of the traditionally jazz-based label.
Confirming the appointment, Verve Chairman David Foster told reporters: “As we continue to expand Verve into the adult contemporary and pop music markets, Robert is the perfect choice to oversee our day-to-day operations. He possesses a real track record of success and his marketing talents are among the most innovative and forward thinking in the industry”.
Smith added: “I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work with David Foster, one of the industry’s most talented and creative producers, in expanding the Verve label. I’d like to thank Concord and the amazing, legendary artists I had the chance to work with there. We were fortunate to be able to implement creative marketing initiatives to further feature our artists in non-traditional areas of media and retail, ideas which I hope to expand upon at Verve”.
As previously reported, the UK version of Verve Music was recently closed down, with its roster of artists being swallowed by Decca, the British Universal division of which Verve UK was an imprint.
