LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) – PULSE Music Group Co-CEO Scott Cutler and Josh Abraham, along with President/Head of Creative Ashley Calhoun, announced today that they have formed a music publishing creative joint venture with Song of the Year and Album of the Year Grammy-winning songwriter/producer/recording artist, Dan Wilson.
Wilson established his own publishing company, Supermoon Songs (a joint venture with PULSE Music Group) through the deal. He will sign and develop his roster of artists, writers and producers. Wilson’s manager, Jim Grant of JGM Management, and business partner Rick Markowitz of Fast Casual are also co-founders of the new Supermoon Songs venture.
Wilson is a singer, songwriter, musician, and producer who has been called a “songwriter’s songwriter.” His songwriting resume includes “Closing Time,” which he wrote for his band, Semisonic, “Not Ready to Make Nice” (co-written with the Chicks), and “Someone Like You” (co-written with Adele and Wilson also produced the track), among many others.
“Someone Like You” topped the charts in nineteen countries, marking Adele’s first number-one single in the UK, becoming the third most downloaded single of all time in the UK, and becoming the fourth best-selling single of the 21st century. The song is certified 6X Platinum by both the BPI and the RIAA. In total, Wilson co-wrote three tracks on Adele’s second studio album, 21, which earned top honors as the Grammy Album of the Year, the Brit Award for British Album of the Year, and was named to Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. With more than 31 million copies sold to date, 21 is one of the best-selling albums of the 21st century.
Wilson has also earned a Grammy nomination for “Closing Time” (Best Rock Song) and won a Grammy for Song of the Year (“Not Ready to Make Nice” in 2007). Wilson produced the song “Treacherous,” which he co-wrote with Taylor Swift for her fourth studio album, Red, resulting in an additional Album of the Year nomination (Wilson also worked with Swift on re-producing his co-writes on Red, Taylor’s Version). Wilson has two Grammy nominations for the upcoming 66th Annual Awards in the Song of the Year category for “Butterfly” (co-written with Jon Batiste) and Best Country Song category for “White Horse” (co-written with Chris Stapleton).
Wilson is a go-to writer/producer in the industry and has also written and produced with a who’s who of top recording artists spanning multiple genres, including Leon Bridges, Mitski, Panic! At the Disco, Weezer, Celine Dion, Jon Batiste, Laufey, Claud, John Legend, Keith Urban, Nas, and many more.
As a recording artist, Semisonic released their first full-length album in 22 years on November 3rd, entitled Little Bit Of Sun, including appearances from Jason Isbell and My Morning Jacket’s Jim James and co-writes with Grammy-winning songwriters Lori McKenna and Amy Allen. In addition to being the leader of Semisonic, Wilson has released several solo recordings, including the 2017 release Re-Covered. He was also a member of the Minneapolis psychedelic rock band Trip Shakespeare.
“Dan is a once-in-a-generation songwriter and producer,” said Scott Cutler, co-CEO of PULSE Music Group. “He’s been consistently impressive for over 25 years, and his songs have provided a soundtrack for global audiences. Establishing Supermoon Songs with Dan, Jim and Rick is a natural fit for us because Dan has a proven reputation for adding so much value to creatives in the industry, from knowing how to empower them to write great songs to bringing out the best of their talent during the recording process. This type of collaboration and mentorship aligns exactly with what we strive to deliver to the creative community that we have built at PULSE Music Group. We’ve followed Dan’s career since the beginning and look forward to working with Dan, Jim and Rick through the Supermoon Songs platform to launch the next wave of talent.”
“Dan is a real musical legend and someone whose career I have always admired,” commented Annie Aberle, Vice President, A&R, PULSE Music Group. “I know countless younger creatives in this industry who look up to Dan as a mentor. My relationship with Dan and his team began with a conversation surrounding collaborations for Dan with the PULSE roster. It later evolved into discussing what a JV would look like with Dan, Rick and Jim. We all believe that this team presents a unique home for young creatives, where they can benefit from the leadership of Dan, along with the resources and creative power that Rick and Jim at Supermoon Songs and PULSE can bring to their careers, starting with the signing of Paul Dally.”
“For a long time, I’ve been acting as a mentor to young writers and artists, being as helpful as I can purely as an advisor,” said Wilson. “But I’ve wanted to find a way to build that mentorship into something that can provide even more partnership and leverage along the way. I’ve wanted to offer more than good advice – to help young, brilliant artists expand their opportunities, interconnection, and network of collaborators. That’s the vision for Supermoon Songs, my joint venture with PULSE Music Group. We’ve made our first signing to the company, Paul Dally, a brilliant songwriter and singer.”
“I’ve looked up to Dan since I first discovered liner notes and am so honored to be able to create this venture with him and the rest of the team. commented Rick Markowitz from Supermoon Songs. “His dedication and love of the creative process is inspiring, and his positivity is infectious. I’m very excited to be a part of this and finally have a good reason to speak to Dan, Annie, Jim and Scott daily.”
Artist, songwriter, and instrumentalist Paul Dally is the first signing to Supermoon Songs. Dally is a songwriter/recording artist from the island of Vashon, Washington, who started writing songs and experimenting with music when he was 12. His father gave him a Tascam 4-track, and Dally was hooked. As a high schooler, Dally traveled two hours daily to get to the Tacoma School of the Arts. Paul recently released his single “Moonlit Breakers feat. Dijon” to a slew of play-listing across music platforms. His new single, “Wanna,” will be released in early December.
