Get Spoiled by Icelandic Songstress DíSA This Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is here! Glug…

So the 14th of February looms and you’re either alone and eating ice-cream or spending more of your hard-earned cash smiling adoringly into another’s eyes. Right? Ben & Jerry’s for me please…

Whatever your relationship status, our very own DíSA just premiered her new single “Marry You” as a warm-up for Saturday and is offering you the opportunity to win a luxury Valentine’s Day gift bag worth $150/£100/€130.

“Marry You” is the second single from the upcoming debut EP by the Iceland-born, London-raised and Copenhagen-based singer/songwriter who is already receiving critical acclaim. Although the song is about the troubles with unrequited love and the heartbreaking grief that follows, “Marry You” stands out from the rest of the EP with its warm and embracing melody and the electronic Scandi sound we love, all still in DíSA‘s mysterious universe of electro layers and power with a strong and graceful vocal.

The good news is, whether you’re home alone and gleefully tucking into the Valentine gift bag solo, or sharing it with a loved one, entering is easy. To celebrate the launch of the single and to enter the competition, all you have to do to is head over to our friends at EarMilk here.

Don’t forget to check out more of DíSA by visiting her website and social profiles: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SoundCloud and YouTube.

P.S – Is anybody free Saturday night?

Welcome, Marc!

Introducing Marc Cuevas, Client Manager, Sports, Film & TV

Hello everyone, my name is Marc and I’m excited to be joining The Orchard Client Management team in New York. A little bit on my background: I grew up in Palo Alto, CA, a suburb of San Francisco. I graduated from Pitzer College where I studied Math and Media Studies. Since then I’ve worked in digital distribution through a variety of companies including Live Nation and The Orchard’s new acquisition Fanclub Media. At Fanclub, I was VP and Head of Operations, this gave me the unique opportunity to manage direct relationships supplying content to worlds top digital platforms while still being involved in client management and marketing strategy. When I’m not working, I have a slight obsession with music and will probably always say yes to checking out a new artist at a local spot. Also a big sports fan, everything from skateboarding to the NBA. I really look forward to meeting everyone in the New York office and getting to know the city!

The Orchard Polishes Its Deutsch with Membran Entertainment Group

Guten Tag, Deutschland! And a good day, it is. Today, we announce our new partnership with the renowned and respected Membran Entertainment Group, based in Germany. With them, we kick off The Orchard GmbH, run by Membran CEO, Manlio Celotti.

We’ve gotten to know the German market over the years — we opened our first office there in 2006 — and with so much potential for growth in the region, we knew it was time to grow our roots. Manlio brings over two decades of experience to the table, not only in the German music market, but also across Europe. We know that with him and Membran by our side, our labels and artists will benefit on all fronts: more label and marketing attention on the ground, a wider network to add to our 25+ markets around the world, and a stronger presence across Europe.

In addition to that, Membran will now handle all of our physical distribution in Europe, rounding up our partnership into one that promises great things.

Find out more in our official press release, and, if you want to polish your Deutsch too, take a look at this feature in MusikWoche.

Ringing in The Next Generation at the 2015 Winter X Games

At the tail-end of January, the 2015 Winter X Games returned to Aspen, CO for their 13th straight year. In typical X Games fashion, they outdid all previous years with action and entertainment.

To give you some highlights, there were both fresh faces on the podium and repeat gold medalists, with the most notable absence on the podium being the great Shaun White. Shaun was tempted out from “retirement” to compete in one last Winter X in an effort to claim a 14th gold medal. Unfortunately for Shaun, his best run could not compete with the young guns of the Mens Snowboard SuperPipe and he placed 4th — still, not bad! Danny Davis on the other hand threw down a jaw dropping gold medal run that made him the repeat champion. Like it? Stay tuned for the feature length film coming in November 2015 around the multi-time champ and his incredible story to the top.

In another sign that the kids are coming, Chloe Kim became the youngest Winter X Games gold medalist ever, overtaking the greatest women’s snowboarder of all time on her final run in the halfpipe final Saturday night. Kim, who wasn’t even born until 2000, scored 92 points in her third and final run. Chloe suffered a huge crash in practice, but regrouped and bounced back to take the Gold when it mattered. With that, she pushed four-time reigning X Games champion Kelly Clark to silver.

… Continue Reading

Congrats To Our 2015 Grammy Awards Winners!

Last night, all music-lovers and creators — well, almost — watched one of the year’s biggest events in music: The 57th Annual Grammy Awards. Some of us were lucky enough to attend in person — here’s lookin’ at you Colleen and Laura, our COO and Latin American Regional Manager who doubles as Chair of the Latin Grammys — while the rest of us watched from our living rooms (or if you’re like me, treadmills).

Of course, at The Orchard, we were rooting for our slew of nominated artists, many of whom didn’t actually get air time last night (there’s a whole score of wins that get awarded pre-prime time!), but who still deserve the highest praise for their accomplishments.

Speaking of, we tip our hats to our four big winners:

Anne Sofie von Otter for her album Douce France [naïve classique], who snagged the Grammy for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album

Wouter Kellerman & Ricky Kej for their album Winds of Samsara [Raveolution Studios], which took the title of Best New Age Album

Ziggy Marley for Fly Rasta [V2 Records Benelux], which brought home the award for Best Reggae Album

Partch for Harry Partch: Plectra and Percussion Dances, which won Best Classical Compendium

The whole night was full of epic performances, important messages and cringe-worthy moments but honestly, would we expect any less? Check out the full list of winners on the Grammy website, browse through photos and fashion, or just read a nice good recap courtesy of the NY Times.