Fruits Music, the music and tech company specializing in music playlist promotion via creative marketing with a variety of proprietary, in-house tech products, has appointed Arno Van Berkel to the position of Managing Director.
Based at the company’s European headquarters in Oosterhout, Netherlands, Van Berkel will start his new role on January 23, 2023, and will report directly to Fruits Music Founder & CEO Stef Van Vugt.
With over 27 years’ experience in the music industry, he joins the company from his previous position as Managing Director at Warner Chappell Music, Benelux, a role he held for 15 years.
Whilst there he oversaw numerous catalog acquisitions including INXS, Ferdi Bolland, Bronski Beat and Spinnin Records and many sub-publishing deals such as Guns N Roses, Morrissey, Donna Summer, I.M.P.S and many more.
He also developed a domestic roster of HipHop/Rap, Dance and Pop writers who included Boef, Shirak, Mr Probz, Eefje de Visser, Tom Enzy, Sandro Silva, Billy The Kit and others.
Prior to joining Warner Chappell Music, he spent a decade at EMI.
Founded in 2017, Fruits Music was originally a ‘traditional’ music label specializing in dance music but has evolved to become an interesting player in the wider music industry.
Working with a team of music producers and writers the company now has a stable of ‘genre-brands’ operating under the Fruits Music umbrella covering a wide range of musical styles, such as Lo-Fi, Jazz, Dance and more, while also encompassing numerous wellbeing and ‘mood’ sounds such a sleep, concentration, and nature simulations.
The company also has a frontline imprint alongside a range of subscription-based Apps such as ’Sleep Fruits’ that allow listeners to access new audio products such as meditation music and bedtime stories, and ‘Fruits Craft’, a Minecraft server, which will be an in-app purchase (IAP) – both are currently in Beta testing mode. The company also provides marketing technology to a wide range of music industry clients.
“As our new Managing Director his goal is to help our company speak with one voice and ensure that our bold vision and future plans are implemented and executed effectively.”
Stef Van Vugt, Fruits Music
Stef Van Vugt, Founder and CEO of Fruits Music said: ”As someone who has been striving to be a generalist as much in business as in the creative aspects of our day-to-day operations, it feels like the right time to focus on big picture strategy, asking the crazy questions, motivating and inspiring the team around me and leading from the front.
“We are now five years into the Fruits Music journey and looking at the opportunities and challenges ahead it is time to assemble a world class team to execute our vision for the next five to ten years.
“Arno brings a set of values and core principles that are very similar to mine and the wider team at Fruits Music. As our new Managing Director his goal is to help our company speak with one voice and ensure that our bold vision and future plans are implemented and executed effectively.”
“Passion is the driving force behind everything I do and I am hugely excited about the energy and ambition that Stef and the team at Fruits Music have.”
Arno Van Berkel, Fruits Music
Arno Van Berkel said,” Passion is the driving force behind everything I do and I am hugely excited about the energy and ambition that Stef and the team at Fruits Music have.
“They have built an incredible company and ethos over the last five years and its hugely exciting to be given the task of helping them expand and develop that vision further.”
Formerly known as Strange Fruits, the label-cum playlist company began an extensive rebranding campaign in October 2022 when it changed its name to Fruits Music and announced the launch of a new product, a subscription app called Sleep Fruits.
Stef Van Vugt, the 25-year-old exec who founded Fruits Music in 2016 while studying music as an aspiring DJ, sat down for an interview with MBW in July 2022 where he shared his views about the music industry and the role of AI.Music Business Worldwide