Pictured L-R: Alex Wilson (Head of Distribution and Customer Service), Adrian Burke (General Manager Group SPEED), and GYROstream and DistroDirect Co-Directors Viv Mellish (CMO), and Andy Irvine (CEO)
Australia-based music distribution brands GYROstream and DistroDirect and former Label Partnerships Lead at Spotify Canada, Adrian Burke, have launched a new artist services venture called GROUP SPEED.
GYROstream and DistroDirect say that GROUP SPEED’s services include artist promotional strategies, DSP partnership support on all major platforms, advance funding options and “premium” distribution.
Adrian Burke will serve as General Manager of GROUP SPEED and arrives at the company following seven years at Spotify.
According to the announcement, there, he “cultivated key partner relationships, developed global artist campaigns and implemented data-driven strategies to help create millions of incremental streams for artists around the globe”.
According to GROUP SPEED, he will steer the strategic direction of the company out of North America “and tap into a robust team of experts assembled across continents to help elevate artist careers”.
Alison Bremner also joins GROUP SPEED at launch. GROUP SEED says that Bremner is known for her role in launching Hannah Balanay @thexhan “to the pinnacle of TikTok fame” as the platform’s most-followed creator in Australia with 18 million followers.
Bremner’s expertise extends to developing partnerships with brands such as Gucci, TikTok, and Red Bulland has also worked on campaigns for the likes of Sony Music, Universal Music and 88 Rising.
Artist manager and “connected tastemaker” Taylor Dwyer joins GROUP SPEED from Los Angeles as the company’s A&R and Streaming Partnerships Coordinator.
She’ll work alongside GYROstream group’s newly promoted Global Head of A&R Benjamin James to build GROUP SPEED’s artist roster.
Meanwhile, marketing specialist Jackson McMaster will also provide dedicated support to roll out campaigns from GYRO and DistroDirect HQ.
GROUP SPEED is also supported by the entire team at GYROstream and DistroDirect spanning Australia, Brazil, India, Philippines, UK and USA.
“Our intentionally boutique framework will serve to deepen our collaboration with artists, labels, DSP Teams and partners across our networks.”
Adrian Burke
Adrian Burke said: “I’m thrilled to have assembled such a strong launch team with a varied skillset across multiple verticals. We’re here to answer the call from artists and labels looking for growth and guidance in a time of accelerating change.
“Our intentionally boutique framework will serve to deepen our collaboration with artists, labels, DSP Teams and partners across our networks.”
“We’re thrilled to have Adrian as part of our team to launch and manage the rollout of GROUP SPEED.”
Andy Irvine, GYROstream and DistroDirect
GYROstream and DistroDirect CEO Andy Irvine, added: “We’re thrilled to have Adrian as part of our team to launch and manage the rollout of GROUP SPEED.
“Expanding our artist services offering globally and opening it up to new markets as a standalone product is the next evolution of our business and we can’t wait to see what the team achieves.”
“We’re creating an entirely new way for borderless artists and labels to be able to tap into a whole range of premium services they may have never had access to before.”
Viv Mellish, GYROstream and DistroDirect
GYROstream and DistroDirect CMO Viv Mellish said: “The beauty of GROUP SPEED is that it’s not just for GYROstream or DistroDirect artists to tap into when they want to supercharge.
“We’re creating an entirely new way for borderless artists and labels to be able to tap into a whole range of premium services they may have never had access to before.”
GROUP SPEED says that it will offer upstream opportunities to enhance “DistroDirect’s dynamic distribution platform”.
Through its SaaS (software as a service) platform, DistroDirect employs a micro-distribution model helping labels and music businesses to expand and manage their catalogs using an automated, online distribution platform, under their own brand. It helps labels deliver music to over 100 DSPs globally including Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, Deezer, TikTok and more.
The platform allows existing businesses to add digital distribution services, scale their artist networks, and increase revenue, allowing access to distribution tools. DistroDirect is a unit of Australian distributor GYROstream, which provides services such as royalty splits, publishing administration, A&R tools, publicity, and digital marketing.
Headquartered in Brisbane, Australia, with offices in New York, Sydney, India, London, and Manila, DistroDirect has welcomed over 400 hyper-local micro-distributors in over 40 marketssince launching in 2021.
Music Business Worldwide
The best of MBW, plus the most important music biz stories on the web. Delivered for FREE, direct to your inbox each day.
