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Warner’s Arts Music to distribute Mattel recordings catalogue
By Andy Malt | Published on Monday 4 May 2020
Warner Music’s Art Music division has signed a new deal with Mattel to distribute the toy maker’s catalogue of recordings from brands including Barbie, Thomas The Tank Engine, Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price.
The deal includes more than 1000 songs that are already out in the world, as well as plans for hundreds more – both existing tracks that have never been commercially available and some brand new toy-based tunes. The first of these new releases will be a Thomas & Friends birthday album, which is set for release on 8 May.
Children’s songs are, of course, a good business to get into in the streaming age, because they tend to get played over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again, regardless of quality. Particularly once children work out how to use smart speakers. Oh god. Make it stop.
“Music is an important part of Mattel’s DNA, and has been integral to our brands’ ability to connect with children of all ages to help them learn and grow”, claims the toy company’s Fred Soulie. “WMG’s Arts Music division will unlock our substantial library of music to help us broaden our reach across digital and streaming platforms. Additionally, their significant expertise in nurturing music creation across genres will enable us to significantly expand our catalogue with new music for generations of children to come”.
Arts Music President Kevin Gore adds: “Arts Music has been steadily building a powerful repertoire of family-friendly material over the last few years and adding Mattel to our offering absolutely takes it to a new level. Mattel’s iconic brands have been bringing joy to children around the world since its founding 75 years ago, and we are honoured that they’ve trusted our team as the exclusive stewards of their musical enterprises”.
“We very much look forward to releasing new music full of positive messages, fun adventures and educational themes to delight kids and families for generations to come”, Gore concludes.
This latest deal between a music company and a toy maker follows another last week between Universal and Lego, although Warner is actually an old hand at this. Last year, the mini-major signed a deal with retail brand Build-A-Bear to launch a whole record label for the teddy bear company.
