That Eric Alper

ole has acquired Anthem Entertainment Group, the label home of Rush as well as Big Wreck, Ian Thornley, Steven Page, The Tea Party, and other artists. Anthem will continue to operate as a label under the ole label services banner, which includes its recently launched artist incubator red dot, and signals ole’s official push into the label services, master acquisition and artist development space.

The deal adds to ole‘s earlier acquisitions of Core Music Publishing (Rush) and Mark Cain (Max Webster), and comprises of all the legacy audio and A/V recordings of Rush and other Anthem artists, including the chart-topping new release Secrets by Ian Thornley, Steven Page’s upcoming solo album, and the upcoming live album and concert film from the Rush R40 Tour. Andy Curran, long-time A&R director at Anthem, joins ole as General Manager Label Services/A&R, together with Tyler Tasson as Manager, Label Services.

ole, a music publishing and rights management company, has concluded some $500M USD in acquisitions over the past 11 years and already manages master recordings for itself and as a service to third parties across the music and A/V spectrum. Via red dot, ole‘s artist development label, ole is currently releasing music from artists including Haley Reinhart, Josh Dorr, Josh Thompson, Jordan Davis and Sam Grow. red dot’s mandate is to act as an incubator that boosts artists to the next stage of their career. Strengthening its label services,ole operates a successful and complementary YouTube multi-channel network, ole digital, which was established in 2013 with over 5B views across publishing, masters and A/V to date.

Said ole Chairman and CEO Robert Ott, “ole is very excited about entering the label services business and building on the foundation of Ray Danniel’s storied company. ole is proud to continue to be the home of Rush and the other great artists with Anthem. We look forward to working closely with Anthem’s artists and business partners to further success.”

“I am pleased that Anthem and its ongoing legacy have found a new home with ole,” said Ray Danniels, President of SRO. “After working with Robert Ott for the last year, I have found him to be a man of integrity and vision. He and ole are the right choice to lead Anthem Entertainment and Anthem Records into the future while protecting its past. I am especially pleased that he has chosen to bring Andy Curran and Tyler Tasson to ole in management positions. Together with Pegi Cecconi’s work as an ole consultant, this has made for a seamless transition for the artists and catalogues involved. I will continue to devote my time and energy to SRO Management, representing Rush and our other artists, as I have done for over 40 years.”

Alex Lifeson, guitarist and co-founder of Rush, said, “I’m pleased to see that Anthem Records has landed with ole, the home of our music publishing catalog. I wish them great success with their new label business. Congratulations to our longtime manager Ray Danniels and CEO ofole, Robert Ott on completing their deal!”

Anthem Entertainment Group based in Toronto, has been the stable of Rush and a host of other artists for over four decades. Its record label, Anthem Records, is one of the most important and successful independent record labels in Canada. Over the years, the label continued to grow and reflect the success of not only Rush and but other artists such as Max Webster, Coney Hatch, Ian Thomas, jazz flautist Moe Koffman, Gowan and Bob & Doug McKenzie.

ole is one of the world’s foremost rights management companies with investments of $500M in music intellectual property (IP). Founded in 2004, with operations in Toronto, Nashville, New York, and Los Angeles, ole is engaged in IP acquisitions, creative development, and worldwide rights management. The ole catalog includes over 50,000 songs and 60,000 hours of TV and film music across all genres. Copyrights under ole‘s control include songs recorded by artists such as the Backstreet Boys, Beyoncé, Blake Shelton, Britney Spears, Carrie Underwood, Eric Church, Jay Z, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Clarkson, Madonna, Michael Jackson, One Direction, Rihanna, Rush, Taylor Swift, and Timbaland. ole controls substantial A/V music and secondary rights including catalogs from Sony Pictures Entertainment, MGM, Miramax, Nelvana, and Nu Image/Millennium. Jingle Punks, the Production Music division ofole, provides quality content and service to creators in all media with over 400,000 tracks in its library.

ole is committed to the creative development of its 100+ staff songwriters, legacy writers, and composers and adding value to our catalogs and client catalogs. Current ole writers include Timbaland, Tyler Farr, Josh Dorr, Gord Bamford, Brett Jones, Dave Turnbull, Jeremy Stover, Marty Dodson, and Ian Thornley. ole has ongoing Ventures with Last Gang Publishing, Roots Three Music, Jackoby Publishing, and most recently, ole-Bluestone Publishing, ole‘s venture with global hitmaker Timbaland. ole‘s legacy catalogs and writers include Rush, Max Webster, Coney Hatch, and Ian Thomas.

ole also operates a robust label services arm, with Anthem Entertainment Group, the label home of Rush as well as Big Wreck, Ian Thornley, Steven Page, The Tea Party, and more, as well as the artist development label red dot, which is releasing music from artists including Haley Reinhart, Josh Dorr, and Josh Thompson. Strengthening its label services, ole operates a successful and complementary YouTube multi-channel network, ole digital, which was established in 2013 with over 5B views across publishing, masters and A/V to date.