November 15, 2012
The UK trade newspaper Music Week is reporting Simon Fuller has made an audacious bid for the British record label Parlophone after parent company EMI has been ordered to sell it off as part of its deal to be taken over by Universal Music Group (UMG). The label is home to artists including David Guetta, Tinie Tempah, Gorillaz, Sir Cliff Richard, David Bowie, Tina Turner and Duran Duran.
The Fuller bid is through his partnership with Island Records founder Chris Blackwell, and the music company they established in 2012, named Blackwell Fuller.
The pair is well qualified to run the label with Chris’ experience at Island seeing him sign Bob Marley and many others, while Simon has managed clients including the Elvis Presley estate, the Spice Girls, Annie Lennox and many others.
In May 2008 Fuller was certified by US Industry magazine Billboard as being the ‘most successful British music manager of all time’ beating other music greats that included the late Brian Epstein and Led Zeppelin’s Peter Grant. According to the publication, Simon Fuller has been responsible for more than 500 number one singles globally, and over 240 number one albums.
Today his management firm XIX Entertainment manages the interests of sports celebrities including David Beckham, tennis star Andy Murray and racing driver Lewis Hamilton, and fashion designers Roland Mouret and Victoria Beckham.
Issued by XIX Management