DANIEL JOHNS BRINGS GLOBAL HIT PUBLISHING CATALOGUE TO BMG, INCLUDING SILVERCHAIR CLASSICS
Multi-ARIA, multi-APRA, Grammy and Emmy award-winning songwriter, artist and producer Daniel Johns has signed a landmark global publishing deal with BMG, including the entire Silverchair catalogue.
This deal means that BMG represents the Australian musician for both publishing and records, after BMG released Daniel’s sophomore solo album FutureNever, which became ARIA’s highest-selling new Australian album of 2022 and the only Australian album in five years to hit Number One twice.
The worldwide deal immediately includes all of Johns’ compositions on FutureNever, with his catalogue of global hits including ‘Straight Lines’, ‘The Greatest View’, ‘Ana’s Song’, ‘Freak’, ‘Tomorrow’ and many others reverting into the deal in 2025.
Daniel Johns said of signing with BMG, “There is nothing without a heartbeat that I value more than my songwriting catalogue. Bringing my life’s work as a composer to BMG signifies the level of faith I have in this company and their people. From the podcast to the album, the exhibition and forthcoming featurette film, BMG have proven themselves to be the most ambitious and revolutionary music company in the game. From my compositions on ‘Frogstomp’ to ‘FutureNever’ and everything in between, my songs belong at BMG. I’m truly grateful to be in a position to sign the most important deal of my career with them”.
This deal marks a further chapter in Daniel Johns’ alliance with BMG. In 2021, BMG conceptualised, and executive produced the Spotify Original Podcast ‘Who Is Daniel Johns?’. The podcast was Number One in Australia for five consecutive weeks (also charting in USA, UK, NZ, Canada, Brazil and Ireland), featured Billy Corgan, Tom DeLonge, Kevin Parker, Guy Pearce and Natalie Imbruglia and won the Spotlight Award at the 2022 Australian Podcast Awards. In 2022, BMG not only released Daniel’s Number One album FutureNever, but also developed the ground-breaking and award-winning ‘Past, Present and FutureNever’ immersive exhibition in Melbourne’s iconic Rialto building. The exhibition won two FESPA Design Awards including the ‘Best In Show’ (beating out the 2022 FIFA World Cup) and saw Adnate’s portrait of Daniel being named an Archibald Prize finalist. In 2024, the much-anticipated ‘grunge sci-fi’ featurette film ‘What if the Future Never Happened?’, starring Rasmus King (6 Festivals, Bosch and Rockit) as a young Daniel, will be released globally.
Jodie Feld, BMG Senior Creative Director Australia & New Zealand, said, “Daniel is the most ARIA-awarded artist of all time, a Grammy and Emmy-winning composer, and has won the APRA Songwriter of the Year award a record three times. He has written global hits for multiple projects across four decades, and with ‘FutureNever’ he broke every ARIA sales record of 2022. Daniel is a true multi-talent and musical icon. It’s an honour for the whole BMG team to expand our relationship with Daniel and to have the opportunity to work across not just a record, but a podcast, film, exhibition and now his iconic publishing catalogue.”.
Daniel Johns is another momentous publishing signing for BMG amongst internationally successful Australian artists including Alison Wonderland, Wolfmother, JET and Crowded House, as well as international BMG writers including David Bowie, George Harrison & Ringo Starr, Kurt Cobain, Keith Richards & Mick Jagger, Blondie, Johnny Cash, Andre 3000, FKA Twigs, Lewis Capaldi and more.
In other news this month Daniel’s FutureNeverFund, a charitable fund to help raise money to create better futures for people and animals in need with a focus on mental health, racial inequality, diversity in the arts and animal welfare has reached an incredible milestone. Through personal and public donations has now raised and disbursed over $100,000 which has included needed support and attention going to Animals Asia, EquiEnergy Youth, Awabakal, Dog Rescue Newcastle plus others, and in partnership with his dear friend Dylan Alcott provided a $15,000 scholarship to help fund an Australian with a disability to pursue their dreams in the Arts space.
About Daniel Johns – the songwriter:
· Sold 10 million albums worldwide and released six #1 ARIA albums (five with Silverchair – Frogstomp, Freak Show, Neon Ballroom, Diorama and Young Modern, and one as a solo artist – FutureNever, with debut solo album Talk debuting at #2).
· Most ARIA-awarded artist in history – 21 ARIA Awards, including Album of the Year, Single of the Year, Best Group, Producer of the Year and more.
· Winner of 6 APRA Awards (including a record three prestigious Songwriter of the Year Awards and being the youngest recipient of this award)
· Grammy winner, co-writer of Flume’s ‘Say It (feat. Tove Lo)’ (4x Platinum).
· Emmy winner, Musical Director for Beat Bugs.
· Writer of three #1 ARIA singles – Tomorrow’ (4x Platinum), ‘Freak’ (2x Platinum) and ‘Straight Lines’ (2x Platinum) and other hit songs including ‘Anthem For The Year 2000’, ‘The Greatest View’, ‘Israel’s Son’, ‘Miss You Love’, ‘Without You’ and ‘Ana’s Song (Open Fire)’.
· Co-writer of songs with Flume, Empire of the Sun, ZHU, What So Not, Slumberjack, Peking Duk, Kimbra, Lisa Gerrard and more.
About FutureNever:
· ARIA’s highest-selling Australian album release of 2022
· #1 ARIA Album (the only Australian album to reach #1 twice in five years)
· 7 weeks in ARIA Top 10 Albums
· 3 months in ARIA Top 20 Albums
· #1 AIR Independent Label Album
· Nominated for Best Solo Artist at 2022 ARIA Awards
· Winner of Best Independent Pop album at 2023 AIR Awards
· Nominated for the Australian Music Prize
· Voted #8 in triple j’s Top 10 Albums of 2022 Poll (only solo album in Top 10)
· ‘I Feel Electric’ nominated for APRA ‘Song Of The Year’ Award