New York, NY (Top40 Charts) From vinyl to CD to digital downloads and streaming, FirstCom
Music has evolved to meet the needs of changing technology.
In 1980, the world was discovering the magic of totally awesome things like the microwave, the Rubik's Cube and the highly coveted 2 pound mobile phone. For all of the crazy fads, wild fashion and groundbreaking technologies, it is unquestionably the music of the 1980s that remains the heart and soul of an extraordinary decade. With the introduction of the Sony Walkman, we were set free to "Walk Like An Egyptian" and for the first time in history, we could do so with our favorite tunes clipped to our belts. And let's not forget the trailblazing MTV broadcast of the first music video. Viewers watched with excitement as music and television collided in a way that changed the world of entertainment forever.
This was truly a thrilling time for music lovers and music professionals alike. The 80s were the epicenter for many pioneering music industry firsts. One of those firsts was the inception of FirstCom Broadcast Services.
FirstCom
Music Geneses
In 1980, FirstCom
Music (then FirstCom Broadcast Services), opened a tiny office in North Dallas with a staff of four. They began inspiring creativity in the US
Radio broadcast community by offering production music libraries, advertising sales libraries and ID packages designed to enhance station and advertiser image. In the early years of the industry, music was pressed and distributed on vinyl record.
"It's hard to believe that I began my production music career selling albums from the trunk of my car," says Carol Riffert - Vice President/General Manager for FirstCom Music. "From vinyl to CD to digital downloads and streaming, FirstCom
Music has evolved to meet the needs of changing technology. This evolution was vital to our clients who used our music to build brand loyalty and create unforgettable television and movie moments."
In 1985, the company made a bold move by introducing broadcast producers to a new era of innovation with the release of one of the world's first production music libraries on CD. At the time, many studios did not have compact disc players. To close the technology gap, FirstCom
Music offered their clients CD players as part of their music service. Thus, the production industry was propelled into the digital age.
By 1990, FirstCom
Music was regarded as an industry leader and innovator. Zomba Enterprises, the largest independent music publishing company in the world, recognized the potential of production music and snapped up the company. The company's growth continued with the overwhelming demand by producers for superior music and one-stop licensing.
The internet was quickly recognized as the new frontier for expansion. FirstCom
Music embraced the technology and was among the first in the industry to make it possible for users to download production music from the web. This historical leap offered the production industry greater flexibility and a crucial time-saving tool.
The introduction of the Master Series was yet another benchmark for the industry and blurred the lines of stock music with the star power of the pop music industry. The series incorporated and promoted the contributions of GRAMMY-winning artists, like Nine Inch Nails' Charlie Clouser and Bush guitarist Nigel Pulsford within their libraries.
The success of the Master Series lead Zomba Music's Clive Calder to initiate the Zomba Writers Program for FirstCom Music, using Jive Record's pop writers to contribute contemporary songs to FirstCom's Film/TV catalogs.
What followed were a series of acquisitions and ownership stakes by the company starting with the OneMusic Library in 1997, which enabled producers to "remix" to their specific needs. The OneMusic Library would later enlist the talents of Breed Music, specialists in music for national television campaigns, sonic branding logos, broadcast/cable television programming, mobile apps, feature films and shorts.
The 1998 launch of the Gotham
Music Library® in partnership with New York producer Manny Kallins brought a one-of-a-kind music style from a circle of Big Apple musicians and writers. Among these was
Chieli Minucci of contemporary jazz group Special EFX.
"June of 2015 marked the 25th anniversary of becoming a FirstCom client. At the time, I was the
Music Director for Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous," says Manny Kallins - Gotham
Music Executive Producer. "I was one of the first music directors to use FirstCom as a main music source for a weekly series. Today, I am dedicated to delivering a one-of-a-kind music style for television, film and promotion."
To address the needs of evolving music trends Velocity
Music was created in 1999. And later, as current music continued its mashup of hybrids and genres, producers Ehkomusic jumped on board in 2006, bringing with them artists such as Adrian Quesada (Groupo Fantasmo, Spanish Gold),
Goodwill and MGI (Pitbull, Twista, Radical Something) and Symbolyc One (Eminem, Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco).
The turn of the new millennium would be the springboard for groundbreaking technology from FirstCom. An example is the introduction of the first music library designed to create and mix new music for Surround Sound, distributing mixed media double-sided DVD's that included pre-mixed music in 5.1 formats and the components for the producer to create their own Surround mix.
Technology was evolving at rapid speeds and so was the music industry. In 2003, FirstCom
Music was acquired by Bertelsmann
Music Group (BMG) when they purchased Zomba Enterprises, LLC. Four years later, the acquisition of BMG
Music Publishing by Universal
Music Group spurred the creation of Universal Publishing Production
Music (UPPM).
Under the umbrella of the world's leading production music powerhouse, FirstCom continued to grow their robust catalog via the acquisition of popular music resources, such as MasterSource, which was founded by well-known musician Marc Ferrari, who achieved acclaim with major label bands Keel and Cold Sweat.
FirstCom's dedication to writers and artists remained the foundation of their diverse catalogs. The creation of Roadside Couch Records in 2006 provided a home to indie artists, baby bands and singer-songwriters. RCR is an artist and performer driven catalog distributed through FirstCom Music. The labels more notable artists include Holiday Mountain, Saint Pepsi,
Nikki Kelly, Nadia Fay, and Kaliyo.
In 2011, the acclaimed BBC Production
Music library came on board, and brought the revolutionary BBC Orchestral Tool Kit, which enabled editors to easily build custom music scores by re-creating the legendary BBC documentary music sound in their own editing suites. Once again, FirstCom
Music demonstrated its commitment to adapting and delivering music according to the needs of music editors and producers.
This was followed by an exclusive deal in 2012 with
Mannheim Steamroller to create the
Mannheim Steamroller Christmas Collection. The collection features music by Chip Davis, founder of the group
Mannheim Steamroller and American Gramaphone Records. Davis and his multi-platinum group have sold over 28 million holiday albums in the US.
Continuing to add depth and variety to their catalogs, the Mexican
Music Library was released in 2013 to fulfill the growing demand for authentic Mexican, South American and Caribbean music. Celebrated composers, arrangers, musicians and sound engineers from Mexico City collaborated in this unprecedented musical effort.
Later, FirstCom
Music would enter into an agreement with Universal
Music Group's world-renowned classical label Deutsche Grammophon to represent their production music catalog. Recognized as the world's leading classical music label, Deutsche Grammophon has been producing, marketing and distributing recorded music of the very highest quality for over a century. This extraordinary catalog rounds out FirstCom's international music offering that includes Chappell, MusicHouse and Galerie.
The introduction of Build Destroy
Music (BDM), which was incorporated into its Chronicles of Hip Hop catalog, marked another step for authentic, artist driven music. BDM is produced by DJ Skee, one of the highest regarded producer/DJs in the world. Skee rose to fame as the first DJ to discover and play superstar artists on the radio including Kendrick Lamar, Justin Bieber, Akon, Lorde, and
Lady Gaga amongst many others.
FirstCom
Music Today
Today, FirstCom
Music offers a full range of creative music solutions including music supervision and bespoke music. They are known throughout the world for their expertise and music quality. This is punctuated with the win of both Best Jazz and Best World
Music categories in the 2014 International Library
Music Awards held in London.
Their music can be heard in commercials for Audi, Nissan, Nike, Pepsi, Intel, Visa, McDonald's and other top brands. Popular TV placements include: Good Morning America, American Idol, Dancing with the Stars, The Walking Dead,
Orange is the New Black, Justified, Breaking Bad, and Saturday Night Live. Plus, blockbuster films such as Woody Allen's Irrational Man, Iron Man 2,
Silver Linings Playbook, Foxcatcher, Rango, Still Alice, and
Captain America just to name a few.
Keeping a vigilant watch on production demands and trends, FirstCom
Music continues to expand their presence by offering relevant solutions for their clients.
Responding to the need for quality, easy-to-access sound effects and production elements, FirstCom
Music teamed with renowned sound editor Rob Nokes to give producers online access to an astounding 50,000+ sound effects with the addition of FirstCom SoundFX.
The company also signed Jonathan
Elias - founder of
Elias Arts, one of the most awarded music companies in the history of broadcast advertising, to an exclusive production music deal.
Most recently, FirstCom launched the FCAnimated series in response to the music content and format needs of digital media and game producers. The series features music heard in Madefire Motion Books app and website.
FirstCom is also keeping step with some of the top audio mixing and mastering studios. Their latest long-term studio and creative space investment makes evident the art lies in aligning great music with superior quality audio.
"FirstCom
Music has always strived to provide consistent, high quality creative sound for every possible need. Every new artist signed, every new library created or new technology implemented allows us to continue to innovate and improve for our clients and the industry." commented Ken
Nelson - Senior Vice President and Executive Producer for FirstCom. "It's one part of our pledge to deliver outstanding, unparalleled, creative music solutions."
FirstCom Music's innovation and staying power are unprecedented. After more than three decades of music excellence, they are continuing to collaborate with the very best artists and writers to position their catalogs and services to be a go-to creative resource for the next generation of producers, editors, and music supervisors.
About FirstCom Music
FirstCom Music, a leading music services provider for over 35 years, offers the most comprehensive music solutions worldwide. With more than 190,000 tracks, FirstCom
Music is dedicated to providing high-quality, easy to license music to the production community.
Founded in 1980, FirstCom
Music was one of the first to release production music libraries on compact disc. Today, FirstCom
Music produces and markets music services for advertising, film, television, radio, and multimedia uses in the U.S. and abroad. FirstCom
Music is headquartered in Dallas,
Texas with offices in Los Angeles, California.
