Gerry Cinnamon is chasing a No.1 album this week, after deciding to go ahead as planned with his sophomore LP despite the Covid-19 pandemic.
In the latest issue of Music Week, we report on how artist and label services companies are continuing to put out new music.
The Bonny is released by Cinnamon’s label Little Runaway Records, which partners with indie giant AWAL on the release and marketing. Proper Music is providing the physical distribution in what is a challenging time for music retail.
Cinnamon’s 2017 debut Erratic Cinematic peaked at No.17 but it’s spent 69 weeks on the chart. According to the Official Charts Company, it has sales to date of 178,330.
The media shy Scottish singer-songwriter’s rise is the result of a rapidly growing touring base, as well as early support from Radio X. Here, AWAL general manager Paul Trueman opens up about the new campaign amid the coronavirus…
Why did you decide to stick with the release date despite the current epidemic?
“Gerry himself was keen to push ahead with the album release, as he wants his fans to be able to hear the new album. Every decision that Gerry makes is with his fans front and centre. He’s always operated this way and it’s served him well up to now. Further to this, we analysed what was likely to be possible to still deliver during the current crisis. Alongside the digital release, we’ve also got a robust D2C offering that should reach fans on release week, plus support from supermarkets, indies and Amazon. We’re hoping the album release will be a glimmer of happiness for people in these challenging times.”
How do you think the pandemic will impact the week one sales and overall trajectory?
“We’re expecting to still have a robust week one, but with sales slightly down on our initial forecasts. However, Gerry’s fanbase isn’t going anywhere and we’re expecting them to continue streaming and buying the album long past week one. The arena tour moving back to later in the year will also give the album a second lease of life and extend the album campaign further.”
Gerry is a hugely popular live artist, how will the album fare without that element for the months ahead?
“The music is what has always made the difference for Gerry – his entire fanbase is built around brilliant, relatable music and the honest and authentic relationship Gerry has with his fans. The Bonny is such an incredible album, we expect it to speak for itself and fill any void left by the shows moving.”
Can you establish the album on DSPs?
“Absolutely. Gerry has had a lot of support from streaming platforms up to now and we’re optimistic this will continue into the album release. We’ll also expecting to see good organic numbers, as we’ll be driving fans to streaming platforms and Gerry’s fanbase is highly engaged.”
What is the current approach from AWAL to moving release dates for albums?
“Many things are playing into these decisions including who the artist’s current and target audiences are, what the campaign objectives and expectations are and, of course, what the artist themselves want to do. Bruno Major, Yung Lean and The Howl & The Hum are examples of album releases where we’ve kept the release dates during this period, as we expect it to aid with discovery and awareness.”
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