Universal Music Publishing appoints David Gray to lead global creative group – Billboard

David Gray was tapped to lead Universal Music Publishing Group’s new global creative group UMPG. A longtime employee of the publisher, Gray most recently served as executive vice president and head of US A&R, a position he will continue to hold as he expands his reach.

UMPG Global Creative Group is part of the publisher’s initiative to identify and expand global creative opportunities for its signatories and further strengthen its commitment to A&R. The group will have a team of senior A&R executives from key territories around the world, including Gray, who will report on his progress to the Chairman and CEO of UMPG, Jody Gerson.

Gray has been a stalwart of UMPG since 2013, also previously serving as Executive Vice President/Head of West Coast A&R, although he now works in New York. Under his leadership, Gray and UMPG secured deals with artists such as Shawn Mendes, Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato, Julia Michaels, Delacey, Logic and Tommy Brown. Gray also recently worked with the production duo Take a day trip to build their joint venture, No Idle, with UMPG.

Prior to his tenure at UMPG, Gray began his career as an artist, songwriter, editor, and TV music executive. After serving as the lead singer of the band Idle Wilds (an RCA Records signee) and working as an affiliate songwriter for UMPG, Gray started on the executive track, serving as A&R for Zomba, Sony Music International, David Masse‘s Daylight Records at Sony Music and Syco Music. At Syco, he oversaw music and casting for shows like X factor and America’s Got Talent and developed rising stars such as Leona Lewis and Westlife.

In a statement, Gerson said Gray “is always the first to offer support to all of our writers and creative executives, around the world. With this well-deserved promotion, David will further leverage UMPG’s global creative strategy that sets us apart in the industry – investing in and developing the best talent across all territories, supporting the biggest superstars in the music.

Gray added, “As UMPG continues to lead the industry with our best-in-class A&R strategy, our new global creative group will further maximize the global success of our songwriters. I am grateful to Jody Gerson for allowing me to lead in this area and I am confident that the next creative chapters of UMPG will be our best yet.