Image Credit: Tim Miles, Warner Music
Warner Music has shifted its focus from basic sync to a 3.0 mindset, which involves reaching out to ad agencies, gaming companies, and film companies for collaborations. The company has hired specialists like Rob Vicars and Liam Klimek to help surface the best sync songs from around its global teams. The company sees more opportunities for good songs in the music industry, such as Love Island, sports, mainstream culture, and gaming platforms like Fortnite.
The company has also seen a positive impact on the quality of music being spent on TV shows, as creators are using music in a different way than they did 20 years ago. This has led to more deals, making more money, and breakthroughs come from gaming partnerships. However, there is a challenge in expectations around what’s achievable due to the slower pace of the gaming industry.
In the UK alone, Warner Music did 708 sync deals last year, compared to 200 a year when the company started. This includes blanket TV deals, sports coverage, and shows like Love Island that use thousands of tracks per year. A great sync can have a secondary impact, such as visually deconstructing food dishes to enhance visuals or creating a playable Stormzy mission with his song as the background and a striking music video from the game footage.
The company’s head of sync believes that this area is exciting and doesn’t compromise what they do at all. In the UK alone, they did 708 sync deals last year, with a secondary impact from a great sync.
