Disney Music Group and a Black-led media platform Andscape, are joining forces and creating an entertainment label called Good Company Records.
Although Disney owns DMG and ESPN’s Andscape, they are separate businesses under the same umbrella, making their collaboration a real partnership.
It is worth noting both companies have the same parent firm, Disney. Andscape was originally named The Undefeated before ESPN decided to rebrand it in 2022.
ESPN and Disney Music Group are under one massive Disney umbrella but operate independently.
Good Company Partnership
The new partnership, announced on Valentine’s Day, is founded by D’Mile, Natalie Prospere, and John Kercy, all of whom are Black Grammy-winning or associated in the music industry either as producers, talent managers, or audio engineers, Billboards reported.
The Good Company did not specify what artists they are interested in at the moment, but DMG head of creative Mio Vukovic told Forbes the partnership is hinting at signing R&B acts but are they are inclusive to other genres and are not reliant on those who can drive traffic through TikTok.
“We want to sign the things that we love, that we believe in,” he said, “and we’re not afraid to just try to grow it from scratch if we have to.”
Between 2021 and 2022, songwriter D’Mile became the first win back-to-back Grammy winning songs accreditation for H.E.R.’s “I Can’t Breathe” in 2021 and Silk Sonic’s “Leave the Door Open” in 2022.
Also, in 2021, he won the Academy Award for best original song for co-writing and producing “Fight for You,” performed by H.E.R., from the film “Judas and the Black Messiah,” Billboard reported.
“We are so excited to partner with Disney/Andscape on Good Company. Disney is a place where we believe all of our creative ideas can come to life, and we are looking forward to where this partnership takes us!,” D’Mile, Prospere and Kercy said in a joint statement.
The Shyne Documentary
The Good Company will collaborate on Andscape’s projects like its Shyne documentary, chronicling the rapper’s career with Diddy, including his short-lived time at Bad Boy Records, incarceration, and transition to being a member of the Belize House of Representatives.
“It’s special and unique to have a shared vision for the future of music, and the opportunity to visually tell new stories with Andscape. We can’t wait to collaborate with D’Mile, Natalie, John and the Andscape team to deliver on this goal,” Disney Music Group president Ken Bunt said.
“We could not be more excited about working with the talented team behind Good Company and our partnership with Andscape. It allows us the dream of creating a home to cultivate and nurture Black artists through storytelling,” Vukovic said.
DMG is the House of Mouse musical publishing arm, and the empire is a powerhouse, owning a variety of family-friendly labels such as Walt Disney Records, Hollywood Records, Disney Music Publishing, and Disney Concerts.
