In an effort to reach Western European audiences with their dance music releases, the strategic partnership will prioritize international distribution and artist development within the Canadian A&R and song management company.
Vancouver-based A&R and song management company Reliant Music has embarked on a global partnership with ADA Benelux, the Western Europe distribution and artist services initiative of Warner Music Group.
Known for producing dance music tracks — including Carly Rae Jepsen’s monster hit “Call Me Maybe” and Loud Luxury’s “Body” — the global distribution deal will focus on expanding its international presence in a region where the genre is quite popular.
ADA Benelux is WMG's independent distribution division for the Benelux region, including Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg — the major music label expanded into the Western European market in 2020.
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Recently, Reliant has worked with major acts like Armin van Buuren, Timmy Trumpet, Hardwell, Nicky Romero and Fedde Le Grand, among others.
Founded in 2012, Reliant creates “fire toplines for global DJs and electronic music artists,” per their website. Headquartered on the Canadian west coast, the company has a second office in Toronto, and A&R is led by John Dexter and Adrian Lock across North America. To foster local growth, the company newly opened a creative hub at Vancouver’s Armoury Studios.
Nearly a decade after its launch, Reliant expanded to Europe in 2021, hiring Mischa Daniëls, who leads A&R in Europe. Currently, they have two Europeans offices in Amsterdam and Berlin.
Dexter co-managed Carly Rae Jepsen in the early years of her career, while Daniëls signed Loud Luxury and released the duo’s breakthrough single “Body” in his previous role as Armada Music’s creative music director.
“Call Me Maybe” was a major moment for Jepsen in 2012, a then-rising singer-songwriter from Mission, B.C. It was her debut entry and first No. 1 hit in the U.S., spending nine weeks at the top on the Billboard Hot 100, and four weeks at No. 1 in her home country on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100.
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Through the global agreement with ADA Benelux, Reliant will retain its A&R and artist development infrastructure, while the former will provide international distribution support.
“We want to give artists, songwriters and producers real creative attention and offer flexible ways of working together based on what each record needs,” said Dexter. “Our partnership with ADA allows us to maintain that focused, independent approach while creating opportunities to scale successful records internationally.”
ADA Benelux’s roster includes the likes of Julia Sabaté, Benny Sings, Artemas and notably Daft Punk, through a global-regional catalogue distribution deal.
Calling Reliant “a fantastic team of skilled professionals with a genuine passion for music, who excel at developing a demo into a hit record, all while keeping a sharp eye for detail,” Pim Lauwerier, head of ADA Benelux, says: “We’re confident this partnership has even bigger achievements ahead of us, and we can’t wait to celebrate new successes together.”
