Country star Thomas Rhett and Hybe Americas’ Nashville-based label Blue Highway Records have announced a new partnership, Fifty-One/Forty-Nine Records. Described as “artist-led,” the partnership offers “an innovative approach to the artist-label relationship,” according to the announcement. following more than a decade of shared success. (Pictured above, L-R: Blue Highway CEO Jake Basden, Rhett and G Major Mgmt’s Virginia Bunetta.) “When we started talking about what the next chapter could look like, I knew I didn’t simply want to make another deal. I wanted to build something that reflected the legacy and shaped the future of my music,” Rhett said.
This allows me the opportunity to own the body of work I’ve spent my entire career creating, while still having an ambitious team and global infrastructure around me for my future recordings.” Blue Highway CEO Jake Basden said, “Thomas Rhett has always been an artist, a songwriter, a performer who brings the best of what being a progressive country artist is today: someone who is willing to explore how other genres merge with Nashville without losing his roots, without sounding calculated or forced. Having watched Thomas Rhett come into his own and then achieve major success, I am honored to be his partner going forward.” + Grammy and Latin Grammy-winning Puerto Rican rapper-producer Wisin has signed with WME for representation in all areas. The move comes a month after the September launch of “La Universidad del Perreo,” his new 12-track album and six months after his guest appearance with Karol G at Coachella.
Over the years he has also collaborated with Daddy Yankee, Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull, J Balvin, Ricky Martin, Maluma, Rosalía, and more. Wisin is managed by Chris Duque of D27 Entertainment. + Willard Ahdritz, founder of Kobalt Music Group, has launched Ahdritz Capital Partners, a music and media technology investment firm, and announced that Isabel Keulen, most recently CEO of SSE Ventures and SSE Business, has joined as an investment partner, based in Stockholm and working in association with the New York-based Ahdritz and investment partner Stephen Langer. Ahdritz founded Kobalt in 2000 and led it for more than two decades as CEO and then chairman, building one of the largest independent music companies in the world.
He also co-founded the digital collection society AMRA. Ahdritz stepped down from Kobalt when it was acquired by Primary Wave in July 2026.“Music is global, yet the capital and networks founders need have been concentrated in a few cities,” said Ahdritz. He will oversee business and legal affairs, operations and publishing for the New York-based music company.
Cooperman joins after 14 years at Madison Square Garden Entertainment, where he served as SVP and associate general counsel of legal and business affairs and played a key role in structuring deals for events at Sphere in Las Vegas, including residencies by U2, Phish, Dead & Company and the Eagles. Previously, he held senior roles at Wind-up Entertainment, BMG, RED, Relativity, Loud and RCA Records. Red Light has an incredible history of doing the same thing at a global level.”“Jeb has built something special at Floating Leaf,” said Ben Kline of Red Light Management.
Koe, Kolby, Fox & Vead and the rest of the roster are a reflection of that.” + The Beggars Group of Labels (4AD, Matador Records, Rough Trade Records, XL Recordings and Young) has added four new staff members and a brand-new department: Max Datner, Ariana Mamnoon, Rrita Hashani and Molly McGuffin. Datner and Mamnoon will comprise the radio and music discovery department, while Hashani and McGuffin join the marketing team. The announcement reads, “As phrases like ‘marketing’ and ‘radio’ have evolved over the last couple of years, we have found it beneficial to redefine what those kinds of roles mean for us in today’s music industry.
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