Wolfgang Boss is a German music executive, producer and president of A&R for Sony Music Entertainment company. [1] Wolfgang holds the position of Sony Music's Executive President A&R globally since 2013. With more than 100 gold and platinum certifications Wolfgang Boss is one of the most successful A&R executives of the last two decades.
Boss entered the music world during his university studies. After working as a DJ, he became a club manager and established his own house music club, MACH 1. This brought him into regular contact with international DJs and artists in the house scene. In 2003 his Berlin-based company Mach 1 Records GmbH became a partner in the newly founded house label, Ministry of Sound Germany. Just one year later Boss's new label MACH 1 scored two number-one hits with Dragostea Din Tei (Haiducii) and Obsessión (Aventura). The latter held the top spot on the German charts for seven weeks.
In 2005 Boss teamed up with German producer Reinhardt "Voodoo" Reith to create the music for their Crazy Frog project. [2] The single "Axel F" by Crazy Frog became the most sold single worldwide in 2005 topping the charts in more than 30 countries.
In 2007 Boss accepted an offer from Universal Music and founded B1 Recordings as a joint venture with Universal Music Germany.
Releasing hits by artists such as Stromae (Alors on Danse), Edward Maya (Stereo Love), Pitbull (I know you want me), Lucenzo & Don Omar (Danza Kuduro) and Klingande (Jubel), B1 Recordings frequently topped the charts.
B1 Recordings' release of the single "Ai Se Eu Te Pego!" by Brazilian artist Michel Teló, which came out at the end of 2011, was a worldwide hit, reaching no 1 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and it was the most downloaded song in Germany at the time. Two more releases of B1 are in the Top 10 of the most downloaded songs in Germany ever: Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know", and Israel Kamakawiwo`ole (IZ) "Over The Rainbow".
In 2014 Boss entered a long-term partnership with Sony Music Entertainment. His label B1 Recordings and Sony have since been working exclusively together on new releases. He also holds the global position of Executive Vice President A&R.
In 2019 B1 Recordings expanded its presence into new markets with France and the UK which hold their own local representative B1 label within the Sony Music structure.
With Sony Wolfgang Boss was instrumental in the signing of electronic music super star artists like Kygo, Martin Garrix and Paul Kalkbrenner and he is part of the A&R team of these artists helping them creating global hits like Garrix' 'Scared to be Lonely' and Kygo's 'Remind me to Forget'.
In 2018, B1 Recordings released the track "In My Mind" by Lithuanian Producer Dynoro which went to #1 in 13 countries – ranking Shazam's global No.1 for eight weeks – was #1 in the German charts for almost three months and 2018's most successful song. The track amassed more than 1.5 billion streams.
A year later, Boss saw another success with Grammy for Best Remixed Recording awarded hit single 'Roses (Imanbek Remix)' by US- Rapper SAINt JHN. [3] The Remix production of Kazakhstan-based Producer Imanbek topped several Charts reaching #1 in numerous countries including UK, Ireland, Australia, Netherlands, NZ, Belgium, Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia. The track held the Global Shazam #1 for 13 consecutive weeks and reached Top 5 of the US BillboardHot 100. In late 2020, ‘Roses (Imanbek Remix) went on to amass 1 billion streams on Spotify and 2 billion streams across all platforms within a year of its release. [4] By November 2024, the song surpassed 2 billion streams on Spotify, becoming one of only eight dance songs globally to achieve this milestone. In 2020, Boss released a remix cover of 'Goosebumps' by Spanish Producer HVME which claimed top global positions. The track was eventually re-released as a Joint Venture between B1 & Epic Records in early 2021 with Travis Scott as the leading artist. [5] Both versions together have reached more than a billion streams on Spotify.
In 2022, Wolfgang Boss started working with Brazilian superstar DJ Alok and was instrumental in Alok producing several global dance hits. These include 'Deep Down' with Ella Eyre, Kenny Dope, and Never Dull, which has amassed 420 million Spotify streams by November 2024, 'Car Keys' with Ava Max (140 million Spotify streams), 'All By Myself' with Ellie Goulding and Sigala (170 million Spotify streams), 'Jungle' with The Chainsmokers and Mae Stephens, and 'Let’s Get FKD UP' with Ceres, Mondello, and Tribbs (200 million Spotify streams).
To date, Boss has overseen and released a substantial body of hit singles that have collated more than 1 billion streams on Spotify alone, including: Saint Jhn - Roses (Imanbek Remix) ; Dynoro - In My Mind ; Travis Scott X HVME - Goosebumps; Regard - Ride It; Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me; Martin Garrix - Scared to be Lonely; Martin Garrix - In The Name Of Love; J Balvin & Willy William - Mi Gente; Gotye - Somebody that I Used To Know; Don Omar & Lucenzo - Danza Kuduro; Kygo - Firestone.
At the German ECHO 2011 music awards on 25 March 2011, Boss and Jon de Mello received the Hit of the Year ECHO for Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo’ole. [6] The Hawaiian singer, often known simply as IZ, recorded the song three years before his death in 1997. Boss bought the rights to release the single in Europe in 2010. Over the Rainbow topped the German charts for four months in late 2010 and early 2011, selling over 800,000 copies, which made it the top-selling single of 2010 and the most downloaded song of all time in Germany at that time. The song and the corresponding album Facing Future have also enjoyed success outside Germany. In France, for example, the single reached number one and the album went platinum.
At the 2018 German Music Awards (ECHO), Wolfgang Boss once again claimed the ECHO for Hit of the Year with the single 'In My Mind' by Dynoro. Boss signed the track after its initial release as a bootleg in 2017, which had been taken down by the rights holders of the sampled recordings. He spent six months negotiating with the various rights holders, and when the track was officially re-released in June 2018, it soared to No. 1 in 13 countries, became the best-selling single in Germany that year, and, by November 2024, had amassed over 1.5 billion streams on Spotify alone.
In 2013, Wolfgang Boss, Patrick Moxey, and Adam Granite signed Norwegian producer Kygo to Sony Music after discovering his music on SoundCloud. At the time, many of Kygo's uploads on SoundCloud were unauthorized remixes—bootlegs—of popular songs by artists like Ed Sheeran and Coldplay. Recognizing his potential, Wolfgang, Patrick, and the Sony Music A&R team collaborated with Kygo to help him create original tracks featuring unreleased songs by both Sony-signed and independent artists. This partnership led to the release of Firestone in December 2014 and Stole the Show in early 2015, both of which became massive hits. Kygo quickly rose to global fame, becoming the fastest artist in history to reach one billion streams on Spotify within just over a year. With subsequent collaborations featuring artists like Selena Gomez, Ellie Goulding, and Imagine Dragons, Kygo achieved multiple global hits and cemented his status as a global superstar.
In November 2024, Wolfgang Boss presented Kygo with a multi-platinum/gold award for sales in Germany, including three platinum certifications (Firestone, Stole the Show , and It Ain't Me ) and five gold certifications (Stargazing, First Time, Remind Me to Forget , Born to Be Yours , and Higher Love).☢
Antoine Konrad, known professionally as DJ Antoine, is a Swiss house DJ and record producer from Basel.
Kyrre Gørvell-Dahll, known professionally as Kygo, is a Norwegian DJ and music producer. He garnered international attention with his December 2013 remix of the track "I See Fire" by Ed Sheeran and his December 2014 single "Firestone". In late 2015, he reached one billion streams on Spotify faster than any other artist, and by June 2016, he had reached two billion streams.
"Supergirl" is the debut single from the German band Reamonn. The song is from their first studio album Tuesday. It was written by the complete band and produced by Steve Lyon. The single was released on 27 March 2000 by Virgin Schallplatten and was later certified Gold in Germany.
Swiss recording artist Stefanie Heinzmann has released six studio albums and 18 singles as a lead artist. In 2008, Heinzmann won SSDSDSSWEMUGABRTLAD, a talent contest hosted in TV total on the German ProSieben network, and was subsequently offered a recording contract with Universal Music Domestic. Her coronation song "My Man Is a Mean Man" debuted straight on top of the Swiss Singles Chart and reached the top ten in Austria and Germany. Heinzmann's debut album Masterplan was released in March 2008. It made it to the top ten in Austria and Germany and also debuted atop the album charts in Switzerland, where it was certified platinum by the IFPI for sales in excess of 30,000 copies. The album was reissued the same year and followed by her second album Roots to Grow in September 2009. Albeit less successful commercially, it peaked at number four on the Swiss Albums Chart and made it to the top twenty in Germany. Leading single "No One " reached the top thirty of the Swiss Singles Chart.
John Martin Lindström is a Swedish singer and songwriter. He is best known for his collaborations with Swedish House Mafia. Since 2010, he has collaborated with Tinie Tempah and released his debut single "Anywhere For You", written alongside music partner Michel Zitron. On 3 April 2014 Lindström appeared on the BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge covering Haim's "If I Could Change Your Mind".
Dvbbs is a Canadian production duo formed in 2012, composed of brothers Christopher van den Hoef and Alexandre van den Hoef.
Frans Zimmer, better known by his stage name Alle Farben is a German DJ and producer. Since 2014 Zimmer is signed to the record label Guesstimate/b1 Recordings and the publishing house Budde Music.
2014 in continental European music in geographical order.
"She Moves (Far Away)" is the 2014 debut single by German DJ and producer Alle Farben from his debut album Synesthesia - I Think in Colours and features the vocals of Graham Candy. It was released on Sony Music. The song was co-written by Frans Zimmer (real name of Alle Farben), Graham Candy, Jan Hammele and Andreas Huber.
Martin Tungevåg, known professionally as Martin Tungevaag or simply Tungevaag, is a Norwegian DJ and music producer who placed at number #89 on the DJ Mag top 100 DJs list. He has achieved success in Europe, Asia and South America with the electronic songs "Samsara 2015", "Wicked Wonderland", "All for Love", "Bad Boy", "Dance", "Peru" and "Play" together with K-391, Alan Walker and Mangoo. He has been nominated at the Norwegian Spellemannprisen twice times: for Hit of the Year in 2015 with "Samsara 2015"; in the same category in 2020 with "Dance"; and for Best EDM Artist in 2019 at the Swedish Grammis. Tungevaag's has over four billion worldwide streams on his music and received several gold and platinum certifications in several countries. It is currently ranked #81 on DJ Mag's Top 100.
Annika Klose, known professionally as Anna Naklab, is a German singer-songwriter. Naklab grew up in the town of Northeim in the German state of Lower Saxony near Göttingen, Germany. Singers and bands that inspire her very much are Adele, Amy Winehouse and Room Eleven.
"Firestone" is a song by Norwegian DJ and record producer Kygo, featuring vocals from Australian singer Conrad Sewell. It was released on 1 December 2014 and reached number one on the Norwegian Singles Chart and became a big international hit for Kygo on many other charts. Birdy performed a cover of the song on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge.
The discography of Dutch DJ and electronic music producer Martin Garrix consists of a studio album, two compilation albums, four extended plays (EP), three DJ mixes, 85 singles, 47 music videos and ten remixes. Part of the Dutch emergence of electronic dance music DJs, Garrix became widely known after his single "Animals" became a worldwide hit. It went number one in the United Kingdom, Belgium, and on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart, and it reached the top ten of several charts across Europe from late 2013 to early 2014. Garrix is the youngest Dutch artist to ever have a number one single in the United Kingdom.
"In the Name of Love" is a song recorded by Dutch DJ and record producer Martin Garrix and American singer Bebe Rexha. The song was produced by Garrix, Matt Rad, Steve James and Simon Says. It was released on iTunes and streaming services after he premiered the song at Ultra Music Festival 2016. A remix EP was released on 11 November 2016, consisting of three remixes featuring DallasK, The Him and Snavs.
"Goosebumps" is a song by American rapper Travis Scott featuring fellow American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was sent to rhythmic radio on December 13, 2016, by Grand Hustle Records and Epic Records as the third single from Scott's second studio album, Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight.
"Scared to Be Lonely" is a song recorded by Dutch DJ Martin Garrix and English and Albanian singer Dua Lipa. It was written by Giorgio Tuinfort, Nathaniel Campany, Kyle Shearer, and Georgia Ku, while the production was handled by Tuinfort, Valley Girl, and Lorna Blackwood. The song was released for digital download and streaming as a standalone single on 27 January 2017 by Stmpd Rcrds and Epic Records, after being premiered by Garrix at the 2017 AVA Festival a month earlier. It was later included on Dua Lipa: Complete Edition (2018), the super deluxe reissue of Lipa's eponymous debut studio album.
"Was du Liebe nennst" is a song recorded by German rapper Bausa for his first mixtape Powerbausa (2018). It was made available for digital download and streaming audio on 29 September 2017, through Downbeat Records and Warner Music Germany, as the records first single. The Track was written by Bausa and produced by him alongside the Jugglerz and The Cratez. "Was du Liebe nennst" is a R&B, pop and rap song, which features lyrics about fake love.
Edvinas Pechovskis, known professionally as Dynoro, is a Lithuanian DJ and music producer. He is best known for his international hit "In My Mind", which interpolates the hook from "L'amour toujours" by Italian DJ Gigi D'Agostino. In 2019, his remix of the "Rockstar" song with Ilkay Senkan gained wide popularity.
"Roses" is a song by Guyanese-American rapper Saint Jhn, originally released on July 22, 2016 and later included on his 2018 album Collection One. Originally produced by Fallen, it was remixed by Kazakh producer Imanbek and released as a single on September 18, 2019. The remix of the song helped the song gain international recognition after it was featured on a Snapchat filter and on video-sharing app TikTok where it received over 4.5 billion plays in the month of April 2020. On May 27, 2020, a second remix produced by Quay Global and Fallen was released with American rapper Future. On July 20, 2020, a music video was released for the second remix. The remix's music video budget was bumped to help bail funds for arrested protesters and aid black-owned businesses and the Black Lives Matter movement, all regarding the George Floyd protests that started during May 2020.
"Too Much" is a song by American record producer and DJ Marshmello and Kazakh record producer Imanbek featuring American singer Usher. It was released on October 23, 2020, via Joytime Collective.
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