Kobalt, the world’s largest independent music publisher, announced today that it has named industry veteran Claes Uggla General Manager of Kobalt Scandinavia. Based in Stockholm, Uggla will lead the company’s operations throughout the region. “Claes brings with him a hugely successful track record as a creative executive,” said Jeannette Perez, Kobalt’s President and Chief Commercial Officer.
“His approach to A&R, his deep connections to the creative community and his leadership skills will be an important asset to us as we continue to build upon our success in the region.” With over 25 years of experience as an A&R executive, Uggla has played a pivotal role in shaping the careers of many Scandinavian artists. Uggla comes to Kobalt from the independent label RMV, where he worked with such artists as Gustaf & Viktor Norén, Maja Francis, Hällas, STO CULTR, King Tee, and Frida Hyvönen.
Prior to that, he held key A&R roles at Universal Music Sweden where he was instrumental in licensing hits like “Ordinary Things” and “Drunk in the Morning” by Lukas Graham for the Swedish market. While at Sony Music Sweden, his work with Alan Walker on “Faded” earned him the Sony Music International Special A&R Award in 2016. Today, the song has surpassed 2 billion streams.
“Jeannette and Laurent Hubert have built a world class team at Kobalt serving the best songwriters in our business,” said Uggla. “I am excited to make an impact in Scandinavia by working closely with the team to expand on their incredible track record of signing and nurturing new writers and maximizing opportunities for Kobalt clients around the world.”