Six months after announcing his departure from his long-time label home, MCA/Universal Music Group Nashville, country singer-songwriter Kip Moore has signed a global deal with label services company Virgin Music Group.
The first track through the new deal will be “Live Here to Work,” out Sept. 20. Of the song, Moore says, “It pushes the envelope a bit, but we wanted to come out swinging.” The teaser Moore posted to his Instagram shows him playing a blistering guitar lick on the rock-oriented song.
“I was excited to make this record as a truly independent artist, but wanted to remain open to partner with a team if and when it made sense,” Moore tells Billboard. “I enjoyed getting to know the Virgin team, and their tenacity, passion and their focus on a global plan made this feel like the next best step.”
“I have been a fan of Kip’s for years now. His music’s universal themes transcend genre and appeal to a huge variety of music fans,” added Jacqueline Saturn, president of Virgin Music Group North America and executive vp of global artist relationships, in a statement. “Along with his music, his commitment to relentless touring has helped him build a powerful global fanbase. We know this next phase of his career is going to be amazing.”
Four of Moore’s five albums released through MCA reached the top 5 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart, and he landed five top 5 songs on the Country Airplay chart, including his 2011 No. 1, “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck.” His most recent set was 2023’s Damn Love.
The gravelly-voiced singer’s career has not been led by country radio, but he adds, “Virgin is equipped and ready for a radio campaign if we decide that’s the best path.”
Furthermore, he says it’s too soon to gauge the difference of signing with Virgin as opposed to a Nashville-based label. “I think it’s fair to say, except for maybe the very initial releases, none of my career has been ‘traditional.’” he says. “We’ve been seeing a real growth internationally from touring there the past few years, and so it felt natural to go with a team that has tentacles in a lot of different territories, particularly the countries I have toured extensively. UMGN was really great…UMGN always let me seek my own vision. Sometimes it’s just time for a change and right now this new situation feels good. They’re eager and want to put in the work. I guess I’ll know the differences once we are off and running.”
Moore has built an especially robust following in South Africa as a live draw and will headline the inaugural Cape Town Country Festival, held Oct. 26-27, at Cape Town, South Africa’s 60,000-capacity DHL Stadium. In 2023, Moore’s three shows in Cape Town and Pretoria, South Africa, sold 44,000 tickets. Prior to Cape Town, Moore has gigs in New Zealand and Australia this month. The Cape Town show will be followed by the U.S. portion of his Nomad World Tour, which starts Nov. 11 in Columbia, S.C.
