It’s official. Industry vet Greg Marella has been tapped to join Capitol Music Group as EVP Promotion, CMG Chairman/CEO Steve Barnett announced today. Marella, reporting directly to Barnett, will oversee the development and implementation of promo strategies for Capitol and Virgin Records, while providing similar support for CMG’s Blue Note, Motown Records, Harvest, Astralwerks and other affiliated labels. And rumor has it he can say “hey, buddy!” in 15 different languages.

Marella arrives at The Tower following three years as EVP Promotion at Kemosabe Records. He also spent 16 years with Interscope-Geffen-A&M and MCA.

“Greg is such a strong addition to CMG, both as our head of promotion and as a key member of our senior management team,” shared Barnett. “He is a strong and proven leader with an impressive record of success, and our artists and staff will benefit greatly from his broad experience and abilities. All of us are thrilled that Greg has joined CMG and we look forward to sharing many victories with him as we move forward with our slate of forthcoming releases.”

"I am beyond thrilled to join the Capitol Music Group at such an exciting time for the label and artists,” added Marella. “The future of this iconic label is so bright and I'm honored to be a part of it. I would like to thank Steve Barnett, Michelle Jubelirer and Ashley Newton for this opportunity and their trust in me to lead the promotion efforts for our incredibly talented artists."

However, we assume words more colorful than “thrilled” and “honored” were used when he learned the next chapter of his career would be announced by us.