A NUMBER OF MORRISON’S HITS ARE INCLUDED IN THE ACQUISITION SUCH AS “CRAZY,” “TRIPPIN’” AND THE MULTI-PLATINIUM SMASH “RETURN OF THE MACK”
NEW YORK, N.Y. (March 24, 2021) – R&B British sensation Mark Morrison is the latest songwriter to join the Primary Wave Music family. In a multi-million dollar deal that was announced today, the home of legends will acquire a majority stake in the Award-winning singer’s music publishing catalog. Included in the deal are a number of Morrison’s biggest hits such as “Crazy,” “Trippin’” and probably his most well-known song, “Return of the Mack.” Released 25 years ago this year, “Return of the Mack” was the debut single off Morrison’s album of the same name. The song received rave reviews with Entertainment Weekly declaring it a “new-jackalicious breakup jam.” Peaking at #2 on the Billboard Top 100 charts in the U.S., “Return of the Mack” quickly went platinum and soared to the top of the charts internationally. The song has proven staying power as a number of artists have sampled the track in recent hits including 2021’s G-Eazy song “Provide” which not only sampled the hit but saw a feature from Morrison himself.
Primary Wave will work to market Mark’s name and likeness, as well as provide access to the company’s marketing team and publishing infrastructure, which includes digital strategy, licensing, synch opportunities as well as film, television and theatrical production.
Mark Morrison is the most successful British R&B singers of the mid-90s. His breakthrough single, “Return of the Mack” became a Top-10 hit worldwide in 1996 and opened the U.S. market for him the following year. Born in Hanover, Germany, to Barbadian parentage, Morrison lived in Leicester, before moving to Florida, at a young age, where he discovered his love for music. In mid-1995 he released his debut single “Crazy,” which became a Top 20 hit in the UK, and “Let’s Get Down,” the swing beat summer jam, entering the Top 40. They were followed in the spring of 1996 by the aforementioned “Return of the Mack,” which became a smash hit worldwide, spending two weeks at number one in the UK charts. Morrison became the first black male solo artist to reach number one in the 90s. His debut album, also titled Return of the Mack followed, and became a multi-platinum success. It reached number four in the UK chart, and sold 3 million albums worldwide. It spun off several more hit singles over the next year. “Crazy (remix)”, “Trippin’,” “Horny,” and “Moan & Groan” would all reach the UK Top 10, making him the first artist in British pop history to have five Top 10’s from their debut album. In 1997 he received four Brit nominations, a Mercury Music Prize nomination, an MTV Europe award nomination and five MOBO nominations (including winning best R&B), as Return of the Mack began to climb its way to number two on the American Billboard charts, ultimately going platinum. It stayed on the Billboard charts for an incredible 25 weeks. Mark’s follow up, Who’s the Mack?, also hit the Top 20 in September 1997, and another single – “Best Friend” – entered the Top 40 in 1999. That track saw Mark team up with UK soul queen Gabrielle and soul star Connor Reeves. In 2006, Morrison made a return with an independent album Innocent Man. It featured collaborations with industry heavyweights DMX, Elephant Man, and Alexander O’Neal. The single “Innocent Man” featuring DMX, also appeared in sample form on “Innocent (Misunderstood)” by Cassidy, which reached number three on Billboard’s Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart in November 2007. He released an independent EP entitled I Am What I Am in 2014. The album featured a number of guest artists including Beenie Man, Keith Murray, Trae Tha Truth, Young Buck, and another collaboration with DMX. On its 20th Anniversary, Return of the Mack was remixed by producer Nevada, and re-released as The Mack by Nevada featuring Mark Morrison and Fetty Wap. It gave Morrison his 10th UK Top 40 hit, reaching the Top 20 in December 2016, and again collected a platinum certification, amassing over 200 Million streams on Spotify. In February 2021, American rapper G-Eazy released a single titled “Provide,” which features Chris Brown and Mark Morrison. “Provide” received over a million streams on Spotify, and a million views on YouTube within the first 24 hours of its release, and reached both the US and UK Top 100, giving Morrison’s his 13th UK chart hit, and 3rd US Billboard chart hit.