Reservoir Media, Inc. (NASDAQ: RSVR) (“Reservoir” or the “Company”), an award-winning independent music company, today announced a worldwide publishing deal with Dan Nakamura, professionally known as Dan the Automator, a Grammy-nominated producer and songwriter.The new deal includes Nakamura’s catalog and future works expanding the scope of an existing publishing relationship between Reservoir and Nakamura, first established in 2012.

A renowned producer, composer, artist and DJ, Nakamura is well known as a founding member of conceptual parody hip-hop duo Handsome Boy Modeling School. In 1999, Nakamura joined forces with Prince Paul to release their comical, but musically complex albums, including So…How’s Your Girl? (1999) and White People (2004), both released on Tommy Boy Records, which sits under the umbrella of Reservoir. Ahead of the 2022 Record Store Day special vinyl re-release of So…How’s Your Girl?, Handsome Boy Modeling School performed at Brooklyn Bowl in Brooklyn, NY in April. The duo is also expected to release new music later this year. 

Nakamura first broke onto the scene in the mid-1990s using his home studio, The Glue Factory, as his base for countless groundbreaking collaborations with fellow rappers and producers. He notably worked on DJ Shadow’s debut album, Endtroducing…, plus music by Del the Funky Homosapien and his alternative hip-hop trio Deltron 3030. Additionally, Nakamura produced and was a member of the group, Dr. Octagonecologyst, which featured NY rap legend, Kool Keith. Released under the alias Dr. Octagon, the 1996 album was critically acclaimed as a progressive work incorporating multiple genres and later achieved cult status. Furthermore, in the 2000s, Dan went on to produce the self-titled, multi-Platinum-selling debut album for Gorillaz, which included the Grammy-nominated single “Clint Eastwood.” Collectively, the album has been streamed over one billion times. 

In addition to his many accomplishments as a producer, Nakamura has worked as a successful film composer. He has written songs for films and TV series including Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Money Monster, Booksmart, Always Be My Maybe, Dash & Lily, and more. Dan plans to continue recording new music and composing for film, TV, and video games. He also notably has had music featured across advertisements for many massive, globally renowned brands including Levis, Nike, X-Box and many more. 

On the new deal with Reservoir Nakamura said, “I’m looking forward to continuing and expanding my relationship with Reservoir and I am excited to see what the future brings.”

Faith Newman, Reservoir Executive Vice President of A&R and Catalog Development, added, “From his work as a hip-hop producer and artist to his recent film and TV compositions, Dan has consistently demonstrated the breadth of his talent. Throughout his decades-spanning career, Dan has made an indelible mark across the music industry, and we look forward to working on his music.”

Reservoir President and Chief Operating Officer Rell Lafargue commented, “After 10 years working on his catalog, we are proud Dan chose Reservoir to become home to even more of his music. We are grateful for the chance to continue demonstrating the value of our relationship and supporting Dan’s past, present and future works.”