Benstar was founded in 2006 to service the increasing demand for adding marketing impact to audio visual soundtracks and branded content through the use of music. Over the last few years, executives with the power to place music have come to fully realise how it can engage and captivate the desired target demographic, enhance campaigns and create an associative identity for products with no limit in range
Benstar offers a range of creative consultancy services to global clients. The agency helps artists, labels, publishers, film, TV & trailer production companies, brands and Web3 developers to create compelling campaigns & soundtracks that add real value by harnessing the communicative power of music
The agency is run by creative director and founder Ben Cherrill, a music and entertainment professional of over 30 years standing with specific backgrounds in a&r, artist development, music supervision, label management, business affairs, music promotion, creative sync, strategic music-led campaigns, creative direction, brand identity, talent booking, deal broking and Web3 initiatives
Current projects include; music supervision for HTGR (LA), a&r consultancy for Pusher Music and artist development and creative management for a number of music clients. Expertise in the field of entertainment has seen the agency close deals on a global level with clients from within the music, TV, technology and advertising sectors
As a senior a&r executive for EMI Records & Universal Music Group, Ben was responsible for multiple hit projects, including the strategic synchronisation of Room 5 feat Oliver Cheatham ‘Make Luv’ into the award-winning worldwide ‘Lynx Pulse’ TV ad campaign, working closely alongside creative agency BBH (London) and Unilever, to plan the music release and Pulse launch. This brand partnership is one of the most commercially successful sync campaigns in the UK during the last 15 years, and resulted in a No.1 sales & airplay hit. Ben was also an exec producer and co-compiler on the legendary Cafe Del Mar compilation series whilst a&r manager at Mercury Records
Ben’s considerable expertise in the field of a&r has seen him negotiate deals and develop more than 50 globally respected recording artists and producers, specialising in the world of mainstream electronic dance music and pop. He is responsible for delivering more than thirty Top 20 hits, with more than fifteen of these reaching Top 10 status in the UK, including huge successes for Wildchild/Fatboy Slim, York, Yomanda, David Morales, Motorcycle, Ferry Corsten, Rank 1, Reflekt feat Delline Bass, Progress presents Boy Wunda, Lovefreekz and Bhangra Knights
To date the combined global sales of all single, album and compilation projects boasting Ben Cherrill’s creative a&r involvement is in excess of 20 million units
His global vision for sourcing and developing new artists from the UK, US and Europe, is clear to see, and his list of recognised achievements are well documented within the global music industry. Ben has won six prestigious Music Week Magazine Awards including ‘Best Dance Music Label’ in 1998, 1999, 2001, 2003, whilst at Manifesto Records and Positiva Records, ‘Best A&R Award’ in 1997 as part of the prolific a&r team at Polydor UK, led by Sir Lucian Grainge (Global Chairman, Universal Music Group) and also the inaugural ‘Best Music Sync’ award for Room 5/Lynx Pulse in 2004 alongside BBH London & Unilever