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Alexi Cory-Smith<\/strong>, co-founder and CEO of London-based catalog firm Bella Figura Music, and formerly an executive at BMG\u2019s U.K. division, has died. She was 58.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\tRelated\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n \t\t\t\t\tGone But Not Forgotten: Musicians We Lost in\u00a02026\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n \n\t\u201cWe are devastated to announce the sudden and unexpected passing of our co-founder and CEO, Alexi Cory-Smith,\u201d said a statement released on Friday (July 3) by Bella Figura, who manages the rights of evergreen hits like Joan Jett\u2019s \u201cI Love Rock \u2018n\u2019 Roll\u201d and The Human League\u2019s \u201cDon\u2019t You Want Me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAlexi built Bella Figura Music from the ground up, bringing the vision and passion from a successful career in the music industry. Her leadership, creativity, and unwavering commitment to our team and our work leaves a lasting legacy,\u201d the firm said in remembrance of Cory-Smith.<\/p>\n \u201cOur thoughts are with Alexi\u2019s family and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time,\u201d the statement continued. \u201cWe ask that their privacy be respected. We are committed to honouring Alexi\u2019s vision and achievements and will share further updates when we are able. In the meantime, our focus is on supporting one another and remembering an extraordinary leader who meant so much to all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIn a statement sent to Billboard<\/em>, BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) CEO Jo Twist said, \u201cWe are profoundly saddened to learn of the passing of Alexi Cory-Smith.\u00a0 She made a highly valued contribution as a leading figure in our music industry, including as BPI Council member when representing BMG, and we extend our sincere condolences to her family, friends and colleagues on their great loss.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tCory-Smith opened the doors of Bella Figura in 2022 alongside longtime colleague Neelesh Prabhu.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cFor us, it\u2019s quality, class, it\u2019s successful, it\u2019s curatable. I began Bella Figura with a very simple thing: I wanted to own my own publishing company,\u201d Cory-Smith said in an interview on The Money Trench<\/em> podcast, speaking of her turn to entrepreneurship after accumulating years of professional experience across major labels.<\/p>\n \n\tOf putting everything into Bella Figura, she noted, \u201cIt\u2019s the best thing I ever did in my life, personally, selfishly and professionally. I love this business \u2026 It\u2019s learning and doing and making mistakes all at the same time, but it\u2019s fantastic. It\u2019s the thing I\u2019m proudest of. It\u2019s the thing, I love it, I get up every day super excited.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAs of 2025, Bella Figura had accumulated a portfolio worth more than $160 million. The London-based firm made a push into the U.S. market, bringing on industry vet Gary Gersh to open an office in Los Angeles last year. <\/p>\n \n\tAn acquisition of producer\/songwriter Paul Epworth\u2019s publishing catalog in April 2026 added more major hits to the firm\u2019s growing collection \u2014 including co-writes and productions from Adele\u2019s 21 <\/em>(\u201cRolling in the Deep\u201d) and the James Bond<\/em> theme \u201cSkyfall,\u201d and his work from Florence + The Machine\u2019s Lungs<\/em> and Ceremonials <\/em>albums. \u201cFor us, acquiring Paul\u2019s catalog defines what Bella Figura was built to do,\u201d Cory-Smith said at the time. \u201cHis body of work speaks for itself. Songs that have moved hundreds of millions of people and stand the test of time.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tBefore launching Bella Figura, Cory-Smith held notable leadership roles at BMG U.K. over the course of several years \u2014 last serving as president, repertoire and marketing, at the time of her departure from the company in 2017. There, she led the label\u2019s publishing and recordings business, spearheading relationships with key artists including the Rolling Stones and Roger Waters. <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe Rolling Stones deal \u2014 well, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards specifically, because it was about them as writers and the songs \u2014 that was for me, a turning point. Very distinctly,\u201d she said in her appearance on The Money Trench<\/em>, recounting a milestone professional accomplishment.<\/p>\n \n\tPrior to BMG, she worked at Virgin, EMI and more, after moving her way up from being what she humbly described as \u201cbasically office junior, girl Friday, do it all\u201d at her first job in the business, at IRS Records.<\/p>\n \n\tUnaware of the opportunities that she\u2019d one day make for herself in the music industry, she originally thought she\u2019d be a criminal lawyer. \u201cI was going to save the innocent man from the establishment,\u201d she recalled on The Money Trench<\/em>. Though criminal law wasn\u2019t her calling, she found she loved the work of making a deal and did pursue a law degree she\u2019d apply to her career in music, before delving into learning and becoming an expert in the publishing business.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt was worth every second and every penny and every tear,\u201d she said of the work she and her team have put into continuously building Bella Figura. \u201cI don\u2019t regret a second, but it wasn\u2019t easy.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI\u2019d like it to go and go,\u201d she said of her vision of her firm\u2019s future.<\/p>\n [analyse_source url=”https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/pro\/alexi-cory-smith-death-bella-figura-music\/”]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Alexi-Cory-Smith-billboard-1800.jpg?w=1024″] Trending on Billboard Alexi Cory-Smith, co-founder and CEO of London-based catalog firm Bella Figura Music, and formerly an executive at BMG\u2019s U.K. division, has died. She was 58. Related Gone But Not Forgotten: Musicians We Lost in\u00a02026 Anna Chan \u201cWe are devastated to announce the sudden and unexpected passing of our co-founder […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[48,226],"class_list":["post-2025663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-billboard-com","tag-crawlmanager"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2025663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2025663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2025663\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2025663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2025663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2025663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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