SOUTH Music and Sound Design Widens Talent Pool with Creative Director Matt Drenik

SOUTH Music and Sound Design bolsters its capabilities with the arrival of artist/composer/producer Matt Drenik. Bringing an A&R-style approach to the role of creative director, Drenik’s music-making background spans virtually all areas – from touring the world to running the Portland-based collective and label Get Loud, to composing for TV shows, including dozens of featured songs written specifically for the FX hit series Sons of Anarchy.

With deep ties to the independent music scene, Drenik immediately widens what SOUTH can offer its advertising clients. And at the same time, SOUTH will provide Drenik the opportunity to take his specific talents and expertise to a broader stage, forging collaborations focused on creative diversity.
 

Creative Director/Partner Dan Pritikin explains: “While Matt’s background will undoubtedly serve us well on projects within the indie space, I’m even more excited by how his perspective will influence SOUTH’s approach toward the many other genres and styles that we work in every day.” He goes on to say, “It's a point of view you can't teach in school. In fact, it's the opposite of what you might learn to do, and it's the very thing that music for picture, particularly for advertising, is starving for more of today.”

EVP/Director of Production Ann Haugen echoes the enthusiasm, saying, “Matt is such a star! Already he’s making an impact at SOUTH with his creativity and unique expertise. And his pool of talent is simply ridiculous.”

Born in Ohio to a musical family, multi-instrumentalist Drenik found his way to Austin and graduated with a film degree. He got his start as frontman for Austin rock band Lions, touring and signing to a mix of major and indie labels over the past 15 years.

In 2008, Drenik’s band was asked to perform a track for the pilot episode of Sons of Anarchy. It was an auspicious entrée into the world of TV; Drenik served as a contributing composer for the series for all seven seasons. One of Drenik’s most well-known tracks, his version of Neil Young’s “Hey Hey, My My” has reached over 31 million hits on YouTube.

His solo work, performed under the moniker Battleme, is the evolution of Drenik’s musical journey. Using the skills he sharpened writing for SoA, Battleme’s repertoire not only showcases Drenik’s chops, but also his talent for distilling a visual idea into the perfect musical accompaniment. Additionally, in the role of music supervisor, Drenik has handled sync and licensing for his own outfits and the Get Loud roster, including song placement in HBO’s Here and Now and CSI, Showtime’s Shameless, and EA’s UFC 2.

Since moving to LA in early 2018, Drenik’s network of singers, writers and emerging musicians has widened even further, all the more for him to tap into at SOUTH. “The work SOUTH does is exceptional,” says Drenik. “My first takeaway was how creative and art-driven their reel is. I’m looking forward to continuing that legacy and pushing it into new and unchartered arenas.”

SOUTH has made plenty of noise in 2018, winning multiple AICP and Cannes Awards (including a Gold Lion) for Toyota’s “Start Your Impossible” campaign via Saatchi & Saatchi, and making the AICP shortlist for Best Original Music for Reebok. Most recently SOUTH collaborated with Droga5 to create a dynamic drumline-inspired score for CoverGirl’s latest campaign featuring Massy Arias.