Oasis might be riding high right now, but Big Brother Recordings/Ignition GM Clare Byrne has suggested that the band's impact could become even bigger in the future.
Speaking ahead of the first night of Oasis Live ‘25, which kicked off in Cardiff over the weekend (above), Byrne told Music Week that the label has huge plans in store.
“Having the Definitely Maybe anniversary campaign in tandem with the live dates has been massive,” Byrne said, “but we have plans to do something very, very special for the (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? anniversary, because it's an album that deserves that.”
The album’s sales tally of 5,397,937 according to the Official Charts Company backs up Byrne’s point, and plans for the reissue were announced last week, with the October 3 release set to feature unplugged versions of Cast No Shadow, Morning Glory, Wonderwall, Acquiesce and Champagne Supernova. It will be available on limited edition 2CD and 3LP formats as well as digitally.
A really important part of all of this for us has been seeing how the fanbase has grown in terms of the younger demographic
Clare Byrne, Big Brother Recordings/Ignition
“The fact the albums are only 14 months apart, and that (What’s The Story)... followed so quickly is really staggering,” she added. “This is an album that is even more widely known, all of the tracks on it are absolutely huge, even the ones that weren't even singles, like She's Electric and Morning Glory.”
Big Brother won the Catalogue Marketing category at the Music Week Awards in May, for their campaign for Defnitely Maybe’s 30th anniversary edition. Last September, Oasis topped the albums chart for the first time in 14 years as Definitely Maybe rocketed to No.1 after multiple versions were released. What’s more, Oasis had three albums in the Top 5 for three weeks running. They could be in line to repeat that feat this week, with the tour sparking another sales spike.
“We're obviously very confident in the catalogue and it's such incredible repertoire that working with but, seeing the global scale of the pick up was incredible,” Byrne said.
Even though the band’s 30th anniversary would inevitably be a “landmark year” for Oasis, Byrne said that their team – who spoke to Music Week for an exclusive feature in our Oasis special earlier this year – have been blown away by the size of the response.
Team Big Brother at the Music Week Awards in May (Clare Byrne fourth from left)
“We started the Definitely Maybe campaign in April [2024] around the Supersonic anniversary and then the live announcement was in August,” she reflected. “It was very symbiotic, perfect timing. Before the tour announcement came, we'd done so much work in terms of building the whole legacy of Definitely Maybe and really reinforcing what an iconic album is. The response was phenomenal and a lot of people called it a cultural moment.”
The album has 2,870,017 sales to date, according to Official Charts Company data.
“It was challenging when the live announcement happened because the sheer scale of the response was incredible,” Byrne continued. “So it was about being on top of that, harnessing all the opportunities and making sure we were being active and making the most of everything, keeping on top of trends, pick up and UGC.”
Byrne noted their success in bringing a new demographic into the Oasis fanbase.
“A really important part of all of this for us has been seeing how the fanbase has grown in terms of the younger demographic,” she said. “It's just been wonderful to see, because the younger fans are a huge part of their audience now and they're very important to us. It's been a real joy to see that cross generational appeal unified across the whole audience.”
Oasis on stage in Cardiff
The GM pointed out the rare power of the Oasis following.
“Their fanbase iskey to Oasis’ success,” she said. “They are just so devoted, people have a lasting, deep emotional connection with the band, which I think is quite rare. When you have something that special, it's so important to make sure that you're honouring the legacy of the band in the right way.”
Byrne also stressed how positive the response has been to Oasis’ reawakening across different sectors of the industry.
“The reaction has been incredibly positive,” she noted. “It's been wonderful to see how collaborative our partners have been and we’ve been working very hard to make sure that we're making the most of all the platforms, whether it's bringing the later catalogue to a new audience, or using new platforms and really looking at our assets and using them in creative ways. That's really important because it keeps the relevance of the band.”
Byrne said that retail partners have been “incredible”.
“They are always incredibly collaborative with the catalogue and that's something as an independent that we work very hard to achieve, those really close relationships,” she said.
With Noel and Liam Gallagher about to step on stage together for the first time since 2009, Byrne said the brothers have been integral to the success of Definitely Maybe’s re-release.
“It’s important to them,” she said. “I wouldn't say it's about the commercial success, it's more about the sentiment of how a campaign is run. Everything is so collaborative, we work so closely with Noel and Liam and management and they’re across all the decisions, everything is approved. We keep them updated with progress and reactions and with them both having very successful solo careers, they can see how people are reacting. It's about making sure the campaigns are managed in the right way and that we’re giving fans meaningful content.”
Noel and Liam Gallagher walk on stage
Finally, the exec made a point of highlighting the importance of so much consumption being driven by an independent label.
“It's a big success story as an independent label, even though it's a small team, the output is pretty big,” she said. “The surge in consumption has just been incredible. You know, three albums in the top five for three consecutive weeks. It was just incredible.”
Subscribers can read our interview with Byrne alongside head of creative and retail marketing Sarah Mansfield and Oasis co-manager Alec McKinlay here. Read our huge rundown of the industry’s favourite Oasis tracks via the links below.
PHOTOS: Big Brother Recordings/Angus Jenner
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