Songwriter and producer Rufio Hooks — known for his co-write credit on BTS’ massive hit “Butter” — has signed to Reservoir. The global publishing deal includes “Butter” along with all of Hooks’ future works.
The K-pop phenomenon’s second English single debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, a spot it’s held for seven weeks and counting. With such immense charting success, it might be hard to believe that the track was Hooks’ first time working in the mainstream music scene. His previous credits include pop, R&B, folk and country projects with artists such as Zach Crowell, Filmore, Jennifer Denmark, Jimmie Allen, Seaforth, Sophia Quinn, Cameron Bedell and Stephen Kirk.
“Seasoned songwriters dream of achieving the kind of record-breaking success that ‘Butter’ has, but the fact that this is Rufio’s first cut is utterly extraordinary and only speaks to his remarkable talent,” said Reservoir’s executive vp of creative, John Ozier in a statement. “He has such a strong ability to write across various genres, and we’re eager to tap into his natural gift and identify future collaborations for him across the industry.”
Originally from New Jersey and now based in Nashville, Rufio was represented in the deal by Brett Bassock at Renegade Songs, Bret Disend at Ozone Entertainment and Mike McKoy at Serling Rooks Hunter McKoy Worob & Averill LLP.
“I am excited to team up with Reservoir and start this next chapter of my career,” Hooks said. “I think the culture that they have built in both Nashville and LA is really special.”
Hooks’ signing follows the announcement that Reservoir has entered into an agreement with Roth CH II ($ROCC), a special purpose acquisition company, in an action that signifies the company taking its “first step toward becoming a publicly traded company listed on the Nasdaq,” according to the press release. When Reservoir Holdings went public on the Nasdaq stock exchange through a reverse merger with SPAC in April, they became the first standalone music publishing company to go public on a U.S. stock exchange.
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