AceShowbiz -

Soul singer India.Arie has branched out to being a music mogul by launching a new label called SoulBird Music in partnership with Universal Republic Records. The first artist to release an album under the brand new label is Anthony David, a long time acquittance and former backup singer of Arie who will release his major debut album "Acey Deucey" on June 17.

"I'm excited that Tony will be the first artist to be released on SoulBird," said Arie, "Tony is a great talent and one of my oldest friends. I have so many memories with him. Not only did he encourage me to start performing professionally, but it was Tony who suggested I use my first and middle name as an artist. There was even a time when he spent his rent money for me to experiment in the studio."

According to the press release, Arie will be actively involved in the promotion and support of "Acey Ducey". The first single will be "Words" which is a duet between David and Arie that first appeared on David's indie album "Red Clay Chronicles". Arie describes the sound of David as "Bill Withers meets Mos Def" and that the label "is meant to evoke the Energy of the music rather than the Style."

Speaking on Arie's involvement in the label, President and CEO of Universal Republic Records Monte Lipman said, "India.Arie's vision and sensitivity toward artists makes her a natural to launch an enterprise like SoulBird, and Anthony David is the ultimate artist to christen the label. His tremendous poise and ability to deliver great R&B songs coupled with his great relationship with India.Arie uniquely positions him as one of our breakthrough acts this year. Everyone at Universal Republic is excited to be a part of this great new endeavor."