President and CEO of Beautiful Day Media, Elizabeth Freund has run her own company for over 26 years, working as a publicist, producer and manager. Freund is a respected veteran of the music business, having spent more than three decades working with top artists in rock ‘n’ roll, and bringing together her expertise in publicity, campaign management, artist management and event production.
Born and raised in New York City and Vermont by artists, she was immersed in art and creative expression from an early age, attending be-ins, love-ins and concerts (the first was Dionne Warwick in 1968 at The Apollo).
“Music has always been a part of my life”, Freund explains. “I was obsessed with it as a kid, and loved every aspect of records. The music, the cover, the lyrics and sometimes the accompanying writing, like Andrew Loog Oldham’s poems on the back of some Stones records, that was like a portal to the sonic adventure within. The bands I most identified with articulated something profoundly personal to me, and could simultaneously tap into something universal and act as agents of change on the world stage. They also surrounded themselves with other artists, everyone working in their sphere was creative in their own right. It was inspiring, nurturing and something I needed to be a part of.”
In college, Freund studied political science and visual arts, and moved to New Mexico where she was a professional tapestry weaver. In 1985, she returned to New York City where she got her start in the music business as a DJ (both at a radio station and live in the basements and ballrooms of the Catskill Resorts), while moonlighting at a recording studio where she swept floors and answered phones. Two years later, Freund joined Atlantic Records in the inventory department, and then Geffen Records, assisting in the A&R department. In 1989, Freund joined the publicity firm Dera & Associates, where she rose to Vice President of the Music Division. During her tenure there, she worked with a varied roster ranging from Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney to ZZ Top, Clint Black to Motley Crue, and John Densmore. It was there she also began working with Linda McCartney, helping to launch McCartney’s vegetarian cooking line and her books of photography. Linda and Paul McCartney first introduced Freund to a vegetarian lifestyle, which she adopted and has advocated for since.
Elizabeth Freund founded her own company, EFPR, in 1994, with Linda McCartney, Ringo Starr, Robert Palmer and UB40 as EFPR’s first signings. The next year, EFPR headed the publicity campaign for the Concert for the Hall of Fame, which was the second highest-rated TV special of 1995, second only to The Beatles Anthology. EFPR represented the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies from 1995-2006. During that time, Neil Aspinall, head of Apple Corps Ltd., also solicited Freund to represent The Beatles company, which she had the honor of doing through the remainder of Aspinall’s tenure. Their first major campaign together was The Beatles 1. Freund also represented George Harrison and worked with him for the reissue of All Things Must Pass, Concert For Bangladesh, The Dark Horse Years as well as his release with Ravi Shankar, Chants. In 1998, Freund was tapped to represent The Spice Girls, who she joined on the road for their first major US Tour.
In 2005, Sir Bob Geldof selected EFPR to manage the US campaign for the Live 8 Concerts held in the G8 states and South Africa – a groundbreaking series of 10 concerts worldwide, which saw AOL broadcast eight simultaneous events for the first time ever. Where Live Aid raised millions of dollars to immediately relieve hunger, Live 8 fulfilled a much larger and substantive achievement - persuading leaders at the G8 summit to double their pledges to poor nations, totaling nearly 50 million per year, and forgive Africa its debt. It also fulfilled the promise of rock and roll to literally affect the world on a political level, when the world’s most powerful countries voted to adopt the specific policies Bob and Bono put forth into the Commission For Africa.
Elizabeth Freund, with her core clients, relaunched EFPR as Beautiful Day Media (BDM) in 2006, expanding services from publicity to include artist and musician management, and event production, with a focus on charity-driven events. Beautiful Day Media signings included Eric Burdon, Roger Hodgson, Paul Simon and Joe Walsh. Beautiful Day Media also exclusively represent Genesis Publications, and have handled book campaigns with Jimmy Page, Mick Fleetwood, Ronnie Wood, Chrissie Hynde, and Jeff Beck to name a few. Management clients have included Bow Thayer, Alberta Cross and most recently, Hey, King!
High-profile collaborative projects include a partnership with Hard Rock International and WHY Hunger for their 2010 annual “Imagine There Is No Hunger” event in Los Angeles. Freund curated the performing artists and brought in an interactive visual art component she co-created with multimedia artist Michael Pope, which was later purchased for permanent collection by the Hard Rock Cafe. In January 2014, Freund was Executive Producer for the Ringo Starr Peace & Love Event for the David Lynch Foundation, securing and selecting talent which included Ben Harper, Bettye LaVette, Brendan Benson, The Head and the Heart, Ben Folds and Joe Walsh. In 2017, Walsh asked BDM to help him launch his VetsAid 501 C3 Charity, which has held annual three benefit concerts and raised over $2 million for veterans and their families.
Tantamount to her passion for music is her passion for the outdoors, and she is a backpacking, kayaking and cross-country skiing enthusiast, regularly out in nature. This love of the natural world has led her to be an environmental activist, and to this end, Freund has been honored to support her client Paul Simon, who in addition to creating timeless music beloved around the world, is now committed to raising funds for environmental charities, and whose urgency and passion for this cause she shares.
Perhaps best exemplifying the depth and heart of Freund’s career is her work with Ringo Starr, which began during his first All Starr Band Tour in 1989. In that time, Starr has mounted more than 20 domestic and international tours, with various iterations of his All Starr Band; he has released 9 live All Starr records and 11 studio albums. Freund proudly works with Starr’s small team to support the successfully self-managing artist in a variety of ways, and she has been grateful to expand and grow with his support from her initial role as PR. Every year Starr celebrates his birthday with an annual “Peace & Love” event. Starr conceived of and began this tradition in 2008 during an interview when he was asked what he would like for his birthday. His answer was simple: Peace & Love. Starr invited fans around the world, wherever they are at 12 noon, to post, say, or even just think ‘Peace & Love’.” From that inspired seed, Freund has worked with Starr to grow it into a worldwide celebration amplified by global partnerships, and propelled by fans who have held annual Peace & Love events in over 30 countries — spanning from New Zealand to Hawaii, and everywhere in between. The Peace & Love event is especially close to Freund’s heart, as she explains, “Starr is creating peace and love – that’s the sole aim of the campaign. It’s conceptual art at its finest, gentle and yet revolutionary, capable of changing the world and it is at the heart of all the reasons I was drawn to rock and roll to begin with.”
April 2020 saw Freund partner with musician Ben Harper to launch Harper’s own label, Mad Bunny Records. Freund shares Harper’s vision to offer lesser-known musicians a viable platform, audience, digital-and-real community, and support services. Freund will continue to run Beautiful Day Media and sees the running of the label as a natural offshoot and an exciting way to nurture musicians and help their projects gain increased recognition and expanded audiences. Freund first met Ben Harper in 2008 and worked with him in 2010 when Harper and his band supported Ringo Starr on a promotional jaunt for his record YNot, which Harper also appeared on.
