diff --git a/dev-infra/build-worker.js b/dev-infra/build-worker.js
index b0e97c27c3..dd7ed545d4 100644
--- a/dev-infra/build-worker.js
+++ b/dev-infra/build-worker.js
@@ -691,8 +691,8 @@ function getReleaseConfig(config = getConfig()) {
     if (((_b = config.release) === null || _b === void 0 ? void 0 : _b.buildPackages) === undefined) {
         errors.push(`No "buildPackages" function configured for releasing.`);
     }
-    if (((_c = config.release) === null || _c === void 0 ? void 0 : _c.generateReleaseNotesForHead) === undefined) {
-        errors.push(`No "generateReleaseNotesForHead" function configured for releasing.`);
+    if (((_c = config.release) === null || _c === void 0 ? void 0 : _c.releaseNotes) === undefined) {
+        errors.push(`No "releaseNotes" configured for releasing.`);
     }
     assertNoErrors(errors);
     return config.release;
diff --git a/dev-infra/ng-dev.js b/dev-infra/ng-dev.js
index e24281c5ef..9f95925b63 100755
--- a/dev-infra/ng-dev.js
+++ b/dev-infra/ng-dev.js
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ var os = require('os');
 var shelljs = require('shelljs');
 var minimatch = require('minimatch');
 var ora = require('ora');
-require('ejs');
+var ejs = require('ejs');
 var glob = require('glob');
 var ts = require('typescript');
 
@@ -647,6 +647,17 @@ function promptConfirm(message, defaultValue) {
         });
     });
 }
+/** Prompts the user for one line of input. */
+function promptInput(message) {
+    return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function () {
+        return tslib.__generator(this, function (_a) {
+            switch (_a.label) {
+                case 0: return [4 /*yield*/, inquirer.prompt({ type: 'input', name: 'result', message: message })];
+                case 1: return [2 /*return*/, (_a.sent()).result];
+            }
+        });
+    });
+}
 /**
  * Supported levels for logging functions.
  *
@@ -5108,8 +5119,8 @@ function getReleaseConfig(config = getConfig()) {
     if (((_b = config.release) === null || _b === void 0 ? void 0 : _b.buildPackages) === undefined) {
         errors.push(`No "buildPackages" function configured for releasing.`);
     }
-    if (((_c = config.release) === null || _c === void 0 ? void 0 : _c.generateReleaseNotesForHead) === undefined) {
-        errors.push(`No "generateReleaseNotesForHead" function configured for releasing.`);
+    if (((_c = config.release) === null || _c === void 0 ? void 0 : _c.releaseNotes) === undefined) {
+        errors.push(`No "releaseNotes" configured for releasing.`);
     }
     assertNoErrors(errors);
     return config.release;
@@ -5742,21 +5753,183 @@ function isCommitClosingPullRequest(api, sha, id) {
 const typesToIncludeInReleaseNotes = Object.values(COMMIT_TYPES)
     .filter(type => type.releaseNotesLevel === ReleaseNotesLevel.Visible)
     .map(type => type.name);
-
-/**
- * Gets the default pattern for extracting release notes for the given version.
- * This pattern matches for the conventional-changelog Angular preset.
- */
-function getDefaultExtractReleaseNotesPattern(version) {
-    const escapedVersion = version.format().replace('.', '\\.');
-    // TODO: Change this once we have a canonical changelog generation tool. Also update this
-    // based on the conventional-changelog version. They removed anchors in more recent versions.
-    return new RegExp(`(<a name="${escapedVersion}"></a>.*?)(?:<a name="|$)`, 's');
+/** Context class used for rendering release notes. */
+class RenderContext {
+    constructor(data) {
+        this.data = data;
+        /** An array of group names in sort order if defined. */
+        this.groupOrder = this.data.groupOrder || [];
+        /** An array of scopes to hide from the release entry output. */
+        this.hiddenScopes = this.data.hiddenScopes || [];
+        /** The title of the release, or `false` if no title should be used. */
+        this.title = this.data.title;
+        /** An array of commits in the release period. */
+        this.commits = this.data.commits;
+        /** The version of the release. */
+        this.version = this.data.version;
+        /** The date stamp string for use in the release notes entry. */
+        this.dateStamp = buildDateStamp(this.data.date);
+    }
+    /**
+     * Organizes and sorts the commits into groups of commits.
+     *
+     * Groups are sorted either by default `Array.sort` order, or using the provided group order from
+     * the configuration. Commits are order in the same order within each groups commit list as they
+     * appear in the provided list of commits.
+     * */
+    asCommitGroups(commits) {
+        /** The discovered groups to organize into. */
+        const groups = new Map();
+        // Place each commit in the list into its group.
+        commits.forEach(commit => {
+            const key = commit.npmScope ? `${commit.npmScope}/${commit.scope}` : commit.scope;
+            const groupCommits = groups.get(key) || [];
+            groups.set(key, groupCommits);
+            groupCommits.push(commit);
+        });
+        /**
+         * Array of CommitGroups containing the discovered commit groups. Sorted in alphanumeric order
+         * of the group title.
+         */
+        const commitGroups = Array.from(groups.entries())
+            .map(([title, commits]) => ({ title, commits }))
+            .sort((a, b) => a.title > b.title ? 1 : a.title < b.title ? -1 : 0);
+        // If the configuration provides a sorting order, updated the sorted list of group keys to
+        // satisfy the order of the groups provided in the list with any groups not found in the list at
+        // the end of the sorted list.
+        if (this.groupOrder.length) {
+            for (const groupTitle of this.groupOrder.reverse()) {
+                const currentIdx = commitGroups.findIndex(k => k.title === groupTitle);
+                if (currentIdx !== -1) {
+                    const removedGroups = commitGroups.splice(currentIdx, 1);
+                    commitGroups.splice(0, 0, ...removedGroups);
+                }
+            }
+        }
+        return commitGroups;
+    }
+    /**
+     * A filter function for filtering a list of commits to only include commits which should appear
+     * in release notes.
+     */
+    includeInReleaseNotes() {
+        return (commit) => {
+            if (!typesToIncludeInReleaseNotes.includes(commit.type)) {
+                return false;
+            }
+            if (this.hiddenScopes.includes(commit.scope)) {
+                return false;
+            }
+            return true;
+        };
+    }
+    /**
+     * A filter function for filtering a list of commits to only include commits which contain a
+     * truthy value, or for arrays an array with 1 or more elements, for the provided field.
+     */
+    contains(field) {
+        return (commit) => {
+            const fieldValue = commit[field];
+            if (!fieldValue) {
+                return false;
+            }
+            if (Array.isArray(fieldValue) && fieldValue.length === 0) {
+                return false;
+            }
+            return true;
+        };
+    }
+    /**
+     * A filter function for filtering a list of commits to only include commits which contain a
+     * unique value for the provided field across all commits in the list.
+     */
+    unique(field) {
+        const set = new Set();
+        return (commit) => {
+            const include = !set.has(commit[field]);
+            set.add(commit[field]);
+            return include;
+        };
+    }
 }
+/**
+ * Builds a date stamp for stamping in release notes.
+ *
+ * Uses the current date, or a provided date in the format of YYYY-MM-DD, i.e. 1970-11-05.
+ */
+function buildDateStamp(date = new Date()) {
+    const year = `${date.getFullYear()}`;
+    const month = `${(date.getMonth() + 1)}`.padStart(2, '0');
+    const day = `${date.getDate()}`.padStart(2, '0');
+    return [year, month, day].join('-');
+}
+
 /** Gets the path for the changelog file in a given project. */
 function getLocalChangelogFilePath(projectDir) {
     return path.join(projectDir, changelogPath);
 }
+/** Release note generation. */
+class ReleaseNotes {
+    constructor(version, config) {
+        this.version = version;
+        this.config = config;
+        /** An instance of GitClient. */
+        this.git = GitClient.getInstance();
+        /** A promise resolving to a list of Commits since the latest semver tag on the branch. */
+        this.commits = getCommitsInRange(this.git.getLatestSemverTag().format(), 'HEAD');
+    }
+    /** Construct a release note generation instance. */
+    static fromLatestTagToHead(version, config) {
+        return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            return new ReleaseNotes(version, config);
+        });
+    }
+    /** Retrieve the release note generated for a Github Release. */
+    getGithubReleaseEntry() {
+        return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            return ejs.renderFile(path.join(__dirname, 'templates/github-release.ejs'), yield this.generateRenderContext(), { rmWhitespace: true });
+        });
+    }
+    /** Retrieve the release note generated for a CHANGELOG entry. */
+    getChangelogEntry() {
+        return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            return ejs.renderFile(path.join(__dirname, 'templates/changelog.ejs'), yield this.generateRenderContext(), { rmWhitespace: true });
+        });
+    }
+    /**
+     * Prompt the user for a title for the release, if the project's configuration is defined to use a
+     * title.
+     */
+    promptForReleaseTitle() {
+        return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            if (this.title === undefined) {
+                if (this.config.releaseNotes.useReleaseTitle) {
+                    this.title = yield promptInput('Please provide a title for the release:');
+                }
+                else {
+                    this.title = false;
+                }
+            }
+            return this.title;
+        });
+    }
+    /** Build the render context data object for constructing the RenderContext instance. */
+    generateRenderContext() {
+        return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            if (!this.renderContext) {
+                this.renderContext = new RenderContext({
+                    commits: yield this.commits,
+                    github: this.git.remoteConfig,
+                    version: this.version.format(),
+                    groupOrder: this.config.releaseNotes.groupOrder,
+                    hiddenScopes: this.config.releaseNotes.hiddenScopes,
+                    title: yield this.promptForReleaseTitle(),
+                });
+            }
+            return this.renderContext;
+        });
+    }
+}
 
 /**
  * @license
@@ -5831,22 +6004,6 @@ class ReleaseAction {
             info(green('  ✓   Upstream commit is passing all github status checks.'));
         });
     }
-    /** Generates the changelog for the specified for the current `HEAD`. */
-    _generateReleaseNotesForHead(version) {
-        return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            const changelogPath = getLocalChangelogFilePath(this.projectDir);
-            yield this.config.generateReleaseNotesForHead(changelogPath);
-            info(green(`  ✓   Updated the changelog to capture changes for "${version}".`));
-        });
-    }
-    /** Extract the release notes for the given version from the changelog file. */
-    _extractReleaseNotesForVersion(changelogContent, version) {
-        const pattern = this.config.extractReleaseNotesPattern !== undefined ?
-            this.config.extractReleaseNotesPattern(version) :
-            getDefaultExtractReleaseNotesPattern(version);
-        const matchedNotes = pattern.exec(changelogContent);
-        return matchedNotes === null ? null : matchedNotes[1];
-    }
     /**
      * Prompts the user for potential release notes edits that need to be made. Once
      * confirmed, a new commit for the release point is created.
@@ -6019,27 +6176,13 @@ class ReleaseAction {
      * the current Git `HEAD`. This is useful for cherry-picking the changelog.
      * @returns A boolean indicating whether the release notes have been prepended.
      */
-    prependReleaseNotesFromVersionBranch(version, containingBranch) {
+    prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes) {
         return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            const { data } = yield this.git.github.repos.getContents(Object.assign(Object.assign({}, this.git.remoteParams), { path: '/' + changelogPath, ref: containingBranch }));
-            const branchChangelog = Buffer.from(data.content, 'base64').toString();
-            let releaseNotes = this._extractReleaseNotesForVersion(branchChangelog, version);
-            // If no release notes could be extracted, return "false" so that the caller
-            // can tell that changelog prepending failed.
-            if (releaseNotes === null) {
-                return false;
-            }
             const localChangelogPath = getLocalChangelogFilePath(this.projectDir);
             const localChangelog = yield fs.promises.readFile(localChangelogPath, 'utf8');
-            // If the extracted release notes do not have any new lines at the end and the
-            // local changelog is not empty, we add lines manually so that there is space
-            // between the previous and cherry-picked release notes.
-            if (!/[\r\n]+$/.test(releaseNotes) && localChangelog !== '') {
-                releaseNotes = `${releaseNotes}\n\n`;
-            }
-            // Prepend the extracted release notes to the local changelog and write it back.
-            yield fs.promises.writeFile(localChangelogPath, releaseNotes + localChangelog);
-            return true;
+            const releaseNotesEntry = yield releaseNotes.getChangelogEntry();
+            yield fs.promises.writeFile(localChangelogPath, `${releaseNotesEntry}\n\n${localChangelog}`);
+            info(green(`  ✓   Updated the changelog to capture changes for "${releaseNotes.version}".`));
         });
     }
     /** Checks out an upstream branch with a detached head. */
@@ -6059,25 +6202,6 @@ class ReleaseAction {
             this.git.run(['commit', '--no-verify', '-m', message, ...files]);
         });
     }
-    /**
-     * Creates a cherry-pick commit for the release notes of the specified version that
-     * has been pushed to the given branch.
-     * @returns a boolean indicating whether the commit has been created successfully.
-     */
-    createCherryPickReleaseNotesCommitFrom(version, branchName) {
-        return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(version);
-            // Fetch, extract and prepend the release notes to the local changelog. If that is not
-            // possible, abort so that we can ask the user to manually cherry-pick the changelog.
-            if (!(yield this.prependReleaseNotesFromVersionBranch(version, branchName))) {
-                return false;
-            }
-            // Create a changelog cherry-pick commit.
-            yield this.createCommit(commitMessage, [changelogPath]);
-            info(green(`  ✓   Created changelog cherry-pick commit for: "${version}".`));
-            return true;
-        });
-    }
     /**
      * Stages the specified new version for the current branch and creates a
      * pull request that targets the given base branch.
@@ -6085,13 +6209,14 @@ class ReleaseAction {
      */
     stageVersionForBranchAndCreatePullRequest(newVersion, pullRequestBaseBranch) {
         return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            const releaseNotes = yield ReleaseNotes.fromLatestTagToHead(newVersion, this.config);
             yield this.updateProjectVersion(newVersion);
-            yield this._generateReleaseNotesForHead(newVersion);
+            yield this.prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes);
             yield this.waitForEditsAndCreateReleaseCommit(newVersion);
             const pullRequest = yield this.pushChangesToForkAndCreatePullRequest(pullRequestBaseBranch, `release-stage-${newVersion}`, `Bump version to "v${newVersion}" with changelog.`);
             info(green('  ✓   Release staging pull request has been created.'));
             info(yellow(`      Please ask team members to review: ${pullRequest.url}.`));
-            return pullRequest;
+            return { releaseNotes, pullRequest };
         });
     }
     /**
@@ -6111,21 +6236,18 @@ class ReleaseAction {
      * into the `next` primary development branch. A pull request is created for this.
      * @returns a boolean indicating successful creation of the cherry-pick pull request.
      */
-    cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, stagingBranch) {
+    cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, stagingBranch) {
         return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             const nextBranch = this.active.next.branchName;
-            const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(newVersion);
+            const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(releaseNotes.version);
             // Checkout the next branch.
             yield this.checkoutUpstreamBranch(nextBranch);
-            // Cherry-pick the release notes into the current branch. If it fails,
-            // ask the user to manually copy the release notes into the next branch.
-            if (!(yield this.createCherryPickReleaseNotesCommitFrom(newVersion, stagingBranch))) {
-                error(yellow(`  ✘   Could not cherry-pick release notes for v${newVersion}.`));
-                error(yellow(`      Please copy the release notes manually into the "${nextBranch}" branch.`));
-                return false;
-            }
+            yield this.prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes);
+            // Create a changelog cherry-pick commit.
+            yield this.createCommit(commitMessage, [changelogPath]);
+            info(green(`  ✓   Created changelog cherry-pick commit for: "${releaseNotes.version}".`));
             // Create a cherry-pick pull request that should be merged by the caretaker.
-            const { url, id } = yield this.pushChangesToForkAndCreatePullRequest(nextBranch, `changelog-cherry-pick-${newVersion}`, commitMessage, `Cherry-picks the changelog from the "${stagingBranch}" branch to the next ` +
+            const { url, id } = yield this.pushChangesToForkAndCreatePullRequest(nextBranch, `changelog-cherry-pick-${releaseNotes.version}`, commitMessage, `Cherry-picks the changelog from the "${stagingBranch}" branch to the next ` +
                 `branch (${nextBranch}).`);
             info(green(`  ✓   Pull request for cherry-picking the changelog into "${nextBranch}" ` +
                 'has been created.'));
@@ -6253,10 +6375,10 @@ class CutLongTermSupportPatchAction extends ReleaseAction {
         return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             const ltsBranch = yield this._promptForTargetLtsBranch();
             const newVersion = semverInc(ltsBranch.version, 'patch');
-            const { id } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, ltsBranch.name);
+            const { pullRequest: { id }, releaseNotes } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, ltsBranch.name);
             yield this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
             yield this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, ltsBranch.name, ltsBranch.npmDistTag);
-            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, ltsBranch.name);
+            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, ltsBranch.name);
         });
     }
     /** Prompts the user to select an LTS branch for which a patch should but cut. */
@@ -6330,10 +6452,10 @@ class CutNewPatchAction extends ReleaseAction {
         return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             const { branchName } = this.active.latest;
             const newVersion = this._newVersion;
-            const { id } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+            const { pullRequest: { id }, releaseNotes } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
             yield this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
             yield this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'latest');
-            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
         });
     }
     static isActive(active) {
@@ -6400,14 +6522,14 @@ class CutNextPrereleaseAction extends ReleaseAction {
             const releaseTrain = this._getActivePrereleaseTrain();
             const { branchName } = releaseTrain;
             const newVersion = yield this._newVersion;
-            const { id } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+            const { pullRequest: { id }, releaseNotes } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
             yield this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
             yield this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'next');
             // If the pre-release has been cut from a branch that is not corresponding
             // to the next release-train, cherry-pick the changelog into the primary
             // development branch. i.e. the `next` branch that is usually `master`.
             if (releaseTrain !== this.active.next) {
-                yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+                yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
             }
         });
     }
@@ -6467,10 +6589,10 @@ class CutReleaseCandidateAction extends ReleaseAction {
         return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             const { branchName } = this.active.releaseCandidate;
             const newVersion = this._newVersion;
-            const { id } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+            const { pullRequest: { id }, releaseNotes } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
             yield this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
             yield this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'next');
-            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
         });
     }
     static isActive(active) {
@@ -6511,7 +6633,7 @@ class CutStableAction extends ReleaseAction {
             const { branchName } = this.active.releaseCandidate;
             const newVersion = this._newVersion;
             const isNewMajor = (_a = this.active.releaseCandidate) === null || _a === void 0 ? void 0 : _a.isMajor;
-            const { id } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+            const { pullRequest: { id }, releaseNotes } = yield this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
             yield this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
             yield this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'latest');
             // If a new major version is published and becomes the "latest" release-train, we need
@@ -6529,7 +6651,7 @@ class CutStableAction extends ReleaseAction {
                 yield invokeYarnInstallCommand(this.projectDir);
                 yield invokeSetNpmDistCommand(ltsTagForPatch, previousPatch.version);
             }
-            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+            yield this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
         });
     }
     /** Gets the new stable version of the release candidate release-train. */
@@ -6581,13 +6703,13 @@ class MoveNextIntoFeatureFreezeAction extends ReleaseAction {
             // Stage the new version for the newly created branch, and push changes to a
             // fork in order to create a staging pull request. Note that we re-use the newly
             // created branch instead of re-fetching from the upstream.
-            const stagingPullRequest = yield this.stageVersionForBranchAndCreatePullRequest(newVersion, newBranch);
+            const { pullRequest: { id }, releaseNotes } = yield this.stageVersionForBranchAndCreatePullRequest(newVersion, newBranch);
             // Wait for the staging PR to be merged. Then build and publish the feature-freeze next
             // pre-release. Finally, cherry-pick the release notes into the next branch in combination
             // with bumping the version to the next minor too.
-            yield this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(stagingPullRequest.id);
+            yield this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
             yield this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, newBranch, 'next');
-            yield this._createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(newVersion, newBranch);
+            yield this._createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(releaseNotes, newVersion);
         });
     }
     /** Creates a new version branch from the next branch. */
@@ -6605,7 +6727,7 @@ class MoveNextIntoFeatureFreezeAction extends ReleaseAction {
      * Creates a pull request for the next branch that bumps the version to the next
      * minor, and cherry-picks the changelog for the newly branched-off feature-freeze version.
      */
-    _createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(newVersion, newBranch) {
+    _createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(releaseNotes, newVersion) {
         return tslib.__awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             const { branchName: nextBranch, version } = this.active.next;
             // We increase the version for the next branch to the next minor. The team can decide
@@ -6617,18 +6739,13 @@ class MoveNextIntoFeatureFreezeAction extends ReleaseAction {
             // Create an individual commit for the next version bump. The changelog should go into
             // a separate commit that makes it clear where the changelog is cherry-picked from.
             yield this.createCommit(bumpCommitMessage, [packageJsonPath]);
+            yield this.prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes);
+            const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(releaseNotes.version);
+            yield this.createCommit(commitMessage, [changelogPath]);
             let nextPullRequestMessage = `The previous "next" release-train has moved into the ` +
                 `release-candidate phase. This PR updates the next branch to the subsequent ` +
-                `release-train.`;
-            const hasChangelogCherryPicked = yield this.createCherryPickReleaseNotesCommitFrom(newVersion, newBranch);
-            if (hasChangelogCherryPicked) {
-                nextPullRequestMessage += `\n\nAlso this PR cherry-picks the changelog for ` +
-                    `v${newVersion} into the ${nextBranch} branch so that the changelog is up to date.`;
-            }
-            else {
-                error(yellow(`  ✘   Could not cherry-pick release notes for v${newVersion}.`));
-                error(yellow(`      Please copy the release note manually into "${nextBranch}".`));
-            }
+                `release-train.\n\nAlso this PR cherry-picks the changelog for ` +
+                `v${newVersion} into the ${nextBranch} branch so that the changelog is up to date.`;
             const nextUpdatePullRequest = yield this.pushChangesToForkAndCreatePullRequest(nextBranch, `next-release-train-${newNextVersion}`, `Update next branch to reflect new release-train "v${newNextVersion}".`, nextPullRequestMessage);
             info(green(`  ✓   Pull request for updating the "${nextBranch}" branch has been created.`));
             info(yellow(`      Please ask team members to review: ${nextUpdatePullRequest.url}.`));
diff --git a/dev-infra/pr/merge/defaults/integration.spec.ts b/dev-infra/pr/merge/defaults/integration.spec.ts
index 718907efc3..86959094ff 100644
--- a/dev-infra/pr/merge/defaults/integration.spec.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/pr/merge/defaults/integration.spec.ts
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ describe('default target labels', () => {
     releaseConfig = {
       npmPackages: ['@angular/dev-infra-test-pkg'],
       buildPackages: async () => [],
-      generateReleaseNotesForHead: async () => {},
+      releaseNotes: {}
     };
 
     // The label determination will print warn messages. These should not be
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/build/build.spec.ts b/dev-infra/release/build/build.spec.ts
index 16cb0d5b66..6302752233 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/build/build.spec.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/build/build.spec.ts
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ describe('ng-dev release build', () => {
   /** Invokes the build command handler. */
   async function invokeBuild({json}: {json?: boolean} = {}) {
     spyOn(releaseConfig, 'getReleaseConfig')
-        .and.returnValue({npmPackages, buildPackages, generateReleaseNotesForHead: async () => {}});
+        .and.returnValue({npmPackages, buildPackages, releaseNotes: {}});
     await ReleaseBuildCommandModule.handler({json: !!json, $0: '', _: []});
   }
 
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/config/index.ts b/dev-infra/release/config/index.ts
index de0602f294..368e942dda 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/config/index.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/config/index.ts
@@ -26,20 +26,10 @@ export interface ReleaseConfig {
   npmPackages: string[];
   /** Builds release packages and returns a list of paths pointing to the output. */
   buildPackages: () => Promise<BuiltPackage[]|null>;
-  /** Generates the release notes from the most recent tag to `HEAD`. */
-  generateReleaseNotesForHead: (outputPath: string) => Promise<void>;
-  /**
-   * Gets a pattern for extracting the release notes of the a given version.
-   * @returns A pattern matching the notes for a given version (including the header).
-   */
-  // TODO: Remove this in favor of a canonical changelog format across the Angular organization.
-  extractReleaseNotesPattern?: (version: semver.SemVer) => RegExp;
   /** The list of github labels to add to the release PRs. */
   releasePrLabels?: string[];
   /** Configuration for creating release notes during publishing. */
-  // TODO(josephperrott): Make releaseNotes a required attribute on the interface when tooling is
-  // integrated.
-  releaseNotes?: ReleaseNotesConfig;
+  releaseNotes: ReleaseNotesConfig;
 }
 
 /** Configuration for creating release notes during publishing. */
@@ -75,8 +65,8 @@ export function getReleaseConfig(config: Partial<DevInfraReleaseConfig> = getCon
   if (config.release?.buildPackages === undefined) {
     errors.push(`No "buildPackages" function configured for releasing.`);
   }
-  if (config.release?.generateReleaseNotesForHead === undefined) {
-    errors.push(`No "generateReleaseNotesForHead" function configured for releasing.`);
+  if (config.release?.releaseNotes === undefined) {
+    errors.push(`No "releaseNotes" configured for releasing.`);
   }
 
   assertNoErrors(errors);
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions.ts
index 556c605fb5..01e3211703 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions.ts
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ import {changelogPath, packageJsonPath, waitForPullRequestInterval} from './cons
 import {invokeBazelCleanCommand, invokeReleaseBuildCommand, invokeYarnInstallCommand} from './external-commands';
 import {findOwnedForksOfRepoQuery} from './graphql-queries';
 import {getPullRequestState} from './pull-request-state';
-import {getDefaultExtractReleaseNotesPattern, getLocalChangelogFilePath} from './release-notes/release-notes';
+import {getLocalChangelogFilePath, ReleaseNotes} from './release-notes/release-notes';
 
 /** Interface describing a Github repository. */
 export interface GithubRepo {
@@ -132,22 +132,6 @@ export abstract class ReleaseAction {
     info(green('  ✓   Upstream commit is passing all github status checks.'));
   }
 
-  /** Generates the changelog for the specified for the current `HEAD`. */
-  private async _generateReleaseNotesForHead(version: semver.SemVer) {
-    const changelogPath = getLocalChangelogFilePath(this.projectDir);
-    await this.config.generateReleaseNotesForHead(changelogPath);
-    info(green(`  ✓   Updated the changelog to capture changes for "${version}".`));
-  }
-
-  /** Extract the release notes for the given version from the changelog file. */
-  private _extractReleaseNotesForVersion(changelogContent: string, version: semver.SemVer): string
-      |null {
-    const pattern = this.config.extractReleaseNotesPattern !== undefined ?
-        this.config.extractReleaseNotesPattern(version) :
-        getDefaultExtractReleaseNotesPattern(version);
-    const matchedNotes = pattern.exec(changelogContent);
-    return matchedNotes === null ? null : matchedNotes[1];
-  }
 
   /**
    * Prompts the user for potential release notes edits that need to be made. Once
@@ -334,28 +318,12 @@ export abstract class ReleaseAction {
    * the current Git `HEAD`. This is useful for cherry-picking the changelog.
    * @returns A boolean indicating whether the release notes have been prepended.
    */
-  protected async prependReleaseNotesFromVersionBranch(
-      version: semver.SemVer, containingBranch: string): Promise<boolean> {
-    const {data} = await this.git.github.repos.getContents(
-        {...this.git.remoteParams, path: '/' + changelogPath, ref: containingBranch});
-    const branchChangelog = Buffer.from(data.content, 'base64').toString();
-    let releaseNotes = this._extractReleaseNotesForVersion(branchChangelog, version);
-    // If no release notes could be extracted, return "false" so that the caller
-    // can tell that changelog prepending failed.
-    if (releaseNotes === null) {
-      return false;
-    }
+  protected async prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes: ReleaseNotes): Promise<void> {
     const localChangelogPath = getLocalChangelogFilePath(this.projectDir);
     const localChangelog = await fs.readFile(localChangelogPath, 'utf8');
-    // If the extracted release notes do not have any new lines at the end and the
-    // local changelog is not empty, we add lines manually so that there is space
-    // between the previous and cherry-picked release notes.
-    if (!/[\r\n]+$/.test(releaseNotes) && localChangelog !== '') {
-      releaseNotes = `${releaseNotes}\n\n`;
-    }
-    // Prepend the extracted release notes to the local changelog and write it back.
-    await fs.writeFile(localChangelogPath, releaseNotes + localChangelog);
-    return true;
+    const releaseNotesEntry = await releaseNotes.getChangelogEntry();
+    await fs.writeFile(localChangelogPath, `${releaseNotesEntry}\n\n${localChangelog}`);
+    info(green(`  ✓   Updated the changelog to capture changes for "${releaseNotes.version}".`));
   }
 
   /** Checks out an upstream branch with a detached head. */
@@ -373,27 +341,6 @@ export abstract class ReleaseAction {
     this.git.run(['commit', '--no-verify', '-m', message, ...files]);
   }
 
-  /**
-   * Creates a cherry-pick commit for the release notes of the specified version that
-   * has been pushed to the given branch.
-   * @returns a boolean indicating whether the commit has been created successfully.
-   */
-  protected async createCherryPickReleaseNotesCommitFrom(
-      version: semver.SemVer, branchName: string): Promise<boolean> {
-    const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(version);
-
-    // Fetch, extract and prepend the release notes to the local changelog. If that is not
-    // possible, abort so that we can ask the user to manually cherry-pick the changelog.
-    if (!await this.prependReleaseNotesFromVersionBranch(version, branchName)) {
-      return false;
-    }
-
-    // Create a changelog cherry-pick commit.
-    await this.createCommit(commitMessage, [changelogPath]);
-
-    info(green(`  ✓   Created changelog cherry-pick commit for: "${version}".`));
-    return true;
-  }
 
   /**
    * Stages the specified new version for the current branch and creates a
@@ -401,9 +348,11 @@ export abstract class ReleaseAction {
    * @returns an object describing the created pull request.
    */
   protected async stageVersionForBranchAndCreatePullRequest(
-      newVersion: semver.SemVer, pullRequestBaseBranch: string): Promise<PullRequest> {
+      newVersion: semver.SemVer, pullRequestBaseBranch: string):
+      Promise<{releaseNotes: ReleaseNotes, pullRequest: PullRequest}> {
+    const releaseNotes = await ReleaseNotes.fromLatestTagToHead(newVersion, this.config);
     await this.updateProjectVersion(newVersion);
-    await this._generateReleaseNotesForHead(newVersion);
+    await this.prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes);
     await this.waitForEditsAndCreateReleaseCommit(newVersion);
 
     const pullRequest = await this.pushChangesToForkAndCreatePullRequest(
@@ -413,7 +362,7 @@ export abstract class ReleaseAction {
     info(green('  ✓   Release staging pull request has been created.'));
     info(yellow(`      Please ask team members to review: ${pullRequest.url}.`));
 
-    return pullRequest;
+    return {releaseNotes, pullRequest};
   }
 
   /**
@@ -422,7 +371,7 @@ export abstract class ReleaseAction {
    * @returns an object describing the created pull request.
    */
   protected async checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion: semver.SemVer, stagingBranch: string):
-      Promise<PullRequest> {
+      Promise<{releaseNotes: ReleaseNotes, pullRequest: PullRequest}> {
     await this.verifyPassingGithubStatus(stagingBranch);
     await this.checkoutUpstreamBranch(stagingBranch);
     return await this.stageVersionForBranchAndCreatePullRequest(newVersion, stagingBranch);
@@ -434,25 +383,22 @@ export abstract class ReleaseAction {
    * @returns a boolean indicating successful creation of the cherry-pick pull request.
    */
   protected async cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(
-      newVersion: semver.SemVer, stagingBranch: string): Promise<boolean> {
+      releaseNotes: ReleaseNotes, stagingBranch: string): Promise<boolean> {
     const nextBranch = this.active.next.branchName;
-    const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(newVersion);
+    const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(releaseNotes.version);
 
     // Checkout the next branch.
     await this.checkoutUpstreamBranch(nextBranch);
 
-    // Cherry-pick the release notes into the current branch. If it fails,
-    // ask the user to manually copy the release notes into the next branch.
-    if (!await this.createCherryPickReleaseNotesCommitFrom(newVersion, stagingBranch)) {
-      error(yellow(`  ✘   Could not cherry-pick release notes for v${newVersion}.`));
-      error(
-          yellow(`      Please copy the release notes manually into the "${nextBranch}" branch.`));
-      return false;
-    }
+    await this.prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes);
+
+    // Create a changelog cherry-pick commit.
+    await this.createCommit(commitMessage, [changelogPath]);
+    info(green(`  ✓   Created changelog cherry-pick commit for: "${releaseNotes.version}".`));
 
     // Create a cherry-pick pull request that should be merged by the caretaker.
     const {url, id} = await this.pushChangesToForkAndCreatePullRequest(
-        nextBranch, `changelog-cherry-pick-${newVersion}`, commitMessage,
+        nextBranch, `changelog-cherry-pick-${releaseNotes.version}`, commitMessage,
         `Cherry-picks the changelog from the "${stagingBranch}" branch to the next ` +
             `branch (${nextBranch}).`);
 
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-lts-patch.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-lts-patch.ts
index a3593f4929..91b839b192 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-lts-patch.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-lts-patch.ts
@@ -41,11 +41,12 @@ export class CutLongTermSupportPatchAction extends ReleaseAction {
   async perform() {
     const ltsBranch = await this._promptForTargetLtsBranch();
     const newVersion = semverInc(ltsBranch.version, 'patch');
-    const {id} = await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, ltsBranch.name);
+    const {pullRequest: {id}, releaseNotes} =
+        await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, ltsBranch.name);
 
     await this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
     await this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, ltsBranch.name, ltsBranch.npmDistTag);
-    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, ltsBranch.name);
+    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, ltsBranch.name);
   }
 
   /** Prompts the user to select an LTS branch for which a patch should but cut. */
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-new-patch.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-new-patch.ts
index fe8d79203f..4c494d2a37 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-new-patch.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-new-patch.ts
@@ -28,11 +28,12 @@ export class CutNewPatchAction extends ReleaseAction {
     const {branchName} = this.active.latest;
     const newVersion = this._newVersion;
 
-    const {id} = await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+    const {pullRequest: {id}, releaseNotes} =
+        await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
 
     await this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
     await this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'latest');
-    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
   }
 
   static async isActive(active: ActiveReleaseTrains) {
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-next-prerelease.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-next-prerelease.ts
index 40ecb20fd1..b9998d5ccd 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-next-prerelease.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-next-prerelease.ts
@@ -32,7 +32,8 @@ export class CutNextPrereleaseAction extends ReleaseAction {
     const {branchName} = releaseTrain;
     const newVersion = await this._newVersion;
 
-    const {id} = await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+    const {pullRequest: {id}, releaseNotes} =
+        await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
 
     await this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
     await this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'next');
@@ -41,7 +42,7 @@ export class CutNextPrereleaseAction extends ReleaseAction {
     // to the next release-train, cherry-pick the changelog into the primary
     // development branch. i.e. the `next` branch that is usually `master`.
     if (releaseTrain !== this.active.next) {
-      await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+      await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-release-candidate.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-release-candidate.ts
index 716446a1ee..93ba374fcb 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-release-candidate.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-release-candidate.ts
@@ -26,11 +26,12 @@ export class CutReleaseCandidateAction extends ReleaseAction {
     const {branchName} = this.active.releaseCandidate!;
     const newVersion = this._newVersion;
 
-    const {id} = await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+    const {pullRequest: {id}, releaseNotes} =
+        await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
 
     await this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
     await this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'next');
-    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
   }
 
   static async isActive(active: ActiveReleaseTrains) {
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-stable.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-stable.ts
index 0db17c0bba..e34bd905b5 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-stable.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/cut-stable.ts
@@ -31,7 +31,8 @@ export class CutStableAction extends ReleaseAction {
     const isNewMajor = this.active.releaseCandidate?.isMajor;
 
 
-    const {id} = await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
+    const {pullRequest: {id}, releaseNotes} =
+        await this.checkoutBranchAndStageVersion(newVersion, branchName);
 
     await this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
     await this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, branchName, 'latest');
@@ -53,7 +54,7 @@ export class CutStableAction extends ReleaseAction {
       await invokeSetNpmDistCommand(ltsTagForPatch, previousPatch.version);
     }
 
-    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(newVersion, branchName);
+    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branchName);
   }
 
   /** Gets the new stable version of the release candidate release-train. */
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/move-next-into-feature-freeze.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/move-next-into-feature-freeze.ts
index 0ecf632227..591b837524 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/move-next-into-feature-freeze.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/actions/move-next-into-feature-freeze.ts
@@ -8,12 +8,13 @@
 
 import * as semver from 'semver';
 
-import {error, green, info, yellow} from '../../../utils/console';
+import {green, info, yellow} from '../../../utils/console';
 import {ActiveReleaseTrains} from '../../versioning/active-release-trains';
 import {computeNewPrereleaseVersionForNext} from '../../versioning/next-prerelease-version';
 import {ReleaseAction} from '../actions';
-import {getCommitMessageForExceptionalNextVersionBump} from '../commit-message';
-import {packageJsonPath} from '../constants';
+import {getCommitMessageForExceptionalNextVersionBump, getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage} from '../commit-message';
+import {changelogPath, packageJsonPath} from '../constants';
+import {ReleaseNotes} from '../release-notes/release-notes';
 
 /**
  * Release action that moves the next release-train into the feature-freeze phase. This means
@@ -39,15 +40,15 @@ export class MoveNextIntoFeatureFreezeAction extends ReleaseAction {
     // Stage the new version for the newly created branch, and push changes to a
     // fork in order to create a staging pull request. Note that we re-use the newly
     // created branch instead of re-fetching from the upstream.
-    const stagingPullRequest =
+    const {pullRequest: {id}, releaseNotes} =
         await this.stageVersionForBranchAndCreatePullRequest(newVersion, newBranch);
 
     // Wait for the staging PR to be merged. Then build and publish the feature-freeze next
     // pre-release. Finally, cherry-pick the release notes into the next branch in combination
     // with bumping the version to the next minor too.
-    await this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(stagingPullRequest.id);
+    await this.waitForPullRequestToBeMerged(id);
     await this.buildAndPublish(newVersion, newBranch, 'next');
-    await this._createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(newVersion, newBranch);
+    await this._createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(releaseNotes, newVersion);
   }
 
   /** Creates a new version branch from the next branch. */
@@ -64,7 +65,8 @@ export class MoveNextIntoFeatureFreezeAction extends ReleaseAction {
    * Creates a pull request for the next branch that bumps the version to the next
    * minor, and cherry-picks the changelog for the newly branched-off feature-freeze version.
    */
-  private async _createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(newVersion: semver.SemVer, newBranch: string) {
+  private async _createNextBranchUpdatePullRequest(
+      releaseNotes: ReleaseNotes, newVersion: semver.SemVer) {
     const {branchName: nextBranch, version} = this.active.next;
     // We increase the version for the next branch to the next minor. The team can decide
     // later if they want next to be a major through the `Configure Next as Major` release action.
@@ -78,19 +80,16 @@ export class MoveNextIntoFeatureFreezeAction extends ReleaseAction {
     // a separate commit that makes it clear where the changelog is cherry-picked from.
     await this.createCommit(bumpCommitMessage, [packageJsonPath]);
 
+    await this.prependReleaseNotesToChangelog(releaseNotes);
+
+    const commitMessage = getReleaseNoteCherryPickCommitMessage(releaseNotes.version);
+
+    await this.createCommit(commitMessage, [changelogPath]);
+
     let nextPullRequestMessage = `The previous "next" release-train has moved into the ` +
         `release-candidate phase. This PR updates the next branch to the subsequent ` +
-        `release-train.`;
-    const hasChangelogCherryPicked =
-        await this.createCherryPickReleaseNotesCommitFrom(newVersion, newBranch);
-
-    if (hasChangelogCherryPicked) {
-      nextPullRequestMessage += `\n\nAlso this PR cherry-picks the changelog for ` +
-          `v${newVersion} into the ${nextBranch} branch so that the changelog is up to date.`;
-    } else {
-      error(yellow(`  ✘   Could not cherry-pick release notes for v${newVersion}.`));
-      error(yellow(`      Please copy the release note manually into "${nextBranch}".`));
-    }
+        `release-train.\n\nAlso this PR cherry-picks the changelog for ` +
+        `v${newVersion} into the ${nextBranch} branch so that the changelog is up to date.`;
 
     const nextUpdatePullRequest = await this.pushChangesToForkAndCreatePullRequest(
         nextBranch, `next-release-train-${newNextVersion}`,
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/release-notes/release-notes.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/release-notes/release-notes.ts
index 15f6eb03df..edbad43238 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/release-notes/release-notes.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/release-notes/release-notes.ts
@@ -10,25 +10,12 @@ import {join} from 'path';
 import * as semver from 'semver';
 
 import {getCommitsInRange} from '../../../commit-message/utils';
-import {getConfig} from '../../../utils/config';
 import {promptInput} from '../../../utils/console';
 import {GitClient} from '../../../utils/git/index';
-import {getReleaseConfig} from '../../config/index';
+import {ReleaseConfig} from '../../config/index';
 import {changelogPath} from '../constants';
 import {RenderContext} from './context';
 
-
-/**
- * Gets the default pattern for extracting release notes for the given version.
- * This pattern matches for the conventional-changelog Angular preset.
- */
-export function getDefaultExtractReleaseNotesPattern(version: semver.SemVer): RegExp {
-  const escapedVersion = version.format().replace('.', '\\.');
-  // TODO: Change this once we have a canonical changelog generation tool. Also update this
-  // based on the conventional-changelog version. They removed anchors in more recent versions.
-  return new RegExp(`(<a name="${escapedVersion}"></a>.*?)(?:<a name="|$)`, 's');
-}
-
 /** Gets the path for the changelog file in a given project. */
 export function getLocalChangelogFilePath(projectDir: string): string {
   return join(projectDir, changelogPath);
@@ -37,33 +24,35 @@ export function getLocalChangelogFilePath(projectDir: string): string {
 
 /** Release note generation. */
 export class ReleaseNotes {
+  /** Construct a release note generation instance. */
+  static async fromLatestTagToHead(version: semver.SemVer, config: ReleaseConfig):
+      Promise<ReleaseNotes> {
+    return new ReleaseNotes(version, config);
+  }
+
   /** An instance of GitClient. */
   private git = GitClient.getInstance();
-  /** The github configuration. */
-  private readonly github = getConfig().github;
-  /** The configuration for the release notes generation. */
-  // TODO(josephperrott): Remove non-null assertion after usage of ReleaseNotes is integrated into
-  // release publish tooling.
-  private readonly config = getReleaseConfig().releaseNotes! || {};
-  /** A promise resolving to a list of Commits since the latest semver tag on the branch. */
-  private commits = getCommitsInRange(this.git.getLatestSemverTag().format(), 'HEAD');
   /** The RenderContext to be used during rendering. */
   private renderContext: RenderContext|undefined;
   /** The title to use for the release. */
   private title: string|false|undefined;
+  /** A promise resolving to a list of Commits since the latest semver tag on the branch. */
+  private commits = getCommitsInRange(this.git.getLatestSemverTag().format(), 'HEAD');
 
-  constructor(private version: semver.SemVer) {}
+  private constructor(public readonly version: semver.SemVer, private config: ReleaseConfig) {}
 
   /** Retrieve the release note generated for a Github Release. */
   async getGithubReleaseEntry(): Promise<string> {
-    return await renderFile(
-        join(__dirname, 'templates/github-release.ejs'), await this.generateRenderContext());
+    return renderFile(
+        join(__dirname, 'templates/github-release.ejs'), await this.generateRenderContext(),
+        {rmWhitespace: true});
   }
 
   /** Retrieve the release note generated for a CHANGELOG entry. */
   async getChangelogEntry() {
-    return await renderFile(
-        join(__dirname, 'templates/changelog.ejs'), await this.generateRenderContext());
+    return renderFile(
+        join(__dirname, 'templates/changelog.ejs'), await this.generateRenderContext(),
+        {rmWhitespace: true});
   }
 
   /**
@@ -72,7 +61,7 @@ export class ReleaseNotes {
    */
   async promptForReleaseTitle() {
     if (this.title === undefined) {
-      if (this.config.useReleaseTitle) {
+      if (this.config.releaseNotes.useReleaseTitle) {
         this.title = await promptInput('Please provide a title for the release:');
       } else {
         this.title = false;
@@ -86,10 +75,10 @@ export class ReleaseNotes {
     if (!this.renderContext) {
       this.renderContext = new RenderContext({
         commits: await this.commits,
-        github: getConfig().github,
+        github: this.git.remoteConfig,
         version: this.version.format(),
-        groupOrder: this.config.groupOrder,
-        hiddenScopes: this.config.hiddenScopes,
+        groupOrder: this.config.releaseNotes.groupOrder,
+        hiddenScopes: this.config.releaseNotes.hiddenScopes,
         title: await this.promptForReleaseTitle(),
       });
     }
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/BUILD.bazel b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/BUILD.bazel
index b958bdb9c2..3bb2a41242 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/BUILD.bazel
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/BUILD.bazel
@@ -33,5 +33,8 @@ jasmine_node_test(
     # enabled in NodeJS. TODO: Remove this with rules_nodejs 3.x where patching is optional.
     # https://github.com/bazelbuild/rules_nodejs/commit/7d070ffadf9c3b41711382a4737b995f987c14fa.
     args = ["--nobazel_patch_module_resolver"],
+    data = [
+        "//dev-infra/release/publish/release-notes/templates",
+    ],
     deps = [":test_lib"],
 )
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/common.spec.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/common.spec.ts
index b5fc18563a..a349aedb99 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/common.spec.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/common.spec.ts
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ import {ReleaseTrain} from '../../versioning/release-trains';
 import {ReleaseAction} from '../actions';
 import {actions} from '../actions/index';
 import {changelogPath} from '../constants';
+import {ReleaseNotes} from '../release-notes/release-notes';
 
 import {fakeNpmPackageQueryRequest, getChangelogForVersion, getTestingMocksForReleaseAction, parse, setupReleaseActionForTesting, testTmpDir} from './test-utils';
 
@@ -89,7 +90,7 @@ describe('common release action logic', () => {
     const fakeReleaseNotes = getChangelogForVersion(version.format());
     const forkBranchName = `changelog-cherry-pick-${version}`;
 
-    it('should prepend fetched changelog', async () => {
+    it('should prepend the changelog to the next branch', async () => {
       const {repo, fork, instance, testTmpDir} =
           setupReleaseActionForTesting(TestAction, baseReleaseTrains);
 
@@ -109,62 +110,6 @@ describe('common release action logic', () => {
       expect(changelogContent).toEqual(`${fakeReleaseNotes}Existing changelog`);
     });
 
-    it('should respect a custom release note extraction pattern', async () => {
-      const {repo, fork, instance, testTmpDir, releaseConfig} =
-          setupReleaseActionForTesting(TestAction, baseReleaseTrains);
-
-      // Custom pattern matching changelog output sections grouped through
-      // basic level-1 markdown headers (compared to the default anchor pattern).
-      releaseConfig.extractReleaseNotesPattern = version =>
-          new RegExp(`(# v${version} \\("[^"]+"\\).*?)(?:# v|$)`, 's');
-
-      const customReleaseNotes = `# v${version} ("newton-kepler")\n\nNew Content!`;
-
-      // Expect the changelog to be fetched and return a fake changelog to test that
-      // it is properly appended. Also expect a pull request to be created in the fork.
-      repo.expectChangelogFetch(branchName, customReleaseNotes)
-          .expectFindForkRequest(fork)
-          .expectPullRequestToBeCreated('master', fork, forkBranchName, 200)
-          .expectPullRequestWait(200);
-
-      // Simulate that the fork branch name is available.
-      fork.expectBranchRequest(forkBranchName, null);
-
-      await instance.testCherryPickWithPullRequest(version, branchName);
-
-      const changelogContent = readFileSync(join(testTmpDir, changelogPath), 'utf8');
-      expect(changelogContent).toEqual(`${customReleaseNotes}\n\nExisting changelog`);
-    });
-
-    it('should print an error if release notes cannot be extracted', async () => {
-      const {repo, fork, instance, testTmpDir, releaseConfig} =
-          setupReleaseActionForTesting(TestAction, baseReleaseTrains);
-
-      // Expect the changelog to be fetched and return a fake changelog to test that
-      // it is properly appended. Also expect a pull request to be created in the fork.
-      repo.expectChangelogFetch(branchName, `non analyzable changelog`)
-          .expectFindForkRequest(fork)
-          .expectPullRequestToBeCreated('master', fork, forkBranchName, 200)
-          .expectPullRequestWait(200);
-
-      // Simulate that the fork branch name is available.
-      fork.expectBranchRequest(forkBranchName, null);
-
-      spyOn(console, 'error');
-
-      await instance.testCherryPickWithPullRequest(version, branchName);
-
-      expect(console.error)
-          .toHaveBeenCalledWith(
-              jasmine.stringMatching(`Could not cherry-pick release notes for v${version}`));
-      expect(console.error)
-          .toHaveBeenCalledWith(jasmine.stringMatching(
-              `Please copy the release notes manually into the "master" branch.`));
-
-      const changelogContent = readFileSync(join(testTmpDir, changelogPath), 'utf8');
-      expect(changelogContent).toEqual(`Existing changelog`);
-    });
-
     it('should push changes to a fork for creating a pull request', async () => {
       const {repo, fork, instance, gitClient} =
           setupReleaseActionForTesting(TestAction, baseReleaseTrains);
@@ -214,6 +159,7 @@ class TestAction extends ReleaseAction {
   }
 
   async testCherryPickWithPullRequest(version: semver.SemVer, branch: string) {
-    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(version, branch);
+    const releaseNotes = await ReleaseNotes.fromLatestTagToHead(version, this.config);
+    await this.cherryPickChangelogIntoNextBranch(releaseNotes, branch);
   }
 }
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/move-next-into-feature-freeze.spec.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/move-next-into-feature-freeze.spec.ts
index 11a64ca486..78309754f9 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/move-next-into-feature-freeze.spec.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/move-next-into-feature-freeze.spec.ts
@@ -140,7 +140,6 @@ describe('move next into feature-freeze action', () => {
             'Expected next release-train update branch be created in fork.');
 
     expect(externalCommands.invokeReleaseBuildCommand).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
-    expect(releaseConfig.generateReleaseNotesForHead).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
     expect(npm.runNpmPublish).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
     expect(npm.runNpmPublish).toHaveBeenCalledWith(`${testTmpDir}/dist/pkg1`, 'next', undefined);
     expect(npm.runNpmPublish).toHaveBeenCalledWith(`${testTmpDir}/dist/pkg2`, 'next', undefined);
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/test-utils.ts b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/test-utils.ts
index 76b254dd57..0cffd5b8ff 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/publish/test/test-utils.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/publish/test/test-utils.ts
@@ -11,9 +11,10 @@ import * as nock from 'nock';
 import {join} from 'path';
 import * as semver from 'semver';
 
+import * as commitMessageUtils from '../../../commit-message/utils';
 import {GithubConfig} from '../../../utils/config';
 import * as console from '../../../utils/console';
-import {getBranchPushMatcher, VirtualGitClient} from '../../../utils/testing';
+import {getBranchPushMatcher, installVirtualGitClientSpies, VirtualGitClient} from '../../../utils/testing';
 import {ReleaseConfig} from '../../config/index';
 import {ActiveReleaseTrains} from '../../versioning/active-release-trains';
 import * as npm from '../../versioning/npm-publish';
@@ -21,6 +22,7 @@ import {_npmPackageInfoCache, NpmPackageInfo} from '../../versioning/npm-registr
 import {ReleaseAction, ReleaseActionConstructor} from '../actions';
 import * as constants from '../constants';
 import * as externalCommands from '../external-commands';
+import {buildDateStamp} from '../release-notes/context';
 
 import {GithubTestingRepo} from './github-api-testing';
 
@@ -50,7 +52,7 @@ export function getTestingMocksForReleaseAction() {
       '@angular/pkg1',
       '@angular/pkg2',
     ],
-    generateReleaseNotesForHead: jasmine.createSpy('generateReleaseNotesForHead').and.resolveTo(),
+    releaseNotes: {},
     buildPackages: () => {
       throw Error('Not implemented');
     },
@@ -67,6 +69,9 @@ export function getTestingMocksForReleaseAction() {
 export function setupReleaseActionForTesting<T extends ReleaseAction>(
     actionCtor: ReleaseActionConstructor<T>, active: ActiveReleaseTrains,
     isNextPublishedToNpm = true): TestReleaseAction<T> {
+  installVirtualGitClientSpies();
+  spyOn(commitMessageUtils, 'getCommitsInRange').and.returnValue(Promise.resolve([]));
+
   // Reset existing HTTP interceptors.
   nock.cleanAll();
 
@@ -121,7 +126,7 @@ export function parse(version: string): semver.SemVer {
 
 /** Gets a changelog for the specified version. */
 export function getChangelogForVersion(version: string): string {
-  return `<a name="${version}"></a>Changelog\n\n`;
+  return `<a name="${version}"></a>\n# ${version} (${buildDateStamp()})\n\n\n`;
 }
 
 export async function expectStagingAndPublishWithoutCherryPick(
@@ -166,7 +171,6 @@ export async function expectStagingAndPublishWithoutCherryPick(
           'Expected release staging branch to be created in fork.');
 
   expect(externalCommands.invokeReleaseBuildCommand).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
-  expect(releaseConfig.generateReleaseNotesForHead).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
   expect(npm.runNpmPublish).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
   expect(npm.runNpmPublish)
       .toHaveBeenCalledWith(`${testTmpDir}/dist/pkg1`, expectedNpmDistTag, undefined);
@@ -235,7 +239,6 @@ export async function expectStagingAndPublishWithCherryPick(
           'Expected cherry-pick branch to be created in fork.');
 
   expect(externalCommands.invokeReleaseBuildCommand).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
-  expect(releaseConfig.generateReleaseNotesForHead).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
   expect(npm.runNpmPublish).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
   expect(npm.runNpmPublish)
       .toHaveBeenCalledWith(`${testTmpDir}/dist/pkg1`, expectedNpmDistTag, undefined);
diff --git a/dev-infra/release/set-dist-tag/set-dist-tag.spec.ts b/dev-infra/release/set-dist-tag/set-dist-tag.spec.ts
index f7c02b9853..13cbe1064a 100644
--- a/dev-infra/release/set-dist-tag/set-dist-tag.spec.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/release/set-dist-tag/set-dist-tag.spec.ts
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ describe('ng-dev release set-dist-tag', () => {
       npmPackages,
       publishRegistry,
       buildPackages: async () => [],
-      generateReleaseNotesForHead: async () => {}
+      releaseNotes: {},
     });
     await ReleaseSetDistTagCommand.handler({tagName, targetVersion, $0: '', _: []});
   }
diff --git a/dev-infra/utils/testing/BUILD.bazel b/dev-infra/utils/testing/BUILD.bazel
index 734fbc2153..0962e94d69 100644
--- a/dev-infra/utils/testing/BUILD.bazel
+++ b/dev-infra/utils/testing/BUILD.bazel
@@ -10,6 +10,8 @@ ts_library(
         "@npm//@types/jasmine",
         "@npm//@types/minimist",
         "@npm//@types/node",
+        "@npm//@types/semver",
         "@npm//minimist",
+        "@npm//semver",
     ],
 )
diff --git a/dev-infra/utils/testing/virtual-git-client.ts b/dev-infra/utils/testing/virtual-git-client.ts
index a1cbf1e2b5..37d59b446a 100644
--- a/dev-infra/utils/testing/virtual-git-client.ts
+++ b/dev-infra/utils/testing/virtual-git-client.ts
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 
 import {SpawnSyncOptions, SpawnSyncReturns} from 'child_process';
 import * as parseArgs from 'minimist';
+import {SemVer} from 'semver';
 
 import {NgDevConfig} from '../config';
 import {GitClient} from '../git/index';
@@ -82,6 +83,15 @@ export class VirtualGitClient<Authenticated extends boolean> extends GitClient<A
   /** List of pushed heads to a given remote ref. */
   pushed: {remote: RemoteRef, head: GitHead}[] = [];
 
+
+  /**
+   * Override the actual GitClient getLatestSemverTag, as an actual tag cannot be retrieved in
+   * testing.
+   */
+  getLatestSemverTag() {
+    return new SemVer('0.0.0');
+  }
+
   /** Override for the actual Git client command execution. */
   runGraceful(args: string[], options: SpawnSyncOptions = {}): SpawnSyncReturns<string> {
     const [command, ...rawArgs] = args;