Ben McOwen Wilson will succeed Andrea Czapary Martin as chief executive officer at PRS For Music.
McOwen Wilson will arrive at the company on October 12, arriving from a leadership position at YouTube and Google Play across EMEA.
With more than 25 years of service across the creative industries, the executive has extensive experience including working on the launch of UEFA’s digital platforms and chairing the UK Broadcasters’ Project Kangaroo during the rise of video-on-demand.
McOwen Wilson was appointed as the first chair of the Royal Television Society Cambridge Convention to come from outside the traditional TV industry, while he has also worked with the UK’s Creative Industries Council and the Creative Industries Federation.
In the age of AI and accelerated digital distribution, protecting the integrity and value of human creativity is our most urgent priority
Ben McOwen Wilson, PRS For Music
“PRS For Music is built on trust, transparency, and a relentless commitment to its members,” said McOwen Wilson. “It is a privilege to lead this organisation at a time when the voice of the creator must be louder than ever.”
He added: “In the age of AI and accelerated digital distribution, protecting the integrity and value of human creativity is our most urgent priority. My focus will be on ensuring PRS serves as a catalyst for our members' success, ensuring they remain at the centre of a sustainable and growing global music ecosystem.”
Finally, McOwen Wilson named his “first priority” as “listening and learning, to understand the needs of members, customers, and partners, and with them shape an ambitious future for the society”.
“I am excited by the opportunities ahead of us and committed to serve our members’ interests unswervingly,” he said.
Julian Nott, chair of the PRS Members’ Council, said: “Songwriters, composers and publishers need a society working tirelessly to champion them and their rights. A society which embraces innovation and has the confidence to shape the future, not simply respond to it. Ben is an outstanding leader with all the skills necessary to guide PRS for Music through the many changes in the music industry and the wider media market.”
Nott added that, “Ben impressed us from the very beginning, he understands the technologies that are transforming the creative industries, but he also understands that innovation only succeeds if it works for the creators”.
Ben is an outstanding leader with all the skills necessary to guide PRS for Music through the many changes in the music industry and the wider media market
Julian Nott, PRS Members' Council
“We are confident that he will champion members' interests at home and around the world, leading us boldly into the next phase of our evolution,” he said.
McOwen Wilson was appointed following an “extensive international search” and, according to a press release, was selected “because of the breadth of experience he brings to the opportunities and challenges facing PRS and its members”.
He is also a trained psychologist, and has advocated for sustainable creative careers and for democratising access to the creative arts, amplifying diverse, home-grown voices from across Britain.
McOwen Wilson succeeds outgoing CEO Andrea Czapary Martin, winner of Businesswoman Of The Year at the Music Week Women In Music Awards in 2023.
Czapary Martin was recently profiled in our Spotlight feature.
“The advice to my successor is to continue innovating and embracing new ideas,” she told us. “Every industry is going to change. I don’t believe that AI is a bubble. So continue being a leader in new ideas. PRS drove a lot of things in the industry and elevated the bar. So I think it’s really important that we continue that.”
Read the interview in full here.
FOLLOW 
