During the Music Week Women In Music Awards 2026, we inducted a host of trailblazing industry executives into the Roll Of Honour, in association with Live Nation Women.
They join a huge list of previous honourees, including some of the leading names from across the business like Kanya King, Emma Banks, Charisse Beaumont, Rebecca Allen, Stacey Tang, Laura Monks, Shani Gonzales and Mary Anne Hobbs, who have been selected since the awards began in 2014. The Roll Of Honour aims to shine a spotlight on the variety of individuals who are leading the charge in the music industry and consistently using their platforms to support women, or focus on empowerment and gender disparity.
Following the Women In Music Awards ceremony, Music Week is running Q&A interviews with all of this year’s Roll Of Honour inductees.
Nickie Owen is president of international marketing at Universal Music Group UK. Since starting the job in 2022, she has overseen the global success of several artists – from breakthrough talent like Olivia Dean and Lola Young, to legendary acts such as Elton John and The Rolling Stones.
Owen is responsible for the global strategy across all of Universal’s UK-signed artists, including The Cure, Metallica, U2, The Last Dinner Party, Sam Fender, Dermot Kennedy, Bastille, Stormzy and Aurora. She also leads the international catalogue team in which she helps steer the international strategy for artists such as The Beatles.
Recently, Owen has led a number of hugely successful global campaigns. These include: Sam Fender & Olivia Dean’s record-breaking success with Rein Me In; The Rolling Stones’ album Foreign Tongues achieving 19 No.1s globally; The Cure’s Songs Of A Lost World reaching No.1 in 12 countries; Aurora hitting a billion streams in China, and British group FLO’s transatlantic momentum. She has also played an integral role in the international success of the Grammy-winning artists Olivia Dean (for The Art Of Loving and Man I Need) and Lola Young (Messy).
Prior to joining Universal, Owen worked in international marketing at EMI Records where she contributed to global campaigns for Robbie Williams, The Kooks, Blur, and more. Before her marketing career, she worked as Jamelia’s day-to-day manager and oversaw the singer’s global hit, Superstar. Here, she reflects on her career to date...
How do you feel about joining the Roll Of Honour?
“I’m absolutely thrilled and incredibly proud to be joining the Music Week Women In Music Roll Of Honour. The company I’m in this year – let alone the incredible women who have already been inducted – makes it even more of an honour to be included. What I love about the Roll Of Honour is that it spans the entire industry, so there’s such a brilliant mix of experience, disciplines and perspectives amongst us all. It was so lovely to connect with everyone at the ROH drinks and feel that sense of being part of something together. I’m also hugely grateful to Music Week for the support they’ve shown me throughout my career.”
Looking back, how do you reflect on your early years getting into the industry?
“Music has always been a huge part of my life and when I was at university thinking about career options, I didn’t really know where I would fit in or how I would go about getting there. I just knew I wanted to work in music. My first job was working for Jonathan Shalit [chairman, InterTalent] as an assistant at his company, then known as Shalit Global. It was a very small company at the time, so I learned a lot of different skills. Looking back, I’m so incredibly grateful for that experience. During my seven years with Jonathan, I worked my way up to being the day-to-day manager for Jamelia, who was signed to Parlophone. She went on to have huge success with her album, Thank You, and, of course, Superstar. Being in management gave me an insight into so many different aspects of the industry and taught me an enormous amount. Jamelia was also an international focus for Parlophone, which gave me my first real taste of international and of what it means to build an artist on a global stage. I loved it and that experience ultimately shaped the direction of my career.”
Did you have a mentor at that stage?
“I didn’t have one particular mentor but I was lucky to work with some incredible people, many of whom I’m still in touch with today. Tony Wadsworth [ex-CEO & chairman, EMI] was incredibly kind, Jonathan taught me about tenacity and hard work, and I met Jo Charrington [president, Capitol Records UK] and Nick Raphael [ex-president, Capitol Record UK; now co-founder, NWS Music Group] for the first time and saw what a long-term career in the music industry could look like. I was young and so thrilled to be working in music that I tried to take in as much as I possibly could. I asked questions, spent time with people and tried to learn from their journeys and experiences. It was Lucie Avery who ran international for Virgin Records who ultimately took a chance on me and offered me a job as a junior product manager in her team. I’ll always be grateful to her for that. She’s also a real inspiration to me as a female leader within the company, and she opened the door to the area of the business that became my career.”
You’ve been in the Universal family for nearly 20 years, but in the past 12 months you've appeared on the cover of Music Week with the Universal team, collected a Music Week Award with your colleagues, and are now on the Roll Of Honour. What highlights have stood out to you in a year of what must have been a bit of a blur professionally for you as well as for your artists?
“I’ve been with Universal Music Group UK for 12 years now, and I spent seven years at EMI. But the last 12 months have definitely been a bit of a blur – and very special. Working for Dickon Stainer [chairman & CEO, UMG UK] last year has been an incredible and positive experience for the team and I. His belief in the importance of international marketing has inspired a huge focus in the company, which has had really positive outcomes for some many of our artists. What makes me proudest is that the recognition has come alongside an extraordinary period for our artists and the international team. Seeing UK-signed acts connect at scale around the world is ultimately why we all do what we do. Whether that has been Olivia Dean and Lola Young becoming global artists, or delivering international success with iconic bands like The Rolling Stones and The Beatles, there have been so many moments where I’ve been able to look at the team and think this is exactly what we’re here to do. Collecting the International Marketing Team award at the Music Week Awards 2026 was particularly meaningful because it recognised a group of people I’m very proud of. And then being on the cover of Music Week with the group of incredible executives I respect so much and love working with was such a privilege. Joining the Roll Of Honour now has, personally, made me stop and reflect a little more than I normally would. I’m not naturally someone who spends much time looking backwards, but it has made me realise how fortunate I’ve been to build a career doing something I genuinely love.”
I benefited enormously from people seeing potential in me and creating space for me – I feel a responsibility now to do the same for others
Nickie Owen, Universal Music Group UK
As mentioned, your international team played a key role in breaking Olivia Dean and Lola Young globally. How did it feel to see two young women making such an incredible impact overseas and winning Grammys?
“Watching Olivia Dean and Lola Young pick up their Grammys [for Best New Artist and Best Pop Solo Performance, respectively] earlier this year was such a proud and overwhelming moment. We’ve watched them both grow and develop and, within our team, had the privilege of supporting the global growth of two very special artists throughout their individual journeys and campaigns. To then see them recognised on that stage was incredibly emotional and so richly deserved. It’s also inspirational to see young women succeed globally while being completely individual and uncompromising in who they are as artists. There isn’t one formula for what a successful female artist needs to look or sound like – that’s hugely exciting for the next generation. It takes an enormous number of people working in sync to help an artist reach those global heights, and the fact that the international team has played a part in that is incredibly rewarding. Our mission is to take our UK-signed artists to the world. That can mean anything from a track entering charts in a new market for the first time, to an artist standing on the Grammy stage. Every person in our team feels that responsibility alongside our colleagues around the world and when it all aligns, it really is magical.”
UMG UK has promoted women to senior roles in recent years. Do you feel the company has succeeded in making progress in this area?
“I’ve seen a really positive evolution during my time at Universal Music Group UK. There are now brilliant women leading across so many different parts of the company and, importantly, there is a generation of women coming through who can look upwards and see a variety of routes into senior leadership. Representation matters, but for me the next part is making sure women are given opportunities and the chance to take on bigger roles, make decisions, lead teams and build confidence in their own abilities. I benefited enormously from people seeing potential in me and creating space for me to step into before I necessarily felt completely ready myself. I feel a responsibility now to do the same for others.”
What’s your biggest achievement so far?
“Probably the team I’ve built and seeing the people within it grow. Of course, there are artist moments I will never forget – from global breakthroughs, No.1s, awards and campaigns that have taken on a life of their own around the world. But the thing I feel most personally proud of is creating a team where people can develop, take ownership and ultimately become brilliant leaders themselves. Over the last few years our international team has evolved enormously both in terms of what we do and the level of responsibility we carry for our artists globally. Watching people step up, lead campaigns and develop their own voices has been incredibly rewarding. The artists’ successes are then the result of that collective strength, but knowing that we have built a team capable of delivering those moments consistently is probably what makes me proudest.”
Can you offer some advice for young women about enjoying a successful career in music?
“Be curious, work hard and don’t be frightened of saying you don’t know something. Some of the most valuable things I learned early in my career came from asking questions and spending time with people whose jobs or experiences were completely different from mine. I’d also say don’t wait until you feel 100% ready before putting yourself forward. I certainly didn’t always have the confidence to see myself in the next role before someone else saw it in me. Take the opportunity, trust that you can learn what you don’t yet know and surround yourself with people who want you to succeed. And finally, enjoy it. We work in an extraordinary industry. It can be intense and demanding, but we get to work with music, artists and incredibly creative people every day. I still feel incredibly lucky to do that.”
And what is the best advice you’ve ever had?
“Simply: ‘You can do it.’ I was incredibly lucky in my early years at Universal that David Joseph [ex-chairman & CEO, UMG UK] saw something in me that I hadn’t yet seen in myself. He believed in me and gave me opportunities to step up and fill the space that he had created for me. I don’t take that for granted particularly because I was also a mother of two young children at the time and trying to work out how all those different parts of my life could co-exist. I’ve really tried to carry that forward in the way that I lead now. I genuinely believe in the people in my team, and I want to give them the confidence they might not yet have in themselves. Whether that’s running a campaign or leading a team, sometimes someone simply telling you you can do it is incredibly powerful. Nurturing that self-belief is especially important for women and for retaining brilliant female talent in our industry.”
Is there a young woman you'd like to shout out who you think is a rising star in the industry?
“I’m very lucky that there are so many brilliant women in my own team, so firstly a huge shout-out to all of them! We also work alongside amazing female executives across Universal and some exceptional female managers. Two people I particularly admire are Emily Braham and Sarah Howell, who manage Olivia Dean. They lead with kindness and mutual respect while being incredibly ambitious for their artist. They’re brilliant examples of a new generation of leadership in our industry and I can’t wait to see where their careers take them.”
Similarly, is there a young woman artist whose music you're enjoying right now/excited about?
“There is such a brilliant breadth of young female talent coming through across our labels that I’d find it almost impossible to single out one. What excites me is how individual the artists are. There isn’t one sound, one route or one version of what a successful female artist should be. We’re seeing women coming through across pop, R&B, alternative and singer-songwriter music with really distinct identities. That makes it an incredibly exciting moment for British female talent.”
Finally, what’s your biggest lesson from 2026 so far?
“I would say patience and partnership. So much of what we do depends on being completely in lockstep with the brilliant teams around us, managers, labels, promoters and our Universal Music colleagues around the world. The biggest successes happen when everybody understands the ambition and is pulling in the same direction. And then there’s patience. One of the joys of international is that a hit or a moment can come from anywhere, at any time. Our job is to keep doing the work, supporting artists and helping them connect with audiences so that when that moment comes, we’re ready for it. I’ve learned that good leadership is partly knowing when to push, when to listen and when to give something more time.”
