UMG has restructured its US organisational model for recorded music with greater responsibilities for senior executives John Janick and Monte Lipman.
The changes were outlined in a memo from Universal Music Group CEO Sir Lucian Grainge, which Music Week has seen.
Monte Lipman heads up Republic and John Janick is in charge at Interscope Geffen A&M (IGA), the No.1 and No.2 label for market share in the US in 2023.
“John and Monte bring to UMG unique and complementary skills in how they lead their organisations and how they envision positioning them for success in the future,” wrote Sir Lucian. “To accelerate those strategies and maximise their effect, today I am appointing Monte and John to lead a broader part of our US recorded music business.”
Under this new operating model, the pair will support label heads at UMG’s US labels. Janick will have oversight of Blue Note, Capitol, Geffen, Interscope, Motown, Priority and Verve, while Lipman will do the same for Def Jam, Island, Mercury and Republic.
“As our labels continue to maintain their creative A&R and marketing independence, unique identities, and entrepreneurial spirit, they’ll also be provided with access to the talent and resources best able to support their rosters and bring them to new levels of success,” wrote Sir Lucian. “It’s a proven model we pioneered on the East Coast several years ago – one that we will accelerate and expand.
“As this model takes shape and spurs new creativity, our US recorded music business will continue to outperform and outgrow our competition. Led by the industry’s best creative visionaries – we will cultivate more repertoire sources, we will invest more in new artists and emerging genres, and UMG will become an even more attractive destination for the world’s most gifted artists.”
John Janick and Monte Lipman will be making further announcements about structure, resources and partnerships in the weeks ahead.
Sir Lucian reiterated the plans for other initiatives outlined in his New Year’s message, including super-fan and audience monetisation, state-of-the-art D2C, e-commerce, branding and more.
“I am certain that we will look back on today as a pivotal moment in the evolution of UMG, marking the start of the next powerful wave of our commercial and creative growth and success,” he added.
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