MBW readers already know that Bruno Mars has broken Spotify’s record multiple times over the past two months to become the platform’s most-listened-to-monthly artist.
What you may not know is Warner Music Group– Talent affiliated with streaming services.
WMG CEO said, Robert KinkelWarner is now home to “the hottest songwriters on the planet,” Amy Allenwho co-wrote the hit song easy With Bruno Mars and Rose.
Not only that, WMG also cooperates with artists behind the world’s largest record labels through Warner Records. advertising billboard Top Songs of 2024 (Benson Boone) Plus this year’s hottest U.S. (Teddy swimming).
These achievements have been Kenl An internal note obtained by MBW today (December 18).
In the note, Kyncl praised 2024 for “innovative success across the company” and thanked the WMG global team for their “dedication and enthusiasm over the past year.”
Kyncl also argued that the company “helped [its] Artists and songwriters doing new, brave, disruptive things” WMG has “hosted [itself] reach the same standard.”
Kyncl added: “The industry is at an inflection point and the changes we’ve made this year put us in a leading position.”
Read Robert Kyncl’s full note below…
Hello everyone,
I wanted to take a moment to thank you for your incredible dedication and enthusiasm over the past year.
In January, I talked about 2024 as “the next decade,” the year we will prepare for the next decade. We wrap up the year with the year’s No. 1 listened artist, the year’s No. 1 song, and the year’s most popular songwriter. I know the last twelve months have been intense, and I’m so grateful that you’ve stepped up to the plate. We achieved what only a truly collaborative and committed team can achieve… We simultaneously served our artists and songwriters while doing the hard work of change.
In this industry, change is necessary…music means nothing without something new. New sounds, new ideas, fresh looks, different directions. This is what stands out the most. This is what eliminates noise. This burst of originality brought energy and optimism to the industry.
There are countless examples of innovative success across the company. In a description like this, I cannot be comprehensive, so please forgive me for giving just a few examples to highlight our trajectory.
Newcomer
We are leading the industry this year in terms of impactful new talent.
Benson Boone “Teddy Swims” has the hottest song in the world in 2024, and “Teddy Swims” has the hottest song of the year in the United States, the largest market. Both are signed to Warner Records and Warner Chappell, and both are up for a Grammy Award for Best New Artist. Amy Allen became one of the hottest songwriters in the world and was nominated for a Grammy for Songwriter of the Year along with WCM’s Jessi Alexander and RAYE.
Across the world, we have an extraordinary new generation lighting the way forward, including Artemas, Aziya, Bea and her Business, BENNETT, Bug Eyed, Dasha, Florence Road, Forrest Frank, Jeff Satur, Jordan Adetunji, The Marías, Michael Marcagi , Tokischa, Roxy Dekker, TitoM and Yuppe.
new heights
We also help established artists and songwriters reach new heights and tell their stories in bold new ways.
Bruno Mars Officially Becomes World’s Biggest Artist (Breaking Record) 138 million Monthly listeners on Spotify! Roseherself setting a new streaming record for a K-pop solo artist.
Then there’s the radical novelty of Charli xcx’s Brat, or Linkin Park’s record-breaking return with a soulful new singer. As well as incredible new projects from stars around the world such as Alex Warren, Ana Mena, Ayed, AYLIVA, Bailey Zimmerman, Burna Boy, Cardi B, Charlie Zhou, Coldplay, CYRIL, Dani Fernández, David Guetta, Diljit Dosanjh, Don Toliver, Dua Lipa, Ed Sheeran, Fred…, Joelle, Gunnar, Inigo Quintero, Jack Harlow, Kenya Grace, King, Zhang Yixing , Lil Uzi Veidt, Maria Becerra, Megan Thee Stalling, Michael Bublé, Miriam Bryant, Mike Towers, NLE Choppa, SCH, TWENTY A Pilot, TWICE, Zach Bryan and more; plus reissues of iconic music from David Bowie, the Grateful Dead, Green Day, Joni Mitchell, Madonna, Neil Young and Talking Heads… …all of which win new fans and drive new traffic spikes.
New World
Not only do we help our artists and songwriters do new, brave, and disruptive things, we hold ourselves to the same standards. The industry is at an inflection point and the changes we’ve made this year put us at the leading edge.
While there’s still a lot of work to do, we’re getting stronger, faster and bolder all the time. As I said before, focus and simplicity bring huge intensity and impact:
Because of the changes we made, we delivered on our commitment to invest more in music…our A&R investment grew by double digits.
We prioritize market share growth, introducing groundbreaking new leaders in key markets, including the U.S., Atlantic and Japan, while investing in talent and entrepreneurs in high-growth regions like India.
We’ve shrunk the world and flattened our company to make it easier for artists to move around the world, while making our catalog and distribution services fully global.
We successfully championed innovation in pricing and royalty models for streaming services while demonstrating the potential of artificial intelligence (Randy Travis remains my personal favorite example!).
The thread here is our powerful ability to amplify unique sounds, enhance contrast and deliver new shocks. As we enter 2025, let’s rely on expertise… We want to expand the music ecosystem while, most importantly, increasing our share. Our mission is to turn dreams into stars and audiences into fans.
I hope you and your loved ones enjoy a well-earned vacation. There are a lot of exciting things coming in 2025!global music business
