rriving in London in the teeth of the pandemic to take a top music industry job, Shani Gonzales had few opportunities to immerse herself in British culture, with venues shut and parties off the table. The New Yorker instead turned to TV for her education, bingeing on
She says expanding songwriters’ reach globally has boosted Warner Chappell’s revenues. The publisher traces its roots to 1811 and has been in its current form since the 1980s, its history connecting the compositions of Ludwig van Beethoven to modern artists such as Lizzo and Madonna. Its roster includes David Bowie, Dua Lipa and
“This business cannot and does not stop in the US, so we’ve made some changes, paid more attention around the world, and been more global, not just local,” Gonzales says in her London office off Kensington High Street, where gold and platinum discs from artists such as Rihanna andwho is a majority owner of Warner Music through his Access Industries vehicle, saying he is “tuned in and paying attention”.
“You can play around in the studio and you can make, like, Drake sing a Bruce Springsteen tune. Right now, people are just having fun and throwing it up online, but what happens when someone says: ‘I’m going to sell that’? I wouldn’t go to a restaurant, take the food and not expect to .”