Billboard names African music execs in 2024 International Power Players list

Among them are Warner Music Africa managing director Temi Adeniji, Universal Music Africa managing director Frank Kacou, Gallo Music general manager Rob Cowling, and EMPIRE’s vice-president of strategy and market development for Africa and the Diaspora Ezegozie Eze Jr, all of whom made the list in previous years. The rest are EMPIRE’s regional head of West Africa Mobolaji Kareem and Sheer Publishing Africa managing director Thando Makhunga.

The annual list, covering all major regions, comprises label executives, music publishers, independent entrepreneurs, artist managers and concert promoters. The executives, all of whom “have primary responsibility for markets outside the United States,” are nominated by their firms and peers and chosen by Billboard’s editors from selected industry sectors.

Billboard says the selection is also based on industry impact, chart performance, sales, streaming data, market share, revenue estimates, social media presence, radio reach, tour grosses and sales. 

The list also lauds non-African industry leaders fostering growth on the continent, across top companies like Universal Music Group, Virgin Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Boomplay, Platoon and YouTube Music.

The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) reported in its 2024 Global Music Report that the African music industry experienced significant growth in 2023. Sub-Saharan Africa, in particular, saw the largest growth among all regions for the second consecutive year.

“The sustained growth of the recorded-music market is encouraging, but it’s also right for us to acknowledge the challenges the industry faces, including streaming fraud, digital piracy in all its forms and, of course, the threat from the abuse of generative artificial intelligence if it is not developed responsibly and with respect for artists’ and labels’ rights,” IFPI chief legal officer/interim joint head Lauri Rechardt said.

Meanwhile, Alexandra Lioutikoff, Universal Music Publishing Group’s (UMPG’s) president of Latin America and the US, has been announced as the recipient of Billboard’s maiden International Power Players’ Choice Award. The accolade, determined through peer voting, invites music industry professionals worldwide to recognise the international executive they believe made the most significant impact across the business in the past year. It ran alongside Billboard’s International Power Players list.

“I’m truly grateful for this recognition,” Lioutikoff said. “UMPG is proud to be at the forefront of global music, especially Latin, which has cemented its place in the landscape. We have long understood that all music is world music, regardless of language or geography, and it’s great to see diverse songs, cultures and tastes be embraced everywhere.”

View the full Billboard 2024 International Power Players list here.