Manusha Sarawan named UMG managing director of Southern and East Africa

In her new role, Sarawan will continue to work closely with Adam Granite, UMG’s executive vice-president for market development, to grow the major label’s roster of artists while helping them achieve success both domestically and around the world.

“I am delighted to promote Manusha to managing director for Southern and East Africa,” Granite said. “She’s someone I’ve known since her days at Sony, and during her time at Universal she has repeatedly shown her leadership skills and strong business acumen.

“Manusha is ideally suited to developing the careers of our market-leading label roster – both regionally and internationally – I can’t wait to see her go from strength to strength.”

Sarawan is a business leader with decades of experience working at the intersection of business and creativity, including several years at Sony Music South Africa.

She has held various roles across the music industry, most recently as the chief operating officer at UMG sub-Saharan Africa, where she oversaw day-to-day operations. 

“This is an incredibly exciting time for African music as it continues to build new audiences both here and across the world,” Sarawan said. “We have an amazing roster of talent here, and it’s a huge privilege to get to work with our artists and our talented team to promote African music on the world stage.”

UMG said: “At UMG South Africa, Sarawan pioneered a digital-first approach to business that has been integral to the company’s success in the region as streaming has become more and more widespread. In addition, she has played a key role in negotiating the contracts of some of the most successful African artists and has been a tireless champion, helping platform African music on the global stage.”

UMG has a long and successful history across the continent and was the first major label to open offices in Kenya, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Cameroon and Morocco alongside its established operations in Nigeria and South Africa.