ALLEN OUT, FAXON IN AT EMI
In a release, EMI said the moves will "reposition [it] as a comprehensive rights management company serving artists and songwriters worwide" under Faxon, who has been Chairman/Chief Executive of EMI Music Publishing since 2007. He was previously EVP/COO for LucasFilm Ltd. He founded the movie and TV production business The Mount Company in 1984, producing such movies as Bull Durham and Tequila Sunrise, before moving to Tri-Star and Columbia Pictures, leading the studio's marketing, distribution, business affairs, physical production and finance departments. He moved to EMI Music in 1994 to lead worldwide strategy development.
Said Faxon: "I am delighted and honored to become Group Chief Executive of EMI, and to be given the responsibility for leading one of the greatest music brands in the world. There is incredible talent and expertise within both EMI Music Publishing and EMI Music, as has been demonstrated by their recent performance. I believe that the two divisions working in concert with one another as a global rights management business, can and will deliver for the artists and songwriters that we are privileged to work with now and in the future."
Stephen Alexander was named Chairman of Maltby Capital, the holding company of EMI. He had been director for the past 18 months and was formerly an operational Managing Director for Terra Firma, working closely with Faxon. Former Maltby Capital Chairman Lord Birt will now move on to "other Terra Firma assignments, focusing on acquisitions and strategy."
Right on the heels of the news came the following memo to staff from the new boss:
Dear all:
I wanted to reach out to all of you following the announcement earlier today of my appointment to the position of EMI Group Chief Executive. As I said in the press release, it is a real honour to be given the responsibility of leading the operations of what I believe to be one of the greatest music brands in the world, and I am excited about the challenge of heading the company in the next phase of its long history.
As most of you will know, I have been Chairman and CEO of EMI Music Publishing for the last three years, and have held a number of roles across EMI Music, EMI Music Publishing and EMI Group in more than 16 years with the company. This is a business that I know well, and one which I believe can deliver real growth for the artists and writers that we are all privileged to represent.
My goal is to build a Global Rights Management Business that draws on the expertise and talents of everyone across the entirety of both divisions. I believe that the two businesses, working in concert with one another, sharing the same values, pursuing a coordinated strategy can and will deliver for our artists and songwriters no matter what challenges we face.
That new business needs to be built on some principles that I believe are fundamental to achieving success in this rapidly changing marketplace:
We must be unswervingly focused on championing our artist community, and providing them with the help they need to achieve their maximum potential.
The commitment to discovering and promoting new music is absolutely essential to our future growth.
We need to recognize the power and importance of the extraordinary catalogue of recordings we represent, and as we do that we need to respect the creative contribution of all the talented artists who made those recordings.
We have to be passionate about providing world-class service and services to the many and varied music users and retailers across the globe. We need to be the most trusted and effective partner to them, while also providing fans with the products that they demand.
It is vital that we constantly work to enhance the skills of staff in the pursuit of excellence across all parts of the business.
We must cultivate a culture of cooperation that will enable us to work better and more effectively across different geographies, functions and divisions. In other words, we need to be a team.
We need to bring the fun back into the music business. We need to remember that we are in this business because we love music and admire those who create it. Our joy and enthusiasm for and about music is our greatest tool in building EMI.
I feel fortunate to be joining EMI Music after it has really started to come alive again as a player in the recorded music business. Over the last year or so you have had some striking great successes both in new music and catalogue. And not unimportantly, the company has made great financial progress. I am grateful to Charles Allen for his leadership in making that happen and I look forward to benefiting from his advice and counsel as we build this new business.
I also want to say how pleased I am that Stephen Alexander will be taking on the Chairmanship of Maltby Capital from Lord Birt. John Birt has been a great supporter of EMI for which I thank him. Many of you have come to know and value Stephen in his role as a senior advisor to EMI, and I am absolutely confident that he will be a great partner as we move forward.
Over the next weeks and months, I am hoping to have the opportunity to meet with many of you around the business, to talk to you about my perspective on EMI, and to listen to what you all have to say. I’m very much looking forward to it.
Best wishes
Roger Faxon
