Power 100

31 Jan 2024

Universal Music Publishing Group Chairman/CEO Jody Gerson Wins Billboard Power Players’ Choice Award

After more than 1,500 votes cast over three rounds of voting, Billboard Pro members selected Universal Music Publishing Group chairman/CEO Jody Gerson for the 2024 Power Players’ Choice Award, which honors the executive they believe had the most impact across the business in the past year.

Since Gerson joined UMPG in 2015, the company’s annual revenue has more than doubled to $2 billion and helped build the careers of superstars SZA, Post Malone, Harry Styles, Rosalía and others. With global markets showing increased revenue potential, Gerson says she’s focused on developing international opportunities to grow UMPG into the “undisputed market-share leader.” Last year, that resulted in high-profile deals with Carin León, Iván Cornejo and Grupo Firme in the booming regional Mexican genre.

“I am grateful to be recognized by my peers in the music industry with the Billboard Power Players’ Choice Award,” says Gerson, who is also a board member at the National Music Publishers’ Association and co-founder of She Is the Music. “It is truly meaningful that they chose me. I am honored.”

In 2024, the Power Players’ Choice Awards will again include country, Latin and R&B/hip-hop genre awards and expand to also cover International Power Players and Top Music Lawyers.

This story originally appeared in the Jan. 27, 2024, issue of Billboard.

31 Jan 2024

Taylor Swift Tops Billboard’s Annual Power 100 List for the First Time

Taylor Swift continues to rewrite the rules, coming in at No. 1 on Billboard’s Power 100 list. Not only is this the first time that she’s topped the list, but it’s the just the second time any artist has crowned Billboard’s annual ranking of the most impactful music industry executives and power players (Jay-Z and Beyoncé topped Billboard‘s 2014 Power 100 list).

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Swift, of course, has come in at No. 1 on a cornucopia of Billboard charts before this, topping the Billboard Hot 100 11 times, the Billboard 200 13 times, the Hot Country Songs chart nine times and Pop Airplay 12 times. She was named Woman of the Year twice (2014 and 2011) at Billboard’s annual Women in Music event, and was celebrated as the Woman of the Decade at Billboard Women in Music 2019.

In the latest issue of Billboard, Swift offered a peek into her business acumen, sharing some advice for anyone looking to follow in her trailblazing path. “The piece of advice I would give to the other executives on this list is that the best ideas are usually ones without industry precedent,” Swift told Billboard. “The biggest crossroads moments of my career came down to sticking to my instincts when my ideas were looked at with skepticism. When someone says to me, ‘But that has never been done successfully before,’ it fires me up. We have to take strategic risks every day in this industry, but every once in a while, you have to really trust your gut and take a flying leap. My rerecordings are my favorite example of this, and I’m extremely grateful to my team and fans for taking that leap with me because it absolutely changed my life.”

As Billboard’s Melinda Newman, executive editor, West Coast and Nashville, points out in her Power 100 list entry on Swift, those words are particularly salient in an industry where “instinct has largely been supplanted by metrics and data analysis.”

Read Taylor Swift’s full Power 100 list entry here and see who else is on the list.

Swift’s record-shattering Eras Tour picks up its international run on Feb. 7 in Tokyo, the first of four Tokyo Dome dates.

23 Jan 2024

Billboard Power 100 Event to Honor Music’s Most Influential Executives: Date & Details

Billboard’s annual Power 100 event is back, taking over NeueHouse Hollywood during Grammy Week on Wednesday, Jan. 31.

Featured awards presentations will include Executive of the Year, Label of the Year and the Clive Davis Visionary Award. Additionally, as first introduced in 2023, in partnership with Clio Music, the Clio Music Creative Juggernaut Award will be presented, celebrating a standout organization that propels the music industry forward through creativity and innovation.

The full Power 100 list of honorees will be revealed on Thursday, Feb. 1.

“This year’s Power 100 will reflect an incredibly dynamic list of industry professionals,” said Hannah Karp, editorial director of Billboard. “The music industry is more diverse than ever and we are excited to recognize the exceptional individuals who have earned a coveted spot on this list and continue to drive growth and change.”

Billboard’s Power 100 is presented by EMPIRE, HarbourView Equity Partners and Tres Generaciones Tequila. During the event, guests will be treated to specialty curated cocktails throughout the evening that include Tres Generaciones.

Last year’s Power 100 included an appearance from global superstar Bad Bunny, who popped in to present his manager Noah Assad with the Executive of the Year award. “Unholy” singer Kim Petras also was in attendance to present Monte and Avery Lipman on behalf of Republic Records. HYBE chairman Bang Si-Hyuk was presented with the Clive Davis Visionary Award by HYBE America CEO Scooter Braun.

29 Nov 2023

Which Music Executive Has the Most Influence? Vote Now

Billboard is bringing back its peer-voted Power Players’ Choice Award for 2024, asking members of the music industry across all sectors to honor the executive they believe had the most impact across the business in the past year.

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Voting is now open to all Billboard Pro members, both existing and new, with one vote per member per round.

The Power Players’ Choice Award will run alongside Billboard’s annual Power 100 ranking of the music industry’s most influential executives, which will be announced in February.

Billboard launched its first Players’ Choice Award with the Power 100 list last January, followed by the Country Power Players’ Choice Award that concluded in June and the R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players’ Choice Award in August and the Latin Power Players’ Choice Award in September. In 2024, the peer-voted award will expand to also cover International Power Players and Top Music Lawyers.

The first round of voting for the Power Players’ Choice Award is now open with an open call for nominees and will run through Dec. 10.

The second round of voting will begin Dec. 11, in order to narrow down the top 20 nominees into the final five top executives and will run through Jan. 1.

The third round of voting will begin Jan. 2, to select the winner from that list. Voting concludes Jan. 14 at 11:59 p.m. EST.

Vote now and if you are not yet a member of Billboard Pro, join here.

29 Nov 2023

Billboard’s Power Players’ Choice Award: Vote for Music’s Most Impactful Executive (Nominations)

Billboard is bringing back its peer-voted Power Players’ Choice Award for 2024, asking members of the music industry across all sectors to honor the executive they believe had the most impact across the business in the past year.

Voting is open to all Billboard Pro members, both existing and new, with one vote per member per round.

The first round of voting for the Power Players’ Choice Award is now underway with an open call for nominees and will run through Dec. 10.

The Power Players’ Choice Award will run alongside Billboard’s annual Power 100 ranking of the music industry’s most influential executives, which will be announced in February.

Vote here:

Billboard launched its first Players’ Choice Award with the Power 100 list last January, followed by the Country Power Players’ Choice Award that concluded in June and the R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players’ Choice Award in August and the Latin Power Players’ Choice Award in September. In 2024, the peer-voted award will expand to also cover International Power Players and Top Music Lawyers.

The second round of voting will begin Dec. 11, in order to narrow down the top 20 nominees into the final five top executives and will run through Jan. 1.

The third round of voting will begin Jan. 2, to select the winner from that list. Voting concludes Jan. 14 at 11:59 p.m. EST.