Throughout 2022, Music Week has brought the industry’s stories to life in our pages and online, but to end the year we are handing the floor to the business, as we gather more than 80 leading names to offer up their thoughts on the past 12 months. Welcome to our 2022 year in review special.
This month’s cover feature stars an array of executives, from Warner Music UK’s Tony Harlow, Universal Music UK’s Selina Webb and MOBO founder Kanya King, to Spotify UK & Ireland leaders Tom Connaughton and Safiya Lambie-Knight, TikTok’s Paul Hourican, Apple Music’s George Ergatoudis and YouTube’s Lyor Cohen. Lorna Clarke, Golnar Khosrowshahi, Sheryl Nwosu, Dorothy Hui, Rebecca Allen, Joe Kentish, Alistair Norbury, Tega Oghenejobo and many, many more are among the other star names delivering their verdicts on the biggest stories of 2022 and revealing the albums and tracks that resonated most. Over 16 pages, their words shine a light on what has been an action packed year in the music industry and beyond.
One of the issues that has dominated the agenda this year is breaking artists, and our end of year special tells the story of six UK talents that had landmark moments in 2022, offering proof positive that new British artists are cutting through in many different ways.
We hear from Cat Burns about her viral rise, Parlophone co-presidents Nick Burgess and Mark Mitchell tell the story of Sam Ryder, Domino GM Chris Scott talks Wet Leg, Central Cee’s manager Bello unveils a revolutionary UK rap strategy, Island’s Nicola Spokes charts ArrDee’s breakneck ascent and Knucks co-manager Sandy Abuah extols the virtues of independence. Each of the six tells a distinct story, extolling the virtues of the work going on across the industry.
Further breakthroughs were to be found in dance music, which hit the mainstream hard in 2022 as Eliza Rose and LF System both scored their first No.1 singles, while megastars like Drake and Beyonce? also paid tribute to clubland with new album releases. In a feature gathering voices from the Night Time Industries Association, Atlantic, Ministry Of Sound, Warner Records and CAA, we ask what’s next for the dance revolution and whether the genre’s success in the charts can help save UK nightlife.
This month’s Music Week Interviews celebrates the work of one of the most influential executives in the modern UK industry, outgoing BPI CEO Geoff Taylor. Delivering his verdict on his near 16-year tenure, Taylor talks streaming, breaking talent and hints at what might be next as he departs for pastures new.
Our traditional Quotes Of The Year feature presents the story of 2022, as told by the stellar array of artists and executives who have graced our pages.
Finally in the features section, our digital guru Sammy Andrews offers up her verdict on the biggest tech trends of 2022, while Music Venue Trust CEO Mark Davyd looks back on the positives and negatives for the grassroots scene. We also collate the standout images of 2022 in a special extended edition of Hotshots.
In this month’s Hitmakers Grammy-nominated hitmaker Theron Thomas relives the making of Lizzo’s About Damn Time, one of the year’s defining tracks. The Aftershow stars iconic singer and songwriter Shania Twain, as she looks back on an extraordinary journey to the top of the music industry.
Meanwhile, the new edition of Mentor Me – a collaboration between Music Week and Girls I Rate – Motown Records head of marketing Portia Clarke traces her industry story so far and offers up her Top 5 tips for a career in music.
In this month's Big Story, we hone in on the sales performance of vinyl in Q4 and 2022, including blockbuster releases from Harry Styles, Taylor Swift and Arctic Monkeys. Can the format continue to thrive and register a 15th consecutive year of growth, despite the combined threat of supply issues and an economic downturn? Industry leaders and music retailers share their insights on the market.
Also in news, we speak to Kilimanjaro Group CEO Stuart Galbraith about one of the year's most spectacular shows - Ed Sheeran's stadium tour - and the latest challenges for the live sector.
In our Spotlight Q&A, outgoing PRS For Music chair Nigel Elderton (UK MD & European president of Peermusic) reflects on the achievements during his tenure and shares his outlook for the licensing organisation.
Elsewhere in Frontline, our latest start-up in focus is GigPig, while our podcast of the month is rap series Decode. There’s a Tastemakers 2022 special, as Jaguar, Dotty, DJ Semtex, Rashid Kasirye, Maia Beth and Manny Norté pick the hottest new music of 2022.
On The Radar profiles BRITs Rising Star nominee and drum&bass specialist Nia Archives, while this month’s Rising Star is KMGMT’s Matthew Clarke.
In the new edition of Incoming, Josh Franceschi unveils You Me At Six’s plan to put UK rock music back on the map with their eighth album Truth Decay.
And as ever, the expanded Archive section sees us flick through the pages of Music Week of yesteryear.
There’s all of this and our expanded monthly charts section, in which we present the Top 75 Singles and Albums of the previous month, accompanied by revamped analysis pages, plus a host of new listings. These include specialist genre Top 20s for Americana, Classical, Hip-Hop & R&B, Jazz, Country, Dance, Folk and Rock & Metal. The issue is also home to streaming, compilations and vinyl charts.
The new issue of Music Week is available from December 20.
For subscription information please visit musicweek.com/subscribe.
