Simon Robson to leave Warner Music Group in December after nearly 30 years
Simon Robson will leave Warner Music Group in December after nearly 30 years at the company.
The exit was confirmed on September 25, when Robson sent a farewell memo to staff. In the note, he said he had decided it was the optimal time to explore new opportunities outside the company, according to Music Business Worldwide, which obtained the memo.
Robson is President, EMEA, Recorded Music at Warner Music Group. EMEA covers Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He is one of the company’s longest-serving senior executives, with a career that has moved across Asia, the United Kingdom and then the wider international business.
He joined Warner Music in 1998 as Director of Finance for the Asia Pacific region. That was followed by a strategic role for Warner Music Japan in Tokyo, and then a move to London as chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Warner Music UK.
Warner Music Group confirmed at the time that Robson was appointed to the UK COO and CFO post in 2007. He held the role for more than seven years before relocating to Hong Kong in January 2015 to become President of Warner Music Asia-Pacific.
In November 2020, he was named President, International, Recorded Music for the group. That structure changed in an August 2024 reorganisation, when Warner removed the President, International role. Robson then oversaw EMEA, with the UK and Ireland folded into the European operation.
His departure coincides with a wider recorded music leadership shake-up at Warner. Confirmed on the same day, the changes include Val Blavatnik joining the executive team, Alejandro Duque’s promotion to President, Warner Music International, and Elliot Grainge taking on the chairmanship of ADA in the US.
What makes this stand out is the length and range of the tenure. Few executives stay with one major music company for almost three decades, let alone across finance, regional leadership and international strategy. For staff and artists, it means a familiar point of contact in several markets will change at the end of the year.
