Tony Harlow To Step Down As CEO Of Warner Music UK

Tony Harlow is stepping down as CEO of Warner Music UK in October, Music Business Worldwide and Billboard report.

Harlow will end a 15-year tenure with the company next month. He was named CEO of the record company in 2019, replacing the outgoing Max Lousada.

In an internal note sent to Warner staff yesterday (2 September) that was obtained by Music Business Worldwide and Billboard, Harlow described the news as “bittersweet.”

“I have a bittersweet announcement to make,” Harlow wrote, before adding, “I’ve had a lot of luck in my career so far.

“Six years ago, that luck culminated in the opportunity to lead a company I love, full of artists that I care about, back in the country where I was born. I’m sad therefore to announce my decision to step down from my role as CEO of Warner Music UK at the end of October.”

Harlow explained that he was making the announcement “after thinking long and hard about our team and what needs to be done” for the UK to lead in music.

He continued, “I’ve realised that my departure would create new long-term opportunities and space for our amazing senior management team to continue to grow as individuals and as leaders.”

Harlow’s career at Warner began in 2010 when he was named the Managing Director of Australasia. He previously held roles at EMI and EMI Music Australia, living in Australia from 1997 until 2002, when he took on the role of CEO at Richard Branson’s V2 label.

In a separate memo, Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl responded to Harlow’s announcement, highlighting Harlow’s “immense” impact at Warner, which included breaking Australian artists on a global scale.

Kyncl added, “He has delivered fantastic results. Throughout, his passion for artists, belief in our teams, and determination to innovate have been the hallmarks of his approach.

“We’ll miss his intellectual curiosity, independent spirit, and encyclopaedic love of music.”

Concluding his statement, Kyncl stated that he and Simon Robson, Warner Music Group President of International Recorded Music, “will have more to share on our plans for the UK this week.”