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FYI

CMW To Host Music Cities Summit

The May 12 summit brings together mandarins and entertainment industry notables from around the world to discuss the economic, social and political value of integrating music into the fabric of urban societies.

By FYI Staff

Canadian Music Week (CMW) has announced that the one-day Music Cities Summit will close the conference's 4-day Music Summit, running May 9-12.


Set for Sat. May 12, the program includes city planners and music industry leaders taking part in the international creative-economy conference dubbed "The Mastering Of A Music City."

Speakers will include Elizabeth Cawein, Founder of Music Export Memphis; Josh Colle, Toronto City Councillor; Chief Howard Miller, President New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Council; and Kate Becker, Director of the Office of Film and Music, City of Seattle.

According to a media handout: ";The Mastering Of A Music City' - a joint event by Music Canada, The Music Policy Forum,IFPI and Canadian Music Week - will explore the relationship between creative city planning and the role of music in an urban setting with sessions including: New Orleans: A Case Study; Emerging Music Cities; and Music Officers Meet Their Match."

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Details about the event can be found here. More confirmed speakers TBA.

Canadian Music Week's 4-day Music Summit will include celebrity interviews, panels and workshops. Music Summit highlights include renowned lawyer Lorraine D'Alessio speaking about how to use a digital platform to launch a music career in the United States; a keynote by Laura Pearce, Head of Consumer Marketing at Twitter Canada; and an international spotlight on Mexico and the United States.

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Val Blavatnik
Courtesy WMG

Val Blavatnik

Business News

Val Blavatnik to Oversee Warner Music Canada in New Role at Warner Music Group

Blavatnik will oversee Warner Music Canada as managing director of Warner Music North America, U.K. and Corporate Development at WMG. As part of a slew of executive announcements, Simon Robson will be leaving the company, while Alejandro Duque takes the top international role.

Val Blavatnik, the 28-year-old son of Warner Music Group majority owner and vice chairman Len Blavatnik, has been named managing director of Warner Music North America, U.K. and Corporate Development at the Warner Music Group, the company announced Friday (Sept. 25). In his new role the younger Blavatnik, who has held several roles at the company in recent years, and has been a board member since 2023, expects to “unify and drive business and operational strategy across these markets while guiding the company’s investment strategy to support growth,” according to a press release.

The Blavatnik announcement is part of a flurry of new executive announcements that CEO Robert Kyncl made this morning. In addition, Atlantic Music Group chairman/CEO Elliot Grainge will take on ADA in the U.S. as its new chairman, while Alejandro Duque, who has held the dual roles of president of Warner Latin and president of ADA since last July, has been named president of Warner Music International, adding Asia-Pacific and Europe, the Middle East and Africa under his oversight. (Duque will continue to oversee ADA outside the U.S.) Zach Friedman, currently COO at Atlantic Music Group, will add the title of vice chair of ADA U.S. to his resume.

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