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Drake’s OVO Team, eOne’s Chris Taylor Make Billboard’s 2019 Power Players Rankings

According to Billboard, eOne's Chris Taylor has made its Indie Power Players list for the second year in a row, while a separate International Power Players list places Drake and his OVO team at the top.

 Drake’s OVO Team, eOne’s Chris Taylor Make Billboard’s 2019 Power Players Rankings

By External Source

For the second consecutive year, Chris Taylor, global president of eOne Music, is named to Billboard’s Indie Power Players list. He is the lone Canadian named in the 80 executives in the influential US magazine’s ranking of independent business executives across music companies and distributors.


The music entertainment lawyer and Last Gang imprint founder has become a powerhouse in the global market since taking the post as overseer of Entertainment One's music division. The transformation from a mid-level label and distributor to a hit generator has been achieved over several years and kept Taylor moving around the globe making deals and touching base with the company's offices across Europe, Australasia, the US and Canada.

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Its extensive and varied roster includes Arkells, L’il Kim, Metric, Ryan Hemsworth, Stars, Strumbellas, Emily Haines, The Lumineers, and Brandy.

A separate International Power Players list published by the US trade magazine has Drake and his OVO management team, led by Canadians Adel Nur (aka Future the Prince), producer Noah “40” Shebib, OVO label president Mr. Morgan and branding mastermind Oliver El-Khatib, at the top of the list.

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Executive of the Week: Justin West of Secret City Records on the Secrets of Independent Music Success​
FYI

Executive of the Week: Justin West of Secret City Records on the Secrets of Independent Music Success​

The man behind one of Canada's most successful indie labels talks about the late-blooming success of French-language streaming record-holder Patrick Watson, why he builds long-term relationships with artists, and why it's important for the indie sector to work together.

Justin West is a leader and advocate in Canada’s independent music scene, but he didn’t plan it out that way. When he started his record label Secret City Records in Montreal in the mid-2000s, it was out of necessity. He had met an artist he loved and wanted to build a career with, and the label was a means to do it. That artist was Patrick Watson, and 20 years later he — and Secret City — are more successful than ever.

West — a multiple time Billboard Canada Power Player – leads one of the biggest indie labels in Canada while also advocating for the sector on multiple boards both locally and internationally. When we speak to him for this Executive of the Week interview, he’s just returned from Banff for the National Summit on Artificial Intelligence and Culture, and is a central figure in discussions around the Online Streaming Act and collective negotiations with online streaming platforms.

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