Last month, we reported that Lisa Yang was leaving Goldman Sachs after 16 years – for a job at Warner Music Group, according to our sources.
Now, it’s official. The respected exec has indeed joined WMG, as Executive Vice President, Global Head of Strategy.
Yang announced the news via LinkedIn on Monday (October 20).
Lisa Yang joins WMG from her previous role as Managing Director of Media & Internet at Goldman Sachs’ Global Investment Research.
As we noted last month, Yang has authored (alongside her team) Goldman’s annual ‘Music In The Air’ report since she launched it 10 years ago. Her analysis of the music business commands widespread industry attention.
In her new role as EVP, Global Head of Strategy at Warner Music Group, Yang will report to Michael Ryan-Southern, another former Goldman executive.
Based in New York, Ryan-Southern was hired by WMG last year to lead M&A activity at the major music company.
The latest edition of Goldman Sachs’ influential ‘Music In The Air’ report was published in June.
According to the report, the bank expects the global music market (across recorded music, publishing, and live) to nearly double from USD $104.9 billion in 2024 to $196.8 billion by 2035.
Goldman also forecasts that global paid music streaming subscribers will grow to 827 million in 2025, representing 10% YoY growth from 752 million in 2024.
The paper predicts that there will be over 1.5 billion people paying for music streaming subscriptions around the world by 2035.
In a podcast interview with Music Business Worldwide in 2023, Yang expressed her confidence in the future growth potential of music rights.
Touching on a topic that’s only become more talked-about in the industry in the past year, Yang said: “More broadly, the industry should [consider] how it can better leverage the entire artist-fan relationship.
“That could include access to pre-release songs, ticketing, merchandising, virtual concerts, etc., to really try to monetize every single touchpoint between an artist and their fans.”Music Business Worldwide