David Joseph, the chairman & CEO of Universal Music UK and Ireland, has been recognised for his services to the UK music industry in the New Year Honours List, published today.
Joseph is awarded a CBE, Commander of (the Order of) the British Empire for services to the UK Music Industry.
The honour will be bestowed by Her Majesty the Queen at an investiture ceremony in 2016.
“being chosen for this honour is an incredible surprise and a very proud moment for me and my family.”
David Joseph, Universal Music UK
Joseph said: “It’s a privilege to work in the music industry and there have been many highlights over the years, but being chosen for this honour is an incredible surprise and a very proud moment for me and my family.”
Other music industry honourees include PRS For Music‘s Paulette Long (pictured inset), who receives an OBE for Services to The Music Industry.
Long is the Vice chair of the PRS For Music Foundation, as well as a Director at Westbury Music Ltd, Music Business Mentors and the Alliance for Diversity In Music & Media.
And two further OBE recipients will be of interest to the music business: publisher Leslie East (formerly of Novello, ABRSM, and a board member of the MPA for many years) and Blur and Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn were both also awarded the honour.
David Joseph (pictured main) leads Universal Music’s business in the UK and Ireland, overseeing the labels Capitol, Decca, Island, Polydor and Virgin EMI alongside iconic recording studios, Abbey Road.
He has been Chairman and CEO of Universal Music UK & Ireland since March 2008, having started at the company as general manager of its Polydor label in August 1998.
Prior to joining Universal, he was head of artist development at RCA, working with artists including Take That, Kylie Minogue and Annie Lennox.
Universal Music UK is home to artists including The Rolling Stones, U2, Florence + The Machine, Mumford & Sons, Hozier, Lana Del Rey, Sam Smith, Take That and Years & Years.
It also releases the music of global superstars such as Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Rihanna and Eminem.
Joseph has been an outspoken champion of “on-air, on-sale” to ensure music fans are able to buy, download and stream tracks legally as soon as they are released to radio.
Alongside his work at Universal Music, Joseph has been a member of the BPI Council since 2005. For three years from 2010 he was Chairman of the BPI’s Brits Committee, overseeing a well-received overhaul of the Brit Awards in 2011.
In August 2013 Joseph was appointed a member of the council of Arts Council England.
In the same year he worked with Doreen Lawrence, Baroness Lawrence of Clarendon, to gather music industry support for Unity, the O2 concert marking the 20th anniversary of Stephen Lawrence’s murder.
Joseph is executive producer of Amy, the 2015 documentary about Amy Winehouse directed by Asif Kapadia.Music Business Worldwide
