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Universal praise It was a year of triumph at Universal Music Group UK, with the company making waves in the charts at home and abroad, and scooping up big prizes at a host of prestigious ceremonies. 1. Universal Music Group UK & Ireland chairman & CEO Dickon Stainer was joined by FLO, Olivia Dean, Sekou, Holly Humberstone and Universal Music Group chairman & CEO Sir Lucian Grainge for UMG UK’s high-profile talent showcase in LA. 2. Island EMI Label Group – joined by Island’s legendary founder Chris Blackwell – celebrated a double win at the Music Week Awards 2025, taking home both the A&R and Record Company Of The Year honours. 3. To salute her game-changing work for a plethora of the world’s biggest artists, Polydor’s creative director Semera Khan was awarded the Special Recognition honour at the Music Week Women In Music ceremony. 4. In October, 14 top names from Universal Music Group UK came together for a landmark triple cover of Music Week, interview series and photo shoot. 5. Y0&Co’s Emily Braham, Olivia Dean, Capitol Records UK’s Tom Paul and Jo Charrington are pictured here at Universal’s pre-BRITs showcase, just a couple of months before Dean would score global success and become the first British solo female artist to claim the UK’s No.1 album and single simultaneously since Adele in 2021. 6. Polydor Label Group president Ben Mortimer celebrated with Sam Fender ahead of the BRITs – in a year that would see Fender secure the highest-selling British album of the year, a BRIT and the coveted Mercury Prize. 7. 0207 Def Jam star Stormzy won Best Hip-Hop/Grime/Rap Act at the BRIT Awards 2025. 8. Nick Shymansky, Island EMI Label Group president Louis Bloom, David Furnish, Elton John and Lola Young celebrated the joint release of Young’s I’m Only F**king Myself and John’s The Devil Wears Prada musical soundtrack. (Photos: Christopher Polk/Will Ireland/Panni Renner/Carsten Windhorst/Gerard Hynes/John Phillips/Getty).


66 | Music Week musicweek.com


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