UMG Conference Call Update Plus Capitol And Motown Slated For Next Cuts

A source has informed TheIndustry.Biz that Capitol Records and Motown are slated for job cuts as soon as today and tomorrow. We will keep you posted. In the meantime, industry vet Michael Horton was released from Republic, Keinon Johnson, former SVP of Black Music for Interscope, and Warner released Motti Shulman from Atlantic.

UMG’s Strategic Overhaul to Slash Costs and Jobs for $271M Annual Savings by 2026

Horton, Johnson, and Shulman

Universal Music Group (UMG) announced during its Q4 earnings call on February 28 that it plans to undertake a significant organizational overhaul to reduce costs substantially. The music conglomerate is targeting more than $270 million in annual savings by the end of 2026 through a strategic initiative that includes major job reductions. However, the company has not yet disclosed specific numbers regarding the expected job cuts. UMG’s restructuring is projected to achieve annual savings of $271 million by 2026, with savings of $81.3 million this year and an additional $135.5 million in 2025.

The initiative aims to optimize expenditure in specific areas while enhancing the ability of its labels to forge deeper connections between artists and fans. The initial phase will involve widespread job cuts, followed by further reductions outside the United States and other operational improvements starting in 2025.

Sir Lucian Grainge, UMG’s Chairman and CEO, highlighted that the redesign aims to provide labels with more agility and speed in supporting artists, leveraging the company’s most effective teams and resources to elevate artists’ success levels. Grainge emphasized that the restructuring would safeguard UMG’s core strengths in creative A&R, marketing autonomy, and its labels’ distinct identities and foster an entrepreneurial spirit. These strengths are expected to bolster support for promotion, distribution, direct-to-consumer sales, e-commerce, and other key areas.

This announcement follows previous indications of impending layoffs and caps a successful fiscal year 2023 for UMG, which reported a net profit of $1.37 billion and total revenues of $12 billion. UMG is not the only company in the industry facing uncertainties about staffing; other major entities in the music and media sectors, including Atlantic Music Group, Spotify, Tidal, YouTube, Meta, Discord, TikTok Music, Amazon Music, SiriusXM, and Warner Music Group, have announced or hinted at significant layoffs.