From threat of lights going off to $150m potential payday, executive has helmed change of fortunes at Universal
In the dark days of the noughties, a time marked by plunging record sales and rampant digital piracy, Lucian Grainge was on the warpath because of the lack of chart-topping new stars being discovered by his label. Arriving last at a management meeting, he turned the lights off, circled the room, and told staff: “Get used to it. That’s what it looks like when you don’t have any hit records.”
Having a problem producing hits is now laughable for the chief executive of Universal Music Group, the world’s biggest record company and home to acts from Ariana Grande to Bob Dylan, which in any given week can claim as many as nine of the top 10 selling songs.