The music industry thrives on the powerful connection between musicians and their fans—an extraordinary blend of art and culture. At the forefront of this initiative is WMX, led by visionary Maria Weaver, president of Warner Music Experience (WMX) at Warner Music Group. In the latest episode of The Speed of Culture podcast, Weaver joins Suzy founder and CEO Matt Britton to explore how her creative leadership has transformed the company, setting unprecedented standards within the industry.

Weaver brings a wealth of experience, with a career spanning over 30 years leading marketing and media teams. Before her current role, she served as senior vice president and CMO at Comcast Advertising. Additionally, Weaver was one of the founders of Interactive One, the digital division of Urban One (formerly Radio One), where she was responsible for overseeing marketing and digital ad sales for all Interactive One brands.

During the conversation, Weaver shares her efforts to expand the company’s revenue opportunities outside of music and drive culture by leveraging the authentic bond between artists and their fans.

Discover Warner Music Group’s journey under Weaver’s leadership by exploring the key takeaways from the episode below.

Key takeaways:

• 20:04 – 21:31 – Uniting assets and artists – Weaver’s role involves integrating WMX’s monetizable assets like merch, media, and advertising with their artists. This collaboration creates unique and valuable packaging opportunities for brands. WMX’s distinct advantages, such as unparalleled access to artists, active participation in their tours, engaging pop-up experiences to connect with fans and ownership of media assets gives them a competitive edge. 

• 23:52 – 27:41 – Harnessing first-party data – WMX distinguishes itself not only by managing media pieces, but also by overseeing more than 200 artist websites and ecommerce platforms. This grants access to valuable first-party data. By combining this data with third-party information and client insights, the brand can precisely and meaningfully target its audience.

• 29:00 – 31:14 – Beyond brands – Numerous artists, including Diddy, Jay-Z and 50 Cent, have amassed wealth by launching their brands. Weaver claims that most artists aim to do more than just attach their names to existing brands as it provides them with lasting financial opportunities beyond their musical careers.

• 40:35 – 42:05 – Cultivating positivity and joy – Weaver starts each morning with a positive mantra, affirming that greatness lies ahead and anchoring her belief that things will align favorably. The music industry’s focus on spreading joy adds depth to this perspective by bringing immense happiness to people. Weaver often reminds colleagues that their core mission is to bring joy. This notion infuses their work with purpose and makes challenges seem trivial.