The MPA Futures Group is an initiative aimed at our MPA Publisher Members who are new to the industry or have worked in publishing for less than 10 years.
The MPA Futures Group was created so that the MPA could better connect with and engage more with our more junior members. We know that music publishing can be a tricky business to get into, and our role as a trade association is not only to represent music publishers but to nurture and teach the next generation of music publishers to ensure the continued success and diversity of our dynamic business. We understand the vital role that our younger members play in the future of music publishing and the wider music industry, so want to make sure that it is in good hands.
The MPA Futures Group will provide job tips, advice, networking opportunities and support new music publishing recruits through this exciting chapter in their career. The MPA Futures Group was also created so that the MPA can learn from our junior members and find out how best we can adapt the way we work to support and guide the next generation.
The MPA Futures Group Committee exists to support and encourage professional development, regardless of background, for both those looking to take the first step into a career in music publishing and those wanting to grow through the industry into executive positions. We will work as part of the MPA to ensure that the industry is accessible, inclusive and diverse.
Our aim is for the wider Futures Group to be a safe space, an engaged and supportive community, encouraging the discussion of any challenges and problematic behaviour whilst knowledge sharing through our events and initiatives such as Peer Mentoring and Open Forums.
Our goal is also to generate new, informed ideas by examining business trends and conducting research projects which, in turn, will help to guide the MPA’s future approach to industry policy as well as provide fresh perspectives when evaluating the direction of the music publishing industry.
If you’re interested in learning more and would like to stay up-to-date on all the MPA Futures Group news and events, then please join the MPA Futures Facebook group by clicking here or follow them on Instagram here.
There are various MPA Futures Group events throughout the year including socials, Evening Sessions and the Peer Mentoring Scheme. You can stay up to date with all events here.
The scheme will take the shape of 7 x2-hour sessions taking place fortnightly, with a group of up to 8-10 participants, the idea of peer mentoring being that the participants teach and learn from each other under the guidance of a “champion.” The champion for our initial trial will be our CEO, Paul Clements.
Each session will centre around a focus topic, led by a “specialist” executive brought in from the MPA membership. There will be a presentation or training followed by a group discussion around the topic, plus general problem/issue sharing.
Applications for Peer Mentoring are now closed.
Name Deborah Smith (Co-Chair)
Job title & Company? Director, Anara Publishing
What are the main responsibilities of your job role? I wear quite a lot of hats and no two days are ever the same! My main focuses are on business development, copyright administration of our catalogue and identifying new markets and opportunities for Anara to expand into. I work closely with our A&R and Sync teams to nurture and develop our roster, run songwriting camps and secure sync licenses globally. I also work with our tech team, developing our in-house platform which delivers our catalogue to collection societies and handles royalty processing.
Do you have a particular goal you’d like to achieve while an active member of the MPA Futures Group committee? As co-Chair of the committee, I’m hoping that we can build a community for those who are new to publishing to build their networks and grow their knowledge of the industry. I’m passionate about making the music publishing industry more inclusive and accessible no matter what your background is, and I’ve welcomed the steps that the MPA have made during the past 2 years to make events easier to access for people based outside of London. I hope to see this continue too.
Who is your favourite music artist? This is a tough one! There’s too many to choose from but an artist I always come back to is Jessie Ware. Her first album is one of my all-time faves.
Name Marianne Galloway
Job title & Company? Senior Copyright Manager – Sentric Music
What are the main responsibilities of your job role? I lead a team of copyright administrators to ensure timely and accurate registration of agreements and works for Sentric’s B2B clients globally. We onboard contract and copyright information to Sentric’s system in order to send shipments to Sentric’s extensive collection network, and ensure royalties are able to be processed correctly.
Do you have a particular goal you’d like to achieve while an active member of the MPA Futures Group committee? I would like to see music publishing become less London-centric, and ensure that MPA initiatives and policies are inclusive of people and companies from across the UK. I think that by encouraging people from different backgrounds into careers in music publishing, the industry would benefit greatly from the diversity and inclusion this would help foster.
Who is your favourite music artist? Too hard to say! But I’ve been listening to Matt Maltese a lot lately.
Name Becky McIntee
Job title & Company? Associate Manager, Global Copyright at Downtown Music
What are the main responsibilities of your job role? I’m responsible for ensuring our clients at both Downtown Music Services and Songtrust are serviced correctly throughout European societies. This includes ensuring client catalogues are correctly registered and managed as well as project management for the various processes used.
Do you have a particular goal you’d like to achieve while an active member of the MPA Futures Group committee? I’m really keen to build a community for individuals that are new to the industry. It can be a daunting industry to start out in and I think it’s important for the new wave of publishing professionals to feel inclusion in every aspect of their career, whatever their background. It’s an exciting committee to be a part of because we’re constantly building opportunities through having difficult discussions that are well overdue.
Who is your favourite music artist? This is a tough one! I’m a huge fan of country music and I’m particularly interested in writers who have become artists later on in their career. They usually have such interesting stories to tell. One of my all time favourite bands is The Highwomen. The band includes 4 female writers/artists and their songs touch on some really difficult topics. They’re great!
Name Henry Marsden
Job title & Company? Head of Copyright – Palm Bay Music
What are the main responsibilities of your job role? I look after everything administration for Palm Bay. This includes registering works on behalf of writers, sourcing and managing our global collections network (via a blend of direct deals and sub-publishers), royalty collection and processing. If it’s got to do with data, it’s my job!
Do you have a particular goal you’d like to achieve while an active member of the MPA Futures Group committee? I’d love to encourage and equip those new to the industry- via initiatives like the Publishing Amnesties, MPA courses and Peer Mentoring. It’s clear that technology and innovation can be applied to transform the value that publishers (and the songwriters they represent) receive from music consumption. A goal is for the MPA, as well as individual publishers, to advocate for more open policies when it comes to data sharing and transparency.
Who is your favourite music artist? Apart from the writers we look after…. I’m a sucker for anything pure pop, or anything that makes you feel something. It’s too hard to pin those down to any 1 artist!
Name Jess Nash
Pronouns They/Them
Job title & Company? Sync & Marketing Manager at Budde Music / Phrased Differently
What are the main responsibilities of your job role? Responsible for creatively working with the Budde & Phrased Differently roster and catalogues to manage and develop sync activity, both in the UK and internationally, across all media. Also handling all UK-related sync licensing activity.
Do you have a particular goal you’d like to achieve while an active member of the MPA Futures Group committee? I intend to use my time on the committee to focus on diversifying representation within music publishing. I hope to contribute towards this sector becoming a safer space for young professionals and creatives.
Who is your favourite music artist? This q is impossible to answer tbh but will go with The Cure
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