Director, A&R and Creative, China

At Warner Music Group were a global collective of music makers and music lovers tech innovators and inspired entrepreneurs game-changing creatives and passionate team members. Here we turn dreams into stardom and audiences into fans. We are guided by three core values that underpin everything we do across all our diverse businesses:

• Curiosity: We do our best work when were immersing ourselves in culture and breaking through barriers. Curiosity is the driving force behind creativity and ingenuity. It fuels innovation and innovation is the key to our future.

• Collaboration: Making music and bringing it to the world is all about the power of originality amplified by teamwork. A great idea like a great song travels globally. We ignite passions and build connections across our diverse community of artists songwriters partners and fans.

• Commitment: We pursue excellence for our team and our talent. Everything in music starts with a leap into the unknown and were committed to keeping the faith acting with integrity and delivering on our promises.

WMG is home to a wide range of artists musicians and songwriters that fuel our success. That is why we are committed to creating a work environment that actively values appreciates and respects everyone. We encourage applications from people with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.

Consider a career at WMG and get the best of both worlds an innovative global music company that retains the creative spirit of a nimble independent.

Warner Chappell Music (WCM) is seeking a strategic and culturally-connected A&R and Creative Lead for the China market. Reports to Managing Director China and functionally to VP A&R and Creative APAC. This is a high-impact management role focused on identifying signing and developing a world-class roster of songwriting talent (composers and lyricists). You will bridge the gap between local creative excellence and global commercial opportunities securing song placements and driving WCMs creative footprint across Asia. You will be responsible for securing high-value song placements driving WCMs creative footprint across Asia and executing cross-border initiatives including but not limited to local/regional/international songwriting camps and strategic PR and promotional campaigns that elevate the WCM and Warner Music Group (WMG) brands.

This position is open to both internal and external candidates.

This position is targeted at the Director level. However we maintain an adaptive hiring approach; candidates with slightly less experience or internal applicants in development roles may be considered for a Manager/Senior Manager level with responsibilities and titles adjusted to reflect their current trajectory.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Planning: Architect and execute Chinas annual and mid-to-long term A&R roadmap aligning local talent acquisition with regional/global market demands

• Songwriter Talent Acquisition & Development: Proactively scout and sign songwriters who define the sound of modern culture; proactively manage their career growth and artistic development.

• Creative Placement (Sync and Pitching): Champion the WCM catalog by pitching demos and securing high-profile placements with record labels artist managers and film/TV producers both in China and internationally.

• Market Intelligence: Monitor trends across social platforms (Douyin WeChat Instagram etc.) to identify emerging hit-makers and viral song-writing trends.

• Creative Programming: Plan and lead songwriting camps collaborative sessions and industry events to foster a community of excellence.

• Regional Collaboration: Align with WCMs global and regional creative initiatives to produce high-impact newsletters curated playlists and PR materials. Work with A&R and other regional teams to organize events.

• Retention and Renewals: Lead the strategic retention of priority songwriters ensuring the successful negotiation and timely execution of all key contract renewals.

• Deal Negotiation: Manage the end-to-end commercial process for new signings and key renewals from initial financial modeling to final contract execution in coordination with Legal and Business Affairs team.

• Catalog Optimization: Oversee the indexing and tracking of the local demo library and successful cuts to ensure maximum monetization of assets.

Experience & Qualifications

• Music/Music Publishing Industry Tenure.

• Experience: 5 years in A&R music publishing or artist management with a proven track record of cuts (placements).

• Leadership: Demonstrated ability to manage a portfolio independently and influence regional creative strategy.

• Network: An extensive existing network of songwriters producers labels and other related talent especially within Chinas entertainment ecosystem.

• Education: Bachelors degree in music business branding promotion marketing or a related field.

• Trend Awareness: A deep multi-genre passion for music and a proven ear for commercial hits and cultural shifts.

• Language: Strong command of spoken and written English and Mandarin Chinese.

Skills & Abilities

• Strategic Leadership: Ability to work autonomously manage high-pressure timelines and lead a creative vision from concept to execution.

• Communication: Exceptional negotiation and presentation skills. Native-level fluency in Mandarin and professional proficiency in English are essential for regional and global reporting.

• Analytical Mindset: Comfortable managing ROI for creative projects and using data to inform signing decisions.

• Technical Proficiency: Mastery of standard office suites (Keynote/PPT Excel) Google Workspace and a deep understanding of music production workflows.

• Cultural Agility: Open-minded and flexible with the ability to travel internationally and work across different time zones when required.

Key Performance Measurements

> Roster Growth: Successful signing of priority songwriters and expansion of the local publishing catalog.

> Placement Rate: Quantitative increase in the number of demos sold or synched within the territory and abroad.

> Revenue & ROI: Achieving profitability targets for songwriting camps and creative PR activities.

> Operational Excellence: Timely and confidential management of contracts and internal database reporting.

#WCM

As the home to 10K Projects Asylum Atlantic Music Group East West FFRR Fueled by Ramen Nonesuch Parlophone Rhino Roadrunner Sire Warner Records Warner Classics and several other of the worlds premier recording labels Warner Music Group champions emerging artists and global superstars alike. And our renowned publishing company Warner Chappell Music represents genre-spanning songwriters and producers through a catalog of more than one million copyrights worldwide. Warner Music Group is also home to ADA which supports the independent community as well as artist services division addition WMG counts film and television storytelling powerhouse Warner Music Entertainment among its many brands.

Together we are Warner Music Group: Independent Minds. Major Sound.

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