A&R You Ready?: What Major Labels Look For in Music Tech Partners
Part 3 in our online workshop series for music tech startups, 'From Garage Band to Global Brand', in partnership with Russells
In the third of MTUK’s 2025 autumn online workshop series with Associate Member Russells, Russells will be speaking with Hari Ashurst-Venn, Senior Director of Digital and New Tech at Sony Music Entertainment, about the work his team does with music technology start-ups. The session will cover, amongst other things:
Examples of how Sony has used start-ups’ services/products in the past;
How, when and why Sony might engage with a new start-up with a view to becoming a customer;
Sony’s technical/onboarding requirements for working with new startups;
The role Sony has played in incubating start-ups, including through its Black Founders Programme;
Misconceptions that start-ups might have about working with labels;
Where start-ups sometimes go wrong in approaching and working with labels; and
Notable success stories.
Russells is a leading law firm in the entertainment industry, particularly in relation to music. Russells’ team includes specialist lawyers focused on the convergence of music and technology, advising startups, technology companies, media organisations and talent on a full range of corporate, commercial, IP, regulatory and contentious matters.
At Sony Music UK, we honour the creative journey. Our creators shape movements, culture, communities, even history. Today, we support a diverse and distinctive roster of talented creators at every level and on every stage. Situated at the intersection of music, entertainment, and technology, we bring imagination and expertise to emerging products and platforms, embrace new business models, and employ breakthrough tools—all to support the creative community’s experimentation, risk-taking, and growth. Sony Music UK comprises a variety of record labels devoted to every genre of music. Columbia, RCA, Ministry of Sound, Epic Records, Since ’93, Relentless, Robots + Humans, Music For Nations and The Orchard are part of the Sony Music family and represent a hugely diverse roster of artists. They are joined by Commercial Group, home to our catalogue and merchandise division and 4th Floor Creative, which comprises Brand Partnerships, Sync, Visual Creative and Digital and Audience Development.
Sony Music UK is part of Sony Music Group, a global recorded music and publishing company, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. The company represents a vast global catalogue, including some of the most important recordings in history. Learn more about our creators and labels here.