Republic Records‘ CEO and COO Monte and Avery Lipman accepted the award for the label of the year at Billboard‘s Power 100 event last night (Jan. 31) in Los Angeles.
The award was presented by Noah Kahan, who recalled being signed to the label nine years ago when he was, he recalled, “a kid with one song out and whose biggest performance to date was at a local gelato shop.”
Kahan, who’s since clocked six Billboard Hot 100 hits, is just one of the many success stories that earned Republic Records the top label award for 2024, with Republic also delivering chart-topping albums from Morgan Wallen, Drake, Nicki Minaj and Post Malone, as well as a best new artist Grammy nomination for Kahan, who is signed to the label’s Mercury Records imprint.
And of course, there was Taylor Swift, whose 18.9 million equivalent album units in 2023 accounted for 1.7% of the entire U.S. recorded music industry.
CEO Monte Lipman thanked Swift during his speech, saying that “Taylor Swift I’ve been with for 15 years and I’m grateful; I’ve got so much gratitude in my heart that I’ve been allowed to hitch my wagon to her success for all these years. And she’s taken us into uncharted waters and everyday is an adventure, so thank you Taylor.”
Monte Lipman also addressed the packed room of industry leaders, saying, “Lastly, I wanted to mention is in this room, we are a fraternity, we are a sorority, and we pledge our allegiance to protecting the poets, the storytellers and the songwriters. What we all know is that the bedrock of every relationship with our artists is respect. And we don’t let anybody compromise that.”
The speech was met with applause and cheering during the party celebrating Billboard‘s 2024 Power 100 List, which is topped by Swift.
