Inside the Playbook: Muyiwa Awoniyi on Building a Company Around the Artist

Tems’ manager Muyiwa Awoniyi joins The Manager’s Playbook to break down how to build a real company around an artist.

In this clip, Muyiwa explains why Tems’ long-term vision goes beyond music into business, philanthropy, investing, ownership, and company-building. He also shares how non-transactional relationships, delegation, team structure, artist development, admin deals, distribution, YouTube Foundry, and smart JV strategy helped Tems’ team build independence and long-term leverage.

A must-listen for artists, managers, music executives, and anyone serious about building a sustainable music business.

Simply put, a conversation like this doesn't come cheap.

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Listen to the full episode here -

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1duk4mJxoVF7D9G5Whhjqk?si=mI5dFiQAT7uwrOUXtFLlHA

Watch the Episodes On Youtube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@managersplaybook⁠

In this episode:
00:00 Tems’ North Star and Long-Term Growth
00:47 Real Relationships, Not Transactions
01:15 Weaknesses, Patience, and Team Support
02:28 Delegating Emails and Staying Focused
04:17 Inbox Systems and Daily Syncs
06:15 Vision Map and North Star Strategy
07:27 Mentorship Over Generic Industry Talk
10:21 Toronto Talent and Executive Leadership Gap
14:12 Building Global Teams and The Weeknd Model
15:50 Tems’ Admin Deal vs Publishing Deal
16:51 Funding Independence With Distribution and YouTube Foundry
18:38 Structuring JVs for Company Expansion
19:34 Why Artists Become Executives