Martin Mills

Martin Mills (born 12 May 1949) is the founder and chairman of the Beggars Group.

Early life

Mills grew up near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire and comes from an "upper-middle-class English family". His father was a civil servant and his mother was as a teacher and headmistress. Mills attended Magdalen College School and Oriel College, Oxford, where he studied Philosophy, politics and economics, graduating in 1970.

After graduating from Oxford, Mills worked for the Office of Population, Census and Surveys, writing reports on abortion law reformation and processing abortion statistics; however, the experience left him wanting "to do something completely different". After leaving, he found a job at a record store in Notting Hill, where Mills realized his future was in the music industry.Eventually he opened a record store of his own (Beggars Banquet) and was promoting concerts.

Beggars Group

The record store was opened initially to re-sell records that he and a friend, Nick Austin, had collected for a mobile disco.Music Made Me Do It: The Label Founder – Beggar’s Banquet’s Martin Mills
The story of the biggest independent record company in the world, 30 Nov 2019
/ref>The disco, and then the company, was named after the Rolling Stones' album Beggars Banquet.Radio 4 'Zeitgeisters', 22 June 2013
/ref> Martin and Nick had seen an opportunity for a record shop that sold both new and second-hand records. Beggars Banquet soon became a six-store chain in London, arriving shortly before punk broke through; “It turned what we did upside down. We all started being interested in a completely different style of music. The kind of concerts we had been promoting suddenly became completely irrelevant, so we started promoting punk gigs instead. It was an amazing, incredibly exciting sea change."Center Of The Indie Label Universe, 14 March 2011
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His company is now one of the world's most successful independent groups of record labels. His ability to spot future trends in music has been celebrated by the BBC Radio 4 ''Zeitgeisters'' series, and has included New Romantic, Gary Numan electronic, Goth rock of the 1980s and being ahead of the popular trend for digital downloads. In the radio show he was quoted as saying that ''The whole point f independent music publishingis not giving people what they want but what they are going to want''.

With the company continuing to grow as the industry morphs and throws new challenges, Martin has led the worldwide drive to future-proof the independent sector, working hard to promote its collective interests and helping unite like-minded labels and companies. Having served on the BPI (British Phonographic Industry) Council, the governing body of the record industry, from 1987 to 2000, he quit to become the progenitor of the Association of Independent Music in the UK, and similar bodies in Europe (Impala)Impala Music Website
/ref> and the US (A2IM), and the Worldwide Independent Network. 2018 Impala Music Article on WIN appointing Martin Mills as their first Chair, 27 Feb 2018
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These bodies speak eloquently, effectively and with great authority to ensure a level playing field and the welfare, success and sustainability of independent music makers.

He also led the establishment of Merlin in 2008,Music Business Worldwide: Merlin Is 5: A Timeline Of Achievement, 6 June 2013
the independents’ rights licensing body, which has distributed well over $2 billion to members since launch, and today counts 850 members from 63 countries.

He has remained active in other music industry organisations, through his participation in the government’s Music Industry Forum, the Music Business Forum, being on the board of UK Music, and both as a director of PPL and VPL, the industry’s rights licensing bodies. In addition, he was called by the US Senate to Washington in 2012 to be a witness in the hearing on the proposed purchase of EMI Records by Universal Music.Billboard: Beggars Group’s Martin Mills On Testifying at Senate Universal-EMI Hearing, 20 June 2012
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He was awarded an MBE in the 2008 New Year Honours list, as well as outstanding contribution awards from Music Week, Billboard, the Radio Academy, the Featured Artists Coalition, IMPALA, Canadian Music Week, The Music Producers’ Guild, A2IM, Billboard, and the 'Pioneer Award' at the AIM Awards.NME: Martin Mills to receive Pioneer Award at AIM Independent Music Awards 12 June 2014
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As of 2023, the labels that comprise the Beggars Group are 4AD, Matador Records, Rough Trade Records, XL Recordings and Young.

Awards and Accolades

*1998: The Strat award, Music WeekMusic Week: History Of The Strat Award, 9 May 2019
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*2008: Honored by The Queen with an MBE
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*2011: Industry Champion Award at the inaugural Artist & Manager AwardsRecord Of The Day: Martin Mills and Everybody's honoured at Artist and Manager Awards, 18 Aug 2011
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*2011: The Guardian – Inaugural Music Power 100 listThe Guardian: Music Power 100 list, 26 May 2011
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*2011: Impala Outstanding Contribution AwardImpala Honours Martin Mills and Label Love With Outstanding Contribution Awards, 2 Feb 2012
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*2012: Inaugural Lifetime Achievement award by A2IMhttps://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/beggars-groups-martin-mills-to-be-honored-at-a2ims-inaugural-libera-1095307/ Billboard: Beggars Group’s Martin Mills To Be Honored At A2IM’s Inaugural Libera Awards, 30 May 2012]
*2012: Music Producers Guild Outstanding Contribution to UK Music AwardAudio Media International: Martin Mills honoured by Music Producers Guild, 4 Jan 2012
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*2013: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Industry Icon awardMartin Mills Receives Billboard’s Industry Icon Award, 27 Jan 2013
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*2013: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100Billboard: Power 100, 2 Feb 2013
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*2014: The Inaugural Global Impact Award at Canadian Music WeekBeggars Group Founder Martin Mills to Receive Inaugural CMW Global Impact Award at Canadian Music Week 2014, 8 May 2014
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*2014: Pioneer Award at the AIM Independent Music AwardsPRS For Music: Martin Mills to receive AIM Pioneer Award, 12 June 2014
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*2014: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - International Power PlayerBillboard: International Power Players, 30 Jan 2014
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*2014: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100
*2015: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100
*2016: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100Billboard: Power 100, 12 Feb 2016
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*2017: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100Billboard: Power 100, 9 Feb 2017
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*2017: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Indie Power PlayerBillboard: Indie Power Players, 14 Aug 2017
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*2018: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Indie Power PlayerBillboard: Indie Power Players, 27 Aug 2018
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*2018: Variety International Music LeaderVariety: International Music Leaders, 4 June 2018
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*2019: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100Billboard: Indie Power Players, 7 Feb 2019
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*2019: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Indie Power PlayerBillboard: Indie Power Players, 17 June 2019
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*2019: Variety - International Music LeaderVariety: International Music Leaders, 30 May 2019
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*2020: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Indie Power PlayerBillboard: Indie Power Players, 15 June 2020
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*2020: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100Billboard: Indie Power Players, 23 Jan 2020
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*2021: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Indie Power PlayerBillboard: Indie Power Players, 7 June 2021
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*2022: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Indie Power PlayerBillboard: Indie Power Players, 6 June 2022
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*2022: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power List Billboard: Power list, 26 Jan 2022
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*2022: Variety - Variety 500 Variety: an index of the 500 most influential business leaders shaping the global media industry, 28 Dec 2022
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*2023: Billboard_(magazine), Billboard - Power 100 Billboard: Power 100 list Jan 2023
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Commentary

In June 2013, Mills was described in a BBC Radio 4 portrait as looking "remarkably unremarkable" but being "like a wise old fisherman watching minnows waiting to catch a really big fish".

References

External links

Martin Mills biography on Music Tank website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mills, Martin
1949 births
Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford
Beggars Group
British music industry executives
Living people