Whos Who in the Biz category interest

Warner Music has announced that the widely-respected industry executive, Darina Connolly, has joined Rhino UK as the label’s General Manager. She will report directly to Warner Music’s SVP, Global Catalogue, Dirk Ewald, with a dotted line to WMUK’s COO, Isabel Garvey.

Connolly was most recently Head of Music Partnerships at TikTok, having joined the company in 2020 as Head of Label Partnerships. In her new role at Rhino UK, she will be responsible for overseeing and spearheading the marketing activity for the label’s iconic artists, who include David Bowie, Enya, Fleetwood Mac, Joy Division, Madonna, Prince and Tina Turner.

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Connolly has enjoyed a successful career in the music industry, working across a number of different sectors. Before joining TikTok, she was Music Partnerships Manager for UK andamp; Ireland at Apple Music, helping in the launch of the Apple Music platform in 2015, as well as booking acts for the Apple Music Festival. She has also held roles at Sony Music and MTV, working with artists such as AC/DC, Foo Fighters, Gossip, John Legend and Kings of Leon.

A fierce champion of diversity and inclusion, Connolly has led multiple initiatives to increase representation of LGBTQIA+ people in the music industry throughout her career. While at Apple Music, she developed the Elevate programme that promoted new up and coming LGBTQIA+ artists, conceptualised the #queersounds campaign across the TikTok platform and led the company’s Pride initiatives in the UK. In 2024, she was named as an honouree in the Billboard Music Industry Pride list.

Darina Connolly said: “Rhino UK is home to some of the most recognised songs and successful artists ever, so I’m honoured to be stepping into this new role. I’ve been lucky enough to have been involved in viral moments and innovative marketing activations that have propelled classic tracks back into the public consciousness and to a new audience. I hope to help create more opportunities that will breathe new life into our iconic songs.” 

Dirk Ewald added: “Catalogue continues to play an incredibly important role in our business, so it’s imperative we are fully aligned and collaborating across our company. I’m very much looking forward to working alongside Darina as Rhino UK continues to superserve the amazing artists and their music that we have been entrusted with at Warner Music.”

Isabel Garvey concluded: “I’m delighted we’ve been able to bring in such an experienced and passionate leader to run Rhino UK. The way people discover catalogue music is always evolving, and Darina has been at the forefront of the artists and platforms driving the most exciting trends and cultural moments. To have her at the helm of Rhino, using her expertise and knowledge to help our most legendary artists reach new audiences is really exciting.” 

Rhino UK has enjoyed a strong year, with successful releases from David Bowie and Fleetwood Mac, as well as campaigns from Alphaville and Madonna that have elevated deep catalogue. 

Warner Music can also confirm that, after a successful ten years at the company, Tom Gallacher has left Rhino UK to relocate to Scotland with his family. He leaves with everyone’s best wishes.