Suggestions
Dusko Justic
Appreciating the nuances of music and storytelling while staying curious.
Dusko Justic is a senior executive at Sony Music Entertainment, holding the position of SVP (Senior Vice President) of International Strategic Market Development for the Latin-Iberia region.1 He is a passionate and curious leader within this global entertainment company, focusing on talent development, implementing innovative artist-first strategies, and storytelling.1
Professional Approach
Justic demonstrates a strong commitment to serving artists and building their legacies. He approaches his role with a daily mindset of how to best support the artists he works with, viewing it as an ongoing process rather than a static achievement.2 His philosophy emphasizes the importance of not just doing the job efficiently ("Black & White") but also making artists, clients, and partners feel valued and supported ("Color").3
Industry Contributions
Dusko Justic has been actively involved in advancing the music industry, particularly in the Latin music sector. He played a significant role in campaigning for the inclusion of an Electronic Music category at the Latin Grammys, which was successfully implemented after nearly two years of effort.5 This achievement demonstrates his dedication to recognizing and promoting diverse musical genres within the Latin music landscape.
Professional Philosophy
Justic believes in the power of combining exceptional creators, iconic music, and a great team as the perfect formula for success in the music industry.4 He emphasizes the importance of understanding the art, finding exciting ways to tell stories about music, and fostering discovery and connection with audiences.6 His approach to the music business is characterized by a focus on emotional engagement and innovative strategies to promote artists and their work.
Highlights
An effective artist-team framework has five parts: vision, creativity, connection, committment, and trust. I am grateful to be working with an incredibly inspiring artist (Trueno) and team (Magnus Media LLC, Tomas Cookman). This is just the beginning.
How do you measure?
On a panel with Jay Kogami and Masaya Inokuchi, Jay asked ‘How do you measure success?’, a question which resonated with me and gets me up every morning.
Being of service in the music business, success can be measured in two important areas. First, there is the tangible ‘measured’ success of KPIs: streaming, views, tickets, revenue, click-through, engagement, and awards.
Secondly, is the non-tangible ‘evaluating’ success: artist contentment and well-being. Spending time with your talent and listening to their ambitions and challenges and then crafting a plan based on those passion points and feedback.
Both areas are equally important, and both feed off one another - artist contentment breeds success and vice-versa. Ultimately, it’s about listening to your talent, listening to the fans, and demonstrating impact.
You can’t just measure by spreadsheet. You need to stay close to the creator, close to the fan.
I’m curious, what does success look like for you?
