Brit Beat: Adele’s Agent Lucy Dickins Talks Las Vegas Residency; U.K. Indie Venue Crisis and More

variety.com:

Mark Sutherland Awards season has been in full swing in the U.K., and the highlight of the month was the glittering Music Industry Trust Awards, held in London last month.

The awards honor individuals for their contribution to the U.K.’s musical and cultural landscape, while raising vital funds for the BRIT Trust and Nordoff & Robbins.

This year’s winner was Lucy Dickins, WME’s global head of contemporary music & touring. Sony’s Rob Stringer and Universal’s David Joseph were among those paying video tribute, alongside Dickins’ clients Adele and Mumford & Sons, while Hot Chip and Loyle Carner played live.

Dickins’ brother, September Management founder and longtime Adele manager Jonathan Dickins, presented her with the award, hailing the leading agent as “a fierce negotiator, strategic, loyal and, most importantly, the greatest sister I could ever have.” Lucy tells Variety she was “overwhelmed” to win the prestigious award – previously won by the likes of Stringer, Lucian Grainge and Kylie Minogue – putting her success down to picking up artists early in their careers and helping them to break through. “I’ve been a part of my artists’ journey from the very beginning,” she says. “I’ve seen them get married and have babies, they’ve seen me get married and have babies and I have a really great relationship with them all.” One of those Day One clients is Adele, who Dickins has helped become a massive live draw, despite the star’s initial reluctance to tour heavily. “She loves it now, but she didn’t like playing live much in the early days, so we had to be very strategic,” Dickins says.