Former Warner Music International exec Peter Ikin, who had a particular role in building the major's Australian business, has died aged 62 - it's thought he had a heart attack.
Ikin was a popular record company man who worked his way up the Warner hierarchy after joining the major in 1975. As well as playing a key role in establishing Warner Music Australasia, he also spent some time working for EMI Australia, and prior to his retirement in 2000 worked in international marketing for Warner Music International in London.
Warner Music Australasia top man Ed St John told Billboard: "He had a role in the way the company was set up, who worked here and how the office looked. From the moment he arrived here in 1975, he set an agenda for a marketing-driven company focused on blockbuster hits and peerless artist relations. The 70s and 80s were a time of massive artist egos - Fleetwood Mac, Elton John, Rod Stewart - and Peter Ikin gained a reputation for handling superstars that was beyond compare".