Peermusic is entering a new era. In a shift that will represent the third generation of leadership of the family-owned music publishing company, Mary Megan Peer will succeed her father Ralph Peer II as CEO, it was announced Thursday (Dec. 10). Ralph Peer II will now become executive chair of the board.
The privately-owned peermusic was founded in 1927 by Ralph. S Peer, Ralph Peer II’s father and Mary Megan Peer’s grandfather. Today, it has a global presence in 32 countries and a catalog comprising over 500,000 songs.
Mary Megan Peer will be the fourth CEO and second woman to head the company, as her grandmother Monique Peer took over leadership after Ralph S. Peer’s death in 1960. She held the seat until Ralph Peer II took over in 1983.
As executive chair, Ralph Peer II will retain corporate board responsibilities at peermusic, including providing expertise that helped build the company into one of the world’s top independent music publishing firms. (In the third quarter of 2020, peermusic ranked ninth by marketshare on the Top Radio Airplay chart and 10th on the Hot 100 Songs chart.) Moreover, Peer II will continue to serve as a member of several industry boards, including the National Music Publishers’ Association NMPA and International Confederation of Music Publishers.
“It’s been a very satisfying challenge to have stewarded peermusic’s heritage repertoire made possible through the genius of my father and the savoir faire of my mother while simultaneously keeping our firm active and successfully engaged with contemporary repertoire and global music publishing policy,” Ralph Peer II said in a statement. “I feel privileged to engage with global cultures and intellectual property issues on a daily basis. In short, I love my job and relish the intellectual environment it provides.”
Now is the time for the next generation to step into this leadership role, he says, passing the reigns to his daughter.
“I’m honored to be named peermusic’s fourth CEO by my father at such a strong time in the company’s history,” Mary Megan Peer said in a statement. “His principled leadership is reflected in peermusic’s client-centric ethos and the respect our colleagues have for writers and for each other. Like many in the company and within the industry, I have learned a great deal from him and am thankful to have the opportunity to continue to do so as he starts the next chapter of his career at peermusic.”
Mary Megan Peer graduated from Stanford University with a bachelors degree in international relations and then earned a masters degree from Columbia Business School. She joined the company in 2009 after working for five years in the investment banking industry, according to her LinkedIn profile.
At peermusic, she led the acquisition of South Korean K-pop publisher Music Cube, which added 40,000 Korean copyrights and works to peermusic’s catalogue in early 2019. According to the company, Korea is now the third largest territory in the peermusic network in terms of revenue. Before that, she led the opening of peermusic’s first office in mainland China, becoming the first global independent music publisher to do so.
In October, Mary Megan Peer led the company into the neighboring rights business by spearheading the deal that formed an international partnership comprised of peermusic, Global Master Rights, Premier Muzik and All Right Music.
Looking at her global remit, Mary Megan Peer added in a statement, “I look forward to continuing to work with the very strong senior management team [Ralph Peer II] has created around the globe.”
