The former Spotify executive will oversee Warner Music’s operations across Poland, the Czech Republic, South Eastern Europe and Ukraine.
Warner Music Group has named Mateusz Smółka managing director of Warner Music Eastern Europe, a newly created role that puts him in charge of the company’s business across Poland, the Czech Republic, South Eastern Europe and Ukraine.
Smółka starts September 7 and will be based in Warsaw. He reports to Simon Robson, president, EMEA, Warner Music.
A regional role built for scale
The appointment gives Warner Music a single lead for a stretch of the market the company describes as one of Europe’s fastest-expanding. Smółka’s remit is broad: drive strategic expansion, build scale and market share, and keep the company aligned with local music cultures in each territory.
Warner also said he will help strengthen its position as a full-service artist partner by expanding capabilities across talent development, distribution and strategic M&A.
The structure matters. This is not a ceremonial title. It is a regional operating role with commercial weight, and it lands as major labels keep pushing deeper into markets where local repertoire, streaming growth and catalog value are all moving in the same direction.
From Spotify to Warner Music
Smółka arrives from Spotify, where he spent eight years leading the Editorial and Artist & Label Partnership teams across ten Eastern European markets. Warner pointed to that experience as central to the hire, along with his background in music, media and technology.
He began his career as a journalist before moving into advisory and leadership roles in the music business.
Robson said Smółka has a “proven record of driving creative and commercial growth across Eastern Europe” and pointed to his experience in artist development and fan culture as a fit for the job.
Smółka said he is joining Warner Music “at such a transformative moment” for the industry in Eastern Europe and called out the volume of creative talent coming out of the region. He said he looks forward to working with the company’s teams to support its artist roster and push local sounds globally.
Warner’s Eastern Europe push takes shape
The appointment follows a series of Warner Music moves across EMEA as the company keeps refining its regional structure. The Eastern Europe role is part of that broader push, with Warner looking to pair local market knowledge with a more coordinated operating model.
For executives watching the region, the message is clear. Warner is treating Eastern Europe as a growth market that needs dedicated leadership, not a satellite office. Smółka’s background in platform strategy, label partnerships and market development gives the company a hire built for that brief.
He steps into the job as Warner continues to expand its footprint across markets where the next phase of growth will depend on who can combine local fluency with scale.
