Welcome to another in our series of Sony Spotlight pieces in which we highlight some of the dedicated team members here at Sony Legacy.

Please meet Senior National Account Manager, Anna Power.

WHAT WAS THE FIRST RECORD YOU BOUGHT?
The first thing I remember buying was the CD single ‘Pray’ by Take That. I queued up and bought it from my local Woolworths with my pocket money.

I was convinced one day I’d marry Mark Owen!!

WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE SONY ARTIST AND WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE SONG/ALBUM BY THEM?
So many to choose from as we have a really strong roster of new and catalogue acts, but I’d say Queen Be, Beyonce.

A world class super star. Who doesn’t love ‘Crazy In Love’ or ‘Single Ladies’?

And I’m loving some of our exciting new acts like Nao & MO.

WHAT’S THE FIRST AND BEST GIG YOU’VE BEEN TO?
My first gig was Ocean Colour Scene at St Georges Hall in Bradford. My Dad took me & some friends & waited outside in the car whilst the gig was on. We were so excited! After this I got the bug for seeing live music, bad.

I was lucky to grow up near Leeds, a city with a vibrant music scene and where I got to see lots of bands early in their careers. One that sticks in my mind was The Strokes at Leeds Refectory. There was so much hype about them and it felt like a really exciting time. I was working in a bar literally cleaning a floor when they first came on the radio & Jo Whiley played ‘Last Nite’, I had to know more about them & seeing them live that first time didn’t disappoint.

They were amazing, so vibrant and full of life. The White Stripes supported them and it felt like such an exciting time to be young and into music. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs at the Cockpit – a small venue in Leeds – was also amazing, Karen O climbed all over the speakers and threw herself into the crowd, such a captivating frontwoman, I wanted to be her!

Some of my best gigs of recent years would include PJ Harvey at the Royal Albert Hall around ‘Let England Shake’. She was spellbinding. I love the way she draws you in and everything is thought through the imagery, the lights and whole vibe. She tells the story of each song so well. She’s a strong inspirational woman and not afraid to go against the grain.

Ryan Adams at Cadogan Hall was also wonderful. Just him, his guitar and his amazing voice, so powerful and stunning.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE ALBUM?
That’s a really hard question as it’s ever changing, but here are a few albums that have stuck with me through the years…

Paul Simon ‘Graceland’. Some of my earliest memories are singing and dancing to this album, it’s a family classic and I still know all the words.

The Smiths’ ‘The Queen Is Dead’ – I never tire of Morrissey’s wry, clever lyrics and Johnny Marr’s guitar riffs. ‘There Is A Light That Never Goes Out’ is such a beautiful pop song and will always get me up dancing.

The Stone Roses ‘The Stone Roses’ – the band were at their peak a bit before my time, but that didn’t stop me and my mates playing them. So many nights spent dancing to ‘I Am The Resurrection’ shouting the words and spilling our pints;) It reminds me of so many people I love who have grown up with me & makes me smile. ‘Waterfall’ is a track I’ve always gone back to whenever I need a bit of a pick me up. When I got my first Saturday job washing dishes in a café I would listen to it again & again ‘She’ll carry on through it all…’ even endless dish washing !

LCD Sound system ‘LCD Sound System’ James Murphy is a genius. I love this album it reminds me of moving to London & it blew me away when I first heard tracks like ‘Losing My Edge’, ‘Give It Up’.

I challenge anyone not to go bananas to the breakdown in ‘Yeah’ (Crass Version).

Ryan Adams ‘Gold’. This man is a genius and I never tire of his music. Gold is packed full of such stunning tracks.

The beautiful ‘When The Stars Go Blue’, ‘Somehow Someday’… I can listen to Gold and his other albums over and over

ANY STORIES YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE?
I feel so lucky to have worked in music. As a teenager I went to my local careers officer who told me I would never work in music that those sort of jobs don’t exist for a girl from a little town in Yorkshire, but I knew I couldn’t give up and it’s all I wanted to do in some capacity. I didn’t know what jobs there were but I wanted to try find one.

The industry has changed so much in the years I have been involved and I’ve had a lot of fun and interesting experiences working with labels and on some amazing releases. I’ve also met some of my musical heroes which I never take for granted. There are so many great people working at Sony Music who love music, it’s a good place to be.

Before working at Sony I worked for a Hip Hop DJ, I was once sent out to order £200 worth of McDonalds for a well-known rapper, can you imagine how many chicken nuggets you get for £200! Believe me it’s a LOT .

I’ll never eat another nugget…