In an interview for IMPALA’s *Faces of the Independent Sector* series, Mariana Voronina—CEO and co-owner of independent Ukrainian label Best Music and member of the association SPILNA—discusses how Ukraine’s music industry operates during wartime.
Voronina transitioned into the music industry from law, initially working as an intellectual property lawyer’s assistant before founding her independent label alongside her business partner a decade ago. For her, independence provides the freedom to direct company strategy and choose collaborators, coupled with a deep sense of responsibility toward her team and artists. She highlights the agility of independent labels as a core advantage, allowing companies to pivot quickly from brainstorming ideas to executing PR campaigns, hosting industry conferences, contributing to legislative changes, or launching new media projects without bureaucratic bottlenecks.
Operating the business during wartime presents immense challenges, including managing daily shelling, scheduled power cuts, maintaining an unstable economy, and dealing with staff shortages as colleagues leave to defend the country. Despite these obstacles, Voronina emphasizes that the Ukrainian music sector has remained active, continuing to release music, organize concerts, and plan for the future as a testament to its resilience.
Looking at broader market needs, Voronina advocates for stronger sector-wide cooperation through professional bodies like SPILNA. She stresses the importance of unifying the voice of independent labels domestically and internationally, engaging actively in intellectual property law reform, and learning from European counterparts regarding collective rights management. Furthermore, she encourages global digital streaming platforms to increase their presence and marketing efforts in Ukraine to combat piracy and provide better local discovery tools, helping transform the market into a structured, competitive ecosystem.
Voronina’s key priorities and upcoming initiatives include the educational event Best Music Day, the social campaign Value Music aimed at promoting legal music consumption and fair rights-holder compensation, a planned YouTube hit-swapping show titled Best Hit, and continued involvement in legislative and collective management developments. Her core advice to newcomers is to dive straight in rather than waiting to know everything, treating mistakes as vital lessons in a fast-paced industry.
