Listed as one of Spin Magazine’s 25 Most Influential people in Music (2025), Vickie Nauman is a music tech strategist and advisor who helps businesses understand and commercially navigate the complex world of music rights, licensing, and sync.

As founder and CEO of CrossBorderWorks, and with a >20 year track record of overcoming complex and licensing challenges, Vickie is entrusted by some of the world’s biggest media companies – including Meta, Spotify, Bose, Ubisoft, Roblox – to help achieve their strategic goals that rely on partnership with the music industry for success.

She also works with music businesses to devise and implement their growth strategies. She has advised on major industry M&A transactions with total value of c. $500m, including Downtown Music Publishing’s acquisitions of FUGA and CD Baby. Her involvement in these high-profile deals has firmly established her position at the forefront of marked developments across music and entertainment business models.

An expert in music technology and digitalization, Vickie is uniquely positioned to help companies that want to leverage the power of music. Her career has traced the digital revolution over the past 25 years, through the launch of Napster, the birth of streaming services, and social media.

As a leading international expert in sync and licensing frameworks, including legal and commercial negotiations, she has advised major business across gaming, social media, transport, and entertainment sectors, helping them navigate the complex rights management processes to secure the music they need in the face of an ever-shifting digital landscape.

Vickie’s credentials include leading in-game music licensing for Riot Games, Ubisoft, Meta, and Oculus Quest, social media music licensing for global artist will.i.am and VSCO, and licensing strategies for airlines and in-car entertainment services. She has also advised on mechanical rights and royalty structures for platforms including Epidemic Sound, Mixcloud, feed.fm, and Spotify.

From video games and adverts to social media, transport, and fitness, music is integral to modern business, with the power to shape user experience, strengthen brand identity, and drive consumer engagement. But the intricate and complex ownership, copyright and licensing framework behind every song, and the process of clearing the legal hurdles of music copyrights, is a minefield that few know or understand.