Having graduated in Economics at Newcastle University in 1977, he spent the next two years playing guitar in a new wave band, before working in a succession of small record labels, culminating in a short period at RCA, followed by his arrival in 1982 at EMI Records. He relaunched the legendary Parlophone label in the early 1990s, and as the label's managing director achieved notable breakthroughs with Radiohead, Blur, Pet Shop Boys and Foo Fighters, as well as worldwide hits with established stars such as Queen, Tina Turner and Paul McCartney. In 1998 he was promoted to the role of Chairman & CEO EMI Music UK, leading all of the company's UK labels, including Capitol, EMI, Virgin, Chrysalis and Parlophone, as well as the company's recording studios Olympic, Townhouse and the world-famous Abbey Road Studios. This coincided with a period of global success with artists such as Robbie Williams, Coldplay, Kylie Minogue, Lily Allen, Norah Jones, Gorillaz, the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, amongst many others. In 2008, after 26 years at EMI and 10 years at the top of the UK company, he stepped down soon after its acquisition by a private equity company. Wadsworth became a Council member of the industry trade association, the BPI, in 1998, and was Chairman of the Brits annual awards show for three years from 2000–2002, during which time he established the Brits independent TV production company Brits TV. From 2007 to 2014 he held the posts of Chairman of the BPI and Chairman of Brit Awards Ltd. Wadsworth continues to serve as a Trustee of the Brit Trust and as a Governor of the Brit School. He also holds the post of Visiting Professor in the music and business schools of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. He is also Chairman of Julie's Bicycle, the leading global charity bridging the gap between environmental sustainability and the creative industries. He is a Trustee of the EMI Music Sound Foundation, a charity devoted to improving young people's access to music education and a Trustee of the EMI Archive Trust. He is a non-executive board director of BIMM, the market leader in popular music higher education, and additionally has commercial interests ranging from ethical ticketing to a vinyl record store.
