Chrysalis radio chief Phil Riley collected just over £1.5m this year, according to the company's annual report, which is published today.
But chief executive Richard Huntingford saw his take-home package - at £395,000 - more than halved from two years ago.
Mr Riley earned £342,000 in salary, bonus and benefits, but his pay was boosted by a long-term incentive worth £1.16m that had been accruing for eight and a half years.
The extra payment covered the period between September 1995 and February 2004 and was calculated with reference to the value of the company's radio division, which is home to Heart, Galaxy and LBC.
A Chrysalis spokeswoman said Mr Riley had ploughed some of the money into shares, upping his interest from 154,000 shares to 520,000 shares, an investment currently worth £950,000.
Most Chrysalis executives were paid less this year than last, as the value of their bonuses plummeted from a total of £579,000 in 2003 to £190,000 this year.
Three executives - chairman Chris Wright, chief executive Richard Huntingford and finance director Nigel Butterfield - received no bonus at all this year.
That compares with the £313,000 in bonuses they received between them in 2003 and the £787,000 they made in 2002.
Both Mr Riley and Peter Lassman, who runs the music and books distribution business Lasgo Chrysalis, earned bonuses this year, of £68,000 and £122,000 respectively.
Chrysalis executives have their bonus arrangements "individually tailored" to incentivise them, according to the report.
Although salaries rose this year, the failure of some executives to qualify for their bonuses meant they took home less pay than in previous years.
Mr Huntingford was paid £395,000 in salary and benefits this year, short of his £508,000 pay last year, and less than half of the £812,000-plus that he earned two years ago.
Mr Wright's £316,000 pay packet this year lagged behind the £346,000 he earned in 2003 and the £500,000 he made the year before that.
As for Mr Butterfield, he earned £300,000, less than last year's £398,000 and the £548,000 he received in 2002.
Overall, the 10 members of the Chrysalis board were paid £1.9m in 2004, excluding Mr Riley's long-term incentive.
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