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300 Entertainment continues to bolster its roster of young talent with the signing of newest act BlakeIANA, a Midwest-based rapper on the rise for her song “BING BONG.” “When I heard BlakeIANA, I was impressed and definitely excited by the sound,” 300 Entertainment co-president Selim Bouab tells Billboard. “Once I sat down with her face-to-face, […]
Ryan Beuschel joined The Neal Agency as head of business development, where he’ll assist in artist development across a TNA roster that includes Morgan Wallen, HARDY and Anne Wilson. The Michigan native is fresh off a nine-year tour of Warner Chappell Music, where he rose to vp of A&R and is credited with signing recently crowned Billboard Country Power Players rookie of the year Bailey Zimmerman (a TNA client). Beuschel got his start interning at Universal Music Publishing Group and later held roles at UMG and ASCAP. “Ryan has been a close friend of mine for many years,” said agency founder and co-head Austin Neal. “He carries the same entrepreneurial spirit and artist first mentality that aligns with the core values of our company.” Reach Beuschel at Ryan@TheNealAgency. net.
Sony Music’s distribution and indie artist services company AWAL hired Vijay Basrur to captain its expansion into the opportunity-rich India and South Asia markets. This new chapter for AWAL follows the acquisition of Basrur’s homegrown digital distribution service, OKListen, which works with 4,000-plus artists across India. Based in Mumbai and supported by Sony Music India, the Basrur-led AWAL division will help indie-centric artists with their marketing, creative, synchs, radio promotion and, of course, distribution needs. He’ll report to AWAL CEO Lonny Olinick and Sony Music India managing director Vinit Thakkar. “The independent music community across the region is full of potential,” said Olinick.
Linda Bloss-Baum will depart SoundExchange, where she is senior vp of government relations and public policy, to join the Kogod School of Business at American University as a full-time faculty member. The Washington D.C.-based Bloss-Baum started at SoundExchange in 2021 after holding roles at Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group and Time Warner Inc. At the Kogod School of Business, where she has been an adjunct professor for a decade, she’ll serve as assistant program director in the business and entertainment program and teach two undergraduate courses. Bloss-Baum officially starts her new job on Aug. 15.
Ticketing and events marketplace Tixr continues a hiring spree with the appointment of Irene Hedges to chief strategy officer. Hedges, most recently Warner Bros.’ svp of corporate business development and strategy, will spend her time at Tixr launching new business verticals and expanding the company internationally, among other duties. Other recent appointments at Tixr include Matt Baca to vp of finance, Acacia Diaz to vp of marketing and Nate Liberman to vp of sports. But wait there’s more: industry veteran Sara Mertz was promoted to vp of music partnerships – venues.
ICYMI: Rihanna stepped down as Savage X Fenty boss … Patrick Moore was appointed CEO at Opry Entertainment Group … Jarred Arfa was named evp/head of global music at the newly launched Independent Artist Group … SoundCloud promoted Tracy Chan to chief content officer … Runner Music hired Amanda Hill as co-chief creative officer … German music rights body GEMA announced Dr. Tobias Holzmüller will take over as CEO starting in October … and UMG Nashville named Charlene Bryant as svp of business development and strategy.
Lauren Lieu was promoted to senior director of creative at Play It Again Music Group, the full-service music company founded by singer-songwriter Dallas Davidson. In her new role, Lieu will serve as head of PIA’s publishing arm, which has a roster including Davidson, Lee Brice, Lewis Brice, Tyler Farr and Dylan Marlowe, among others. “Lauren Lieu is a warrior,” remarked Davidson. Prior to joining PIA in 2021 as director of creative, she served as creative manager at ole Music Publishing. Reach Lieu at Lauren@piamusic.com.
PR firm Shore Fire Media promoted Alena Joyiens to senior account executive. The Brooklyn-based publicist joined Shore Fire in 2019 as a junior account executive and since then was upped to account executive, leading campaigns for Kesha, Bonnie Raitt, ODESZA, Debbie Gibson and other clients. Her remit has also included several book campaigns, including for Decoding ‘Despacito’: An Oral History of Latin Music by Leila Cobo, the chief content officer for Latin music at Billboard. Joyiens can be reached at ajoyiens@shorefire.com.
Speaking of, Erica Goldish has left Shore Fire for a new opportunity at brand strategy & communications firm FYI Brand Group, where her client roster includes 21 Savage, Cardi B, DJ Khaled, Doja Cat, Metro Boomin’, Travis Scott, Wizkid and many more. Goldish joined Shore Fire in 2021 as a junior account executive and dropped the junior a year later.
Nashville Bites: Charly Salvatore’s marketing/management firm underscore works added two new employees: artist manager/director of marketing Jamie Ernst and associate manager Jordin Wentworth. Ernst is a former Average Joes day-to-day manager who brings Sister Hazel to the underscore client list. Wentworth was recently a ClearBox Rights project manager … Shore Fire Media promoted Nashville-based Olivia Del Valle to senior account executive from account executive … Mason Stanfield joined KATC Colorado Springs, Colo., as PD/morning host. He arrives after working the morning shift at KRMD Shreveport, La. … KUZZ Bakersfield, Calif., morning team Cliff Dumas and Tanya Brakebill announced their retirement from radio following their June 23 shift. –Tom Roland
TikTok’s parent company ByteDance launched its own music creation tool called Ripple on Friday (June 30th) for a small group of beta testers in the U.S.
Ripple offers audio recording and editing capabilities as well as a “melody to song” function, which allows users to hum a melody and spits out an instrumental version of it in an assortment of genres. TikTokers could use it to create sounds for their videos.
The beta launch of Ripple makes sense at a time when the music industry is increasingly cognizant of the fact that young listeners are no longer content to sit back and just listen to someone else’s song — they want to add their own twist, or even make one themselves. Ole Obermann, TikTok’s global head of music, told a conference earlier this year that listeners “want to put their fingerprints on the song.”
This is becoming a common sentiment: Surveys show “how much Gen Z wants to actively participate in music,” Tatiana Cirisano, music industry analyst and consultant at Midia Research, told Billboard last year. In March, John Fleckenstein, COO of RCA Records, told Billboard that “Gen Z has an expectation, because they’ve grown up as digital natives, that if you do something, they can iterate or comment on it. That doesn’t end in the comments section of a social media post: It’s now bleeding into the art itself.”
One of the companies that has had a lot of success by making it easy for the masses to make music music is BandLab, a free app which had more than 60 million registered creators pumping out more than 16 million songs a month at the start of the year. Meng Ru Kuok, the company’s CEO, is fond of saying “we think everyone is a creator, including fans.”
Right now, millions of aspiring creators use BandLab or GarageBand or another program to make or manipulate audio, which they might then upload to TikTok as an original sound. But if Ripple becomes popular, TikTok’s massive user-base could produce soundtracks for their videos without ever leaving a ByteDance app.
And ByteDance has already launched another popular app that meshes well with TikTok: CapCut. CapCut “makes it a lot easier for your everyday user to be able to create more polished videos,” Jen Darmafall, director of marketing at ATG Group, told Billboard earlier this year. “You don’t have to have a particular skill set when it comes to editing — there are templates on the platform for you to go and plug in what you want, whether it’s photos or videos or text overlays or transitions. That’s helped it skyrocket.”
Colombian urban artist Ryan Castro has sued King Records, the indie label belonging to fellow Colombian artist Kevin Roldán for breach of contract of his management and label agreements in two separate complaints. The lawsuits — filed in Medellín, Colombia, in April and May, respectively — both name King Records, which is Roldán’s label.
A third suit, arguing breach of contract in terms of publishing agreements, is expected to be filed in the coming weeks, according to Castro’s attorney and manager, Leo Arango.
The lawsuits come as Castro is hitting new career highs. On July 7, he’s slated to release a new single, “Chimba de reggaetón” with Mexican star Peso Pluma (to be distributed by Sony Latin), while earlier this year he released both the “Corazón Roto” remix with Brray and Jhayco and “Ojitos Rojos” with Blessd. Additionally, he was named a Billboard “Latin Artist on the Rise” in June 2022.
The complaints mark the latest developments in the short relationship between Castro and Roldán, which started off on a positive note back in July 2020, when Castro signed management, recording and publishing contracts with Roldán’s company, King Records.
However, by 2021, the suit claims that Castro was requesting, and not receiving, financial statements from the label. In November 2021, in an effort to mend things between the two artists, says the suit, the two signed a separate agreement to create a new company, Awoo King Records. Under that agreement, the lawsuit alleges, Castro would have a 50% interest in the company and a majority share in revenue. However, Roldán would still control the finances of the company for the first year.
Castro’s career flourished thanks to hit singles like “Mujeriego,” which was distributed by Sony Music Latin. However, the suit alleges that Awoo King Records was still not providing proper accounting to Castro, who says he was still owed monies from King Records. The complaint further alleges that in August 2022, Castro’s attorneys realized that funds from Awoo King Records had been taken out of the company without Castro’s knowledge or authorization, draining some of the money needed to support his career.
After Roldán allegedly refused to give Castro the reins of the company, Castro sued. In his complaint, he claims he is owed money from digital distribution agreements and royalties and that the alleged financial improprieties have hurt his career.
A tribunal in Medellín is expected to hear the first of the two filed complaints in the coming weeks.
Arango says the legal issues aren’t impeding Castro’s ability to work or record, however. Aside from preparing the release of his single with Peso Pluma, he says Castro is also working on an album, likely due at the end of the year.
Roldán’s attorney, Pold Alexander, declined to comment for the story.
Nigerian DJ/producer Spinall has officially signed with Epic Records, the company tells Billboard.
“Spinall is one of the continent’s best musical exports. A preeminent curator and driver of culture. His collaborations have the potential to take music from Africa to new heights globally, and we are extremely energized about our partnership with him here at Epic,” says Ezekiel “Zeke” Lewis, president of Epic Records, in a statement to Billboard.
“It’s really, really tough when you’ve been independent for a minute. But after discussing with Sylvia [Rhone, CEO/chairwoman of Epic Records] and Zeke, they gave me the most confidence that I would ever need — bringing me on, speaking to me and listening and being so sweet. Sylvia and Zeke convinced me in the first meeting that I’m home,” he tells Billboard.
“They have a proven record of doing amazing partnerships with different talents from all over the world. So I’m super excited, and there’s gonna be a lot of good music. I’m excited to be working with a set of people who genuinely love music. We just want to spread the gospel of good music all around the world.”
Spinall (real name Oluseye Desmond Sodamola) is already spreading the word through his new single “Loju” featuring Wizkid, which he released today (June 30) as his official Epic debut. “It’s a very special record because of our history together as partners in making some of the best Afrobeats records,” he says of his frequent collaborator, with whom he’s worked on “Nowo,” “Opoju,” “Dis Love” (with Tiwa Savage) and more. “Wizkid is someone I respect a lot. He has done collaborations with everybody on the continent, and he’s still doing it. Every time we link up, the energy is just different. Our friendship is beyond the music.”
“Loju” arrives four months after he released his sixth studio album, Top Boy, on Feb. 17 via his own record label/management company, TheCAP Music. Top Boy — which was featured on Billboard‘s 50 best albums of 2023 (so far) list — contains hit singles “Sere” featuring Fireboy DML (and 6lack on the remix) and “Palazzo” featuring Asake, the former of which has 16.3 million official on-demand streams in the U.S. and 71 million official global on-demand streams.
“Palazzo” peaked at No. 6 on Billboard‘s U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart, while “Power (Remember Who You Are)” featuring Summer Walker, DJ Snake and Äyanna — which was originally featured in The Flipper’s Skate Heist short film and then added to Top Boy — peaked at No. 16 on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs.
“A lot of amazing records on the tape. The whole goal behind that is to spread the music and spread the entire culture of what we do in Africa,” he says.
After receiving his BSc degree in electrical and electronics engineering at Olabisi Onabanjo University in Nigeria’s Ogun State, Spinall attended several DJ schools to hone in on his musical talent. In 2014, he launched TheCAP Music, which stands for “TheCrazyAzzParty” and also symbolizes the traditional Yoruba caps he wears, and signed producers Killertunes and Stunna the following year. He had previously signed an international record deal with Atlantic Records U.K. and a publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music U.K. Spinall has released all six of his albums through TheCAP Music.
Last year, he opened for Bruno Mars in Sydney, Australia for two nights and DJed at Jay-Z‘s Oscars Gold Party. “My work speaks for itself…. I’m not new to the big stage,” Spinall says. “There’s no other goal than making happy music. If you look at my discography, that’s what I’ve done over the years and that’s what I’ll continue to do till the day I die!”
For management, Spinall is represented by Tolulope Shodamola, COO/general manager of TheCAP Music, as well as LVRN’s Tunde Balogun (president/co-founder), Amber Grimes (executive vp/general manager) and Justice Baiden (head of A&R/co-president).
Ticketmaster owner Live Nation’s push for legislative ticketing reform earlier this year has actually slowed down progress on those issues, sources tell Billboard, stalling a long-in-the-works bill that addresses nearly identical concerns about the ticketing business.
Last year, even before Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour presale fiasco inspired a flurry of ticketing reform bills, the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) had been working on a wide-reaching piece of legislation in cooperation with Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) to “combat predatory and deceptive ticketing practices,” according to sources close to the issue. The bill included bans on deceptive practices and speculative listings, enforcement of existing anti-bot laws and new tools for countering ticketing fraud. Its most substantive change took aim at the secondary ticketing industry, granting artists and tour promoters sweeping power to reduce ticket scalping by allowing artists to set legally binding rules on how and where their tickets are resold, according to a November 2022 memo reviewed by Billboard. Besides NIVA, Universal Music Group, Wasserman Music, Dice and See Tickets were all among the broad coalition of music companies supporting the effort under the coalition name Fix the Tix.
But, for months, the bill has languished — even as attention around ticketing has grown considerably following a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in January on competition within the ticketing industry. That’s because of increased lobbying by pro-scalper groups and a decision in February, by Ticketmaster owner Live Nation, to unveil the FAIR Ticketing Act, a five-point proposal with a list of legislative fixes — and the recommendations were very similar to the fixes NIVA had been quietly lobbying for.
With NIVA representing thousands of independent venues and Live Nation representing its huge corporate portfolio, the two entities often have opposing agendas, and some NIVA members theorized that Live Nation was attempting to sabotage their bill. Worried that supporting a similar proposal would look like politicians were rewarding Ticketmaster at a time when outrage at the company was growing, momentum around the NIVA bill waned. Klobuchar’s office, which had planned to announce a bi-partisan bill with Cornyn in the spring, delayed its announcement amid new concerns that the bill might strengthen Ticketmaster, sources close to both Live Nation and NIVA tell Billboard. They add that the FAIR Ticketing Act was neither a clone of the proposed NIVA bill nor a poison pill.
“Live Nation and Ticketmaster have been the target of the Senate since the two companies merged in 2010,” says one NIVA member speaking on the condition of anonymity. “There’s an appetite in D.C. to punish Ticketmaster, but the reality is that there’s no way to pass a law that would both punish Ticketmaster and bring about the types of reforms needed to clean up the ticketing business.”
Case in point: On April 28, Klobuchar’s office introduced legislation with Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) that would have banned ticketing companies like Ticketmaster from signing venue clients to long-term exclusive contracts. The proposal has faced opposition from some members of NIVA, who argued it would hurt small venues that relied on the payments from those contracts, and that fans would likely have to make up for the loss through higher ticket prices. A representative for Live Nation previously told Billboard the proposal wouldn’t “have a material impact on our business as we historically add clients in competitive marketplaces.”
As for similarities between the NIVA-backed bill and Live Nation’s proposal, “It’s not surprising that the two groups that spent the last six months thinking about legislative fixes [to] the same issue came up with similar solutions,” said one source close to Live Nation, noting that much of the friction between NIVA and Ticketmaster has subsided.
Ticketmaster officials appear to have gotten the message and have toned down the rhetoric around their political efforts. Many of the campaign efforts have been picked up by NIVA, which successfully lobbied for $15 billion in federal aid for venues negatively impacted by the coronavirus pandemic in 2021. Now, sources say, the Fix the Tix bill is expected to be proposed in the next couple of weeks.
Leading the charge at NIVA is the organization’s executive director, Stephen Parker. A longtime D.C. insider who worked with Sen. Tim Kaine when he was the governor of Virginia, Parker spent a decade at the bipartisan National Governors Association and has served on the board of the Country Music Association.
Parker confirmed to Billboard that neither Live Nation nor Ticketmaster has signed on as official supporters of the Fix the Tix coalition, while he and others are being extra cautious not to make their legislative package a referendum on Ticketmaster. Still, the Live Nation-owned company will play an outsized role in the Fix the Tix plan, as opponents are getting ready to paint the proposal as a major power shift to Ticketmaster and away from scalpers.
The Fix the Tix proposal would “make it illegal for resellers, professional ticket brokers, and ticket platforms to violate the artists’ and venues’ ticket terms and conditions, including restrictions that prohibit price gouging of fans through the resale of tickets above face value,” according to an early draft obtained by Billboard. That means artists, venues, or promoters could place ceilings on how much tickets are allowed to be marked up or restrict ticket resale until after all primary tickets have been sold. Since Ticketmaster and AEG are the only two companies on the market with technology that can track tickets after they’re sold to see if they are being resold and for how much, however, critics say this sort of law would create an even greater dependence on their services.
That’s far more power than Ticketmaster should have, says John Breyault, vp of public policy at the National Consumers League and a founding board member of the Fan Freedom Project, an advocacy group fighting restrictions on resale that receives funding from StubHub and Vivid Seats. “Ticketmaster does not want to eliminate resale; they want to control resale,” Breyault says. The current proposals by Ticketmaster and NIVA could bankrupt major secondary resale sites, especially if most tours decided to make their tickets non-transferable. Once Live Nation “got rid of its competitors,” Breyault says the company could convince the artist it works with to lighten up on ticket transferability and effectively “own the resale market.”
To a degree, Fix the Tix is a response to the dozens of pieces of pro-scalping legislation and lobbying that have been proposed at the state and federal levels over the past six months. This Fix the Tix bill would seek to overrule any state-level legislation that exists; there are currently over a dozen states with laws that outlaw restrictions on ticket transferability, meaning anyone can resell tickets at any price they want.Others, like Rep. Bill Pascrell’s (D-NJ) BOSS and SWIFT Act — which Breyault supports and the Fix the Tix coalition opposes — would permanently legalize scalping by making it illegal for ticketing companies to restrict ticket transferability.
Last year, the American Economic Liberties Project, which is funded by Pierre Omidyar — former chairman of eBay and owner of Ticketmaster rival StubHub — announced the “Break Up Ticketmaster,” campaign, aimed at pressuring the DOJ “to investigate and unwind the 2010 Live Nation-Ticketmaster merger,” according to the group’s website.
Opponents of scalping say the BOSS Act would make it impossible for artists to keep their tickets off secondary sites and would allow all scalping sites to sell any tickets they wanted without restriction. Proponents, however, believe that outcome is better for fans than allowing Live Nation and the artists it works with to make these decisions.
While the scalpers and the concert promoters are far apart on most issues, the rival bills do share consensus on a number of practices in ticketing that have long drawn the ire of fans. Those include speculative ticket listing, drip pricing and misleading marketing campaigns — all of which would be banned by both NIVA’s proposal and the BOSS and Swift Act.
Editor’s note: Billboard has updated this story to more accurately describe the work performed by the American Economic Liberties Project.
Ozuna has signed with Scooter Braun‘s SB Projects, Billboard has learned. The management deal is a partnership with Edgar Andino, founder and CEO of Andino Marketing Group. The Puerto Rican star joins a SB Projects roster that includes Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande and Demi Lovato, among others. The company also previously managed Colombian powerhouse J Balvin, who parted ways with SB in June 2022 and is now signed to Roc Nation.
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“We’ve been following Ozuna’s career for years and we’re excited to be bringing him into the family to work with him and Edgar,” Jennifer McDaniels, president of management at SB Projects, said in a statement. “Ozuna’s music is unmatched. His ability to work across genres including reggaeton, Latin pop, and more, is phenomenal. With unique songs offering fresh perspective and beautiful sounds, we’re thrilled to amplify his artistry with this partnership.”
“Working with Ozuna over these past years, one thing is for certain, we always go big,” added Andino. “For us, Scooter and SB Projects align with our vision. They are the perfect partners to help in our continued approach and take Ozuna to the next level of his career. We cannot be more thrilled and cannot wait for everyone to see what we have coming next.”
A key figure in Ozuna’s team, Andino has helped the singer-songwriter land global deals that range from NFT collaborations to releasing a song for the Call of Duty video game. Most recently, he led negotiations for Ozuna’s inclusion in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Official Soundtrack, performing “Arhbo” with rapper GIMS. The uplifting song, which they performed at the World Cup’s closing ceremony, peaked at No. 1 Billboard‘s Latin Airplay chart.
In May, he released Afro, a seven-track EP where he experiments with Afrobeats. It followed his 2022 studio album, Ozutochi, which landed at No. 5 on the Top Latin Albums chart. Ozuna is set to embark on his Afro Tour across Europe this summer, which has 16 confirmed dates, including stops in France, Spain, Italy, Israel and Holland. The monthlong trek kicks off July 7 in France and wraps Aug. 6 in Spain.
Universal Music Group Nashville has named Charlene Bryant as senior vp of business development & strategy.
Bryant brings with her a track record of experience and success in genres including country, Christian and hip-hop. The Ohio native and Belmont University graduate previously spent five years leading artist management company Riveter Management, which she founded in 2018. Bryant was named one of Billboard‘s R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players in 2020 and 2021 and was part of CMT and mtheory’s inaugural equal access development program.
“Charlene has spent her career in artist development and learning to merge cultures of Christian, R&B, Hip-Hop and Country music,” says UMG Nashville chair & CEO Cindy Mabe. “She’s had success at major labels and independents, as well as success as an entrepreneur. As Universal Nashville is investing deeper to expand our growth in partnering in innovation with entrepreneurs, the independent label sector as well as our sister labels, Charlene is the perfect person to help merge those worlds and cultures to help build the next era of Universal Music Group Nashville. I could not be more excited to have Charlene Bryant help build our vision.”
UMG Nashville’s latest hire comes under the leadership of Mabe, who officially took the chair/CEO reins of the label in April. In a memo to UMG Nashville staffers at the time, Mabe laid out a vision for the company going forward. Among her plans are to “dramatically expand our partnerships with independent labels and entrepreneurs.” Mabe added, “Inspiration and new ideas are coming from everywhere. Much of that innovation is coming from the independent sector, but by the same token there is so much more they could do if they partnered with us in key areas. Universal Nashville will actively take a role to position ourselves as the best partners to expand their growth and help develop and support these artists.”
As Mabe continues to build the leadership team at UMG Nashville, the company is also pulling from other industry sectors. In May, Chelsea Blythe was appointed as executive vp of A&R for UMG Nashville. Blythe previously served as senior vp of A&R at Def Jam, leading A&R efforts for artists including Armani White and 26AR. Blythe also worked at Columbia Records, signing artists including Baby Keem and developing artists including The Kid LAROI.
In the memo to UMG Nashville staffers in April, Mabe said the company also aims to “collaborate even closer (and more creatively) with our label colleagues around the world where we can leverage each other’s strengths to break artists who are either signed to their rosters or ours. There’s so much more we can do together.”
As part of that work with UMG Nashville’s sister labels, the label also recently announced its partnership with Capitol Christian Music Group to release new music from Grammy-nominated artist Anne Wilson (“My Jesus,” “Sunday Sermons”).
Paladin Artists announced on Thursday that veteran agent Bruce Solar has joined the company, effective immediately. He’ll focus on expanding the company on a global scale. Solar will be based in Los Angeles and brings his roster of clients with him, including Blondie, Cake, Psychedelic Furs, The Zombies, Radical Face, Eels, Fantastic Negrito, The Monkees […]
SYDNEY, Australia — Josh Simons is the new CEO of Jaxsta.
The Vampr co-founder succeeds Beth Appleton, who steps down as CEO with immediate effect, reads a statement issued Thursday (June 29) to the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX).
Simons takes the reins at Jaxsta Limited, the world’s biggest database of official music credits, following the completion of the acquisition of Vampr on June 1, 2023, when he was named as chief strategy officer.
Going forward, he’ll continue in those duties in addition to his appointment as CEO.
“The board thanks Beth for her significant contribution to Jaxsta during a period of growth and change,” comments Jaxsta chair Linda Jenkinson. “We wish her all the best for her future.”
Appleton departs some 14 months after her own promotion from chief marketing officer to the top job.
Born in Britain and now based in Sydney, Australia, Appleton joined Jaxsta in July 2021 from major label-land, including stints with Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and EMI. During her ten-year run with WMG, she earned a reputation as one of the best in the business, and plaudits in Billboard’s “Women In Music” feature.
“I will relish my time at Jaxsta and the initiatives that I drove,” she comments. “I wish Josh, and the incredible team, all the very best for the future. I’m proud to have been a part of the Jaxsta evolution, and look forward to watching the business continue on its mission.”
Jaxsta is Australia’s only ASX-listed music business.
The incoming chief executive takes the helm at a business that, currently, boasts more than 343 million official, deep-linked music credits across 107 million pages, sourced from over 359 data partners.
Last week, WiseTech founder and CEO Richard White became a substantial shareholder in the company as part of its A$3 million capital raise.
“I’ve been following Josh Simons for a number of years as the founder and CEO of Vampr,” White explains. “I have been impressed by his tenacity, focus, vision and particularly the ability to build a commercial model that grows and retains revenue and customers. Now that Vampr is a part of Jaxsta, Josh will, no doubt, contribute his drive, skills and experience to the larger business. I see his contribution will be able to create a clear path to revenue and profitability for Jaxsta.”
Simons co-founded Vampr in 2015 with Barry Palmer. Today, it’s recognized as the leading social-professional network for musicians, boasting 1.3 million users and facilitating over eight million connections.
“Jaxsta has a clear vision and product roadmap going into FY24, and that’s a credit to the Board, Beth and the team who have done a remarkable job,” Simons comments. “Revenue, cost efficiency and profitability remain the top priorities for Jaxsta and I look forward to building on the current momentum. We have the foundation for a transformational global music product as we continue to integrate Vampr into the business and scale the Vinyl.com platform.”
The changing of the guard closely follows Jaxsta’s Master of Metadata win at the Music Business Association’s Bizzy Awards 2023, and the launch of Vinyl.com, a new online store powered by Jaxsta’s official music credits. In April of this year, Jacqui Louez Schoorl announced her departure from Jaxsta, a decade after she founded the business.