Executive Turntable
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Live Nation Concerts has announced Geni Lincoln will be joining the company as their new president of California region. Lincoln will oversee all booking, marketing and business operations in California for the leading live entertainment promoter. She previously served as the GM and senior vp of live events for the Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif.
“I am very excited to return to Live Nation and join the stellar California team,” said Lincoln. “I have been fortunate enough to have worked with some of the best teams in the business and look forward to continuing growing those relationships in this role at Live Nation.”
Concert industry veteran Rich Best, who previously served as president of California is now joining Live Nation’s global team. Under the leadership of Arthur Fogel and Omar Al-joulani, the global promoting team produces and promotes Live Nation’s worldwide tours for artists including The Weeknd, Billie Eilish, Harry Styles, Post Malone, Bruno Mars and more. Best has been with Live Nation for over 20 years, and in his time as a promoter has continued to help a roster of artists plan worldwide tours including Pearl Jam, Rufus Du Sol, and more.
Lincoln has worked at the Kia Forum for nine years and was part of the team responsible for maintaining the legendary venue’s high rankings every year and transforming the artist experience there. Live Nation booked hundreds of shows during Lincoln’s time at the Forum and Lincoln has worked very closely with much of the team she is now leading.
“We are thrilled to welcome Geni back to Live Nation, leading our California team,” said Jordan Zachary, co-president of US Concerts. “In her prior role at the Forum she has worked incredibly closely with our teams and we’re excited to see her continue to support even more of our division and the artists we support across California.”
Best added “This is a great opportunity for my friend Geni and I give her a warm welcome to one of the most vibrant concert markets in the world. At the same time I’m incredibly excited to take the next step living out my dream working with artists on a global stage.”
Her move to Live Nation is full circle as she began her career working for House of Blues Entertainment at Universal Amphitheatre in Hollywood, which became part of Live Nation during her tenure. (Universal Amphitheatre closed in 2013). In addition to her work in live events, Geni has also spent the last five years volunteering with Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls in Los Angeles – a non-profit social justice organization empowering young girls through music education.
TikTok’s former U.S. head of content partnerships, Bryan Thoensen, has joined Spotify to oversee the company’s content strategy and partnerships with individual audio creators, known as the talk creator content and partnerships team.
Thoensen will report up to Max Cutler, who was promoted earlier this year to lead Spotify’s partnerships with creators and now holds the title of vp of talk creator content. In his new role at Spotify, Thoensen will also oversee the team’s business development and acquisitions as part of the audio giant’s larger exclusive podcast strategy.
“Bryan’s knowledge of the creator landscape will be critical as we build out our platform strategy with the goal of becoming a true platform beyond distribution, and reinforce our mission of building trust with creators,” Cutler wrote in a memo to staff.
Prior to joining Spotify, where the executive began meeting with the talk creator content and partnerships team in the past few weeks, Thoensen oversaw TikTok’s relationships with top public figures and managed relationships with brands like the NFL, NBA, Condé Nast and NBC. He was also formerly a svp for original entertainment at Fullscreen and a director of content for Hulu’s original programming following a roughly six-year career at WME.
Thoensen will remain based in Los Angeles.
This article was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
Atlantic Records nailed it when they promoted Brandon Davis and Jeff Levin in tandem a couple years ago, so naturally they’re doing it again. The star A&R execs have been upped to executive vice presidents and co-heads of pop A&R at the Warner Music imprint, with both Los Angelenos — and now-former senior vps — reporting to the president of A&R, Pete Ganbarg.
“Our mission has always been to attract, sign, and nurture the greatest talent across every genre,” commented Atlantic Records chairman & CEO Craig Kallman. “Brandon and Jeff are our pop A&R stars, bringing us a string of game-changing artists. They’ve got spot-on musical instincts, combined with the insight and ability to nurture artists at every stage of their careers.”
Davis has been with Atlantic for 11 years, having joined the company as an assistant in the A&R department. In partnership with producer Ricky Reed, he helped sign and develop Lizzo at the label in 2015 and also worked on the bestselling soundtrack for The Greatest Showman, and recently co-A&R’d Charli XCX’s album, Crash, and Ava Max’s forthcoming sophomore album.
Levin, meanwhile, joined Atlantic in 2010 and has signed Melanie Martinez, Jaymes Young and Oliver Tree, among others. He A&R’d Ben Platt’s debut album Sing To Me Instead and Charlie Puth’s third album, Charlie, and has worked with Warner Chappell Music to A&R G-Eazy and Bebe Rexha’s hit single “Me, Myself & I” and sign Logic to a global publishing deal.
“At Atlantic, we pride ourselves as much in executive development as we do in artist development,” noted Ganbarg. “Both Brandon and Jeff have worked at Atlantic their entire professional lives, rising from entry level intern and assistant positions to become an integral part of the leadership of our A&R team.”
Earlier this year, Davis spoke with Billboard about his success with Lizzo and the changes in the industry — such as the TikTokification of artist promo — since the release of her first album.
“The marriage of A&R and marketing has become closer than ever before,” he said. “As an A&R executive, I now need to think like a marketing and digital executive. I have spent more time than ever before working hand-in-hand with our marketing staff, and also letting them into the record making process earlier. A&R in the current environment has become about so much more than just music and record making — you need to be entrepreneurial and have a sophisticated understanding of many different verticals.”
Veteran Los Angeles concert promoters and talent buyers Brian Tarney and Liz Garo have joined forces to form Restless Presents, an indie promotion company that’s producing the upcoming Substance 2022 festival.
Previously produced by Tarney’s ticketing and marketing company Restless Nights and Live Nation, the annual celebration of dark rock, industrial, electronic post-punk will feature one of its strongest lineups to date, with performers including Jesus And Mary Chain, The Chameleons, Clock DVA, Cabaret Voltaire co-founder Steven Mallinder, electro-royalty ensemble Miss Kittin And The Hacker, Boy Harsher, Light Asylum, Youth Code, SEXTILE and Kontravoid. The festival is slated for Oct. 21 and 22 at the Los Angeles Theater.
Tarney and Garo have also launched a New York event called Flesh & Steel — a multi-venue, multi-date celebration taking place Dec. 1-3 and featuring Boy Harsher, A Split-Second, Psyche, Phase Fatale and more. Restless enlisted NYC artists David Castillo of Brooklyn venue Saint Vitus and DJ, promoter and journalist Andi Harriman of Synthicide to serve as creative directors for the New York event.
Tarney and Garo launched Restless Presents during the pandemic and have since booked shows for ADULT, Lingua Ignota, SEXTILE and Thee Sacred Souls. Substance is the company’s first festival, but both have produced the festival brand from its inception, going back to the launch of the Cloak and Dagger series for She Wants Revenge.
“I think one of the best things about these events is the broad, eclectic audience,” says Garo, who served as the lead talent buyer for Spaceland Presents for more than 20 years, booking the Echo and Regent Theater and concert series at the Getty Center, LA’s Natural History Museum and the Santa Monica Pier. (Spaceland was bought by Live Nation in 2019). Garo also co-founded and managed the long running Echo Park Rising series.
“There is such a broad age range at Substance. You’re definitely getting an older crowd that knows the classics but a young, healthy scene too that that’s pretty vibrant,” Garo adds. “People can come in and be who they want to be. It’s a very tight scene.”
The Los Angeles Theater in downtown LA’s Theater District was chosen as host venue because of its flexibility and eclectic layout, says Tarney, who hosted Substance at the venue in 2019 with headliner Gary Numan.
“It’s a blank slate and we built the whole thing from scratch. It’s got so many little weird rooms and nooks and crannies. We’re working really hard to activate all of them with buildouts including a marketplace and a record store,” says Tarney, a former booker at Spaceland and the creator of Restless Nites, an L.A. marketing agency and ticketing platform for independent promoters and venues. Tarney adds that Restless Presents was born from a need for more independent promoters in the live music industry and says his hope is to work closely with established and emerging acts to create unusual and forward-thinking live events.
“I think a lot of people are fed up with going to a small theater or small show and paying Ticketmaster fees or getting priced gouged on drinks when they’re there,” Tarney says. “People are looking for more than just big festivals, and many have trickled their way into some of the smaller venues. “That’s why we’re always looking for unique spaces. This is something that Liz is awesome at. She’s always finding cool, unique venues and places where we can come in and have more input.”
Tarney notes that Restless Presents has several new festival genre concepts in the works for 2023, including a roots roadhouse event and neo soul festival.
“Substance is the focal point this year, but there’s gonna be a lot more events and much more diverse sounds in the future,” he says.
Live Nation Urban has acquired a significant equity stake in the Washington, D.C.-based Broccoli City Festival, company officials announced Friday (Oct. 14).
Broccoli City has grown every spring since the launch of its first event in 2010; Live Nation Urban notably acquired the stake from festival co-founders and entrepreneurs Marcus Allen and Brandon McEachern.
As part of the acquisition, Live Nation Urban welcomes Allen and McEachern in executive roles. They will work alongside Live Nation Urban president Shawn Gee and his team to scale the Broccoli City brand and “catalyze the creation of new content and culture-centric live experiences and festivals,” according to a press release announcing the deal.
The Broccoli City Festival, described as “a black-owned social enterprise rooted in impact and entertainment that focuses on people and progress,” has notably featured icons such as Lil Wayne, Cardi B, Childish Gambino and the late Nipsey Hussle as well as rising superstars Lil Baby, Lil Durk, Summer Walker, Wizkid and City Girls. Based in D.C., the festival “staunchly supports environmental consciousness in the African-American community and fosters creativity through innovative initiatives at the intersection of technology, music, art, and social impact,” the release continues. “Over the last decade, it has inspired and mobilized 20 million-plus young people through events and online platforms.”
The acquisition highlights a cycle of black entrepreneurship. Beyond the festival, Gee and Live Nation Urban have focused on championing Allen and McEachern and their vision in the long run.
“For us as a company, this investment was an important one,” said Gee, noting that when Live Nation Urban formed in 2018, one of its first deals was a co-promotion agreement with Broccoli City. “I promised the guys that the success of our partnership would lead to greater things, and it was important to me to keep my word. We are not simply investing in a festival; we are investing in these amazing founders. We believe this will be the first of many brands that we will build together with Marcus and Brandon as they have an insatiable entrepreneurial spirit.”
The Broccoli City crew is “super excited about this partnership with LNU/LN, and working closer with Shawn Gee. I really appreciate him encouraging us to be big thinking entrepreneurs and brand builders… not limiting us to event producers,” added McEachern.
To position Broccoli City for further growth, “we are going to focus on curating untapped niche markets, bigger partnerships, and international expansion,” Allen added. “Our big picture goal is to create a 100-million-dollar community at the apex of live entertainment, social impact, and digital media.”
Jenna Park Adler was promoted to co-head of CAA‘s global hip-hop/R&B touring group alongside existing head Mark Cheatham. Adler’s clients include Jennifer Lopez, Doja Cat, Charli XCX, Green Day, Chloe x Halle, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Deftones and Mark Ronson.
Robert Santelli was named executive director at the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music at Monmouth University. He will oversee the Springsteen Archives and work to create programs, exhibits and collaborations with music museums and universities in the U.S. Santelli can be reached at bsantell@springsteenarchives.org.
BMG named Brandon Riester vp of A&R, recorded music. In the role, the Los Angeles-based executive will sign and develop artists for the label’s frontline recording team and participate in song development alongside BMG’s songwriters and publishing team. He reports directly to executive vp of recorded music Dan Gill. He was most recently A&R for Nuyorican Records. Riester can be reached at brandon.riester@bmg.com.
Colin Reed, longtime chairman and CEO at Ryman Hospitality Properties, is transitioning to executive chairman of the company after more than 21 years as CEO. Succeeding him in the CEO role is Mark Fioravanti, who will also hold the title of president, effective Jan. 1. Reed’s new role will include his responsibilities as executive chairman of Ryman’s board of directors and as chairman of the Opry Entertainment Group (OEG) board of directors. He will also focus on working with OEG strategic investor Atairos as well as NBCUniversal to exploit opportunities for value creation, advance the company’s ESG and DEI goals and handle community and government affairs. He will also continue his role with artist and shareholder relations alongside Fioravanti.
ASM Global named Liam Thornton as executive vp of strategy and development. In the role, he will be responsible for strategic planning, market research, site selection, lease and partnership negotiations, development feasibility, site planning, project advisory and investment analysis. Thornton can be reached at lthornton@asmglobal.com.
Also at ASM Global, Kimberly Weedmark was named general manager for the Los Angeles Convention Center; she joins the company from Universal Studios Hollywood, where she served as vp of special events and group sales. In her new role, she will work with the City of Los Angeles to continue to grow the convention hall.
Warner Chappell Music promoted Petter Walther Walthinsen to head of A&R for Warner Chappell Music Nordics. In the expanded role, Walthinsen will be responsible for the strategy, direction and culture of the company’s A&R department across the Nordics, with all A&R executives in the region reporting to him. Walthinsen, who will report to the region’s managing director Lars Karlsson, was previously senior A&R manager at Warner Chappell Music Norway.
Lily Golightly was hired as senior vp of publicity at Verve Label Group. She will oversee U.S. communications efforts for the company’s imprints, including Verve Records, Impulse!, Verve Forecast, Decca Records U.S., Decca Classics, Deutsche Grammophon and ECM. She previously spent over seven years at 300 Entertainment and operated her own independent publicity company, No Big Deal PR, through January 2020.
Andre Rodriguez was hired as Warner Music Latina’s director of commercial operations. In his new role, he will lead commercial operations for the entire Latin American region, and his team of six employees together will work to bridge the gap between the labels’ marketing and production departments to increase efficiency. He will report directly to senior vp of commercial services Marcela Vaccari. Rodriguez previously served as 10K Project’s senior director of production, and in addition to his new role at Warner, he will continue to manage artists under his self-owned company MUSTDIE.
Russell Hunt was hired as senior creative manager at Reservoir Media. Hunt will be based in the company’s London office, working closely with U.K. head of creative Charlie Pinder to expand Reservoir’s global presence. He will report to executive vp and global creative director Donna Caseine. He joins the company from Tigerspring, where he was head of A&R U.K.
Dan McEvoy and Bertie Gibbon joined the team at ATC Management. McEvoy brings client Black Country, New Road, while Gibbon will oversee the careers of new ATC clients Sorry, The Goa Express and Miss Tiny. McEvoy can be reached at dan@atcmanagement.com and Gibbon can be reached at matthew@atcmanagement.com.
Nashville-based publishing company SoNash launched and announced its executive team: president Travis Chaney, vp Bridgette Tatum, creative director Abigail Wate Ayala and creative consultant Juli Newton-Griffith. Wate Ayala can be reached at Abigail@sonashpublishing.com and Tatum can be reached at bridgette@sonashpublishing.com.
Music technology platform Vydia hired Susan “Sweetness” Ybern and Elena Lanza as label & artist relations managers. Both will play a crucial role in the company’s new business growth, marketing and strategy with artists and labels. They will be responsible for sourcing, negotiating and signing new partnerships deals while working collaboratively across the marketing, legal, client success and product management departments. Ybern can be reached at sweetness@vydia.com and Lanza can be reached at elena.lanza@vydia.com.
Alison Hemmings joined Audible as associate director of public relations. Most recently she worked on the communications team at iHeartMedia, leading publicity and media strategy for the iHeartPodcast Network.
SMACKTok, which offers influencer marketing services under the SMACK umbrella, hired Aleks Samul as coordinator. She will report directly to SMACK founder Marissa Turk and assist in day-to-day operations for the company. Samul can be reached at aleks@smacksongs.com.
Nashville-based marketing agency Thinkswell — which helps artists establish themselves as brands and assists brands in reaching new audiences — hired James Crowley as head of strategy, Jenni Hand as head of operations, Katie Sulzner as digital marketing manager and Nicole Marchesi as digital marketing manager. Michael Adcock was also promoted to art director. Crowley will use data analytics to build a comprehensive digital advertising and social media strategy for clients; Hand will manage campaigns, organizational structure and lead all efforts for artists and organizations; Sulzner will create high level strategic campaigns; Marchesi will execute marketing camapaigns and create video and graphic design content for clients; and Adcock will oversees all creative direction and brand development at the company. Crowley can be reached at James@thinkswell.com, Hand can be reached at jenni@thinkswell.com, Sulzner can be reached at katie@thinkswell.com, Marchesi can be reached at nicole@thinkswell.com and Adcock can be reached at michael@thinkswell.com.