It's time for another spin around the Executive Turntable, Advertising signthe comprehensive roundup of promotions, hires, departures and firings — and everything in between — in all of music.
Singer-songwriter Tyler Hubbard (known for his work as part of Florida Georgia Line as well as solo hits including “5 Foot 9”) launched the music publishing company Haylo Music. It will be managed by the general manager Josh Sax, formerly of JC Saxe Creative Consulting. Saxe will work with Hubbard to facilitate the day-to-day songwriting strategy of the company's publishing and creative services catalog. A graduate of Belmont University, Saxe began his career as associate director of A&R at Round Hill Music and rose to a senior director role. In 2019, he joined Endurance Music Group, managing a roster of songwriters that included Matt Stell, Paul Sikes and Seth Alley. – Jessica Nicholson
Tencent Music Entertainment announced that Zhenyu Xie, the company's president/chief technology officer, among other roles, is stepping down from his executive positions as well as his role as a board member. A press release says the resignation is “for personal reasons” and will be effective March 31. Xie will continue to serve as an advisor to the company. In addition, the board has appointed a CFO of Tencent Music Min Hu (aka Shirley Hu) as a director of the company, effective March 31. – Chris Eggertsen
UMG Nashville employee Jake Gear as vice president of A&R. Gear brings over a decade of experience as a publisher, producer and managing writer to the role. The Belmont University graduate began his career in CMT's music and licensing department before moving on to publishing positions at Magic Mustang Music, Sea Gayle Music and BMG. He later launched the creative publishing venture Hang Your Hat Music with Concord Music and songwriter Hall of Famer Hillary Lindsey. Gear has also acted as director of writing for Lindsey and has produced albums by Flatland Cavalry, Hailey Whitters and others. – Jessica Nicholson
Gonzalo Rangel took on a new role at WK Records as vice president of A&R and marketing. The Puerto Rican executive – who has managed musical acts such as Mexican local pop star Ramón Vega and Puerto Rican alt-pop singer Robi since 2017 – will now be responsible for “leading the label's artistic discovery and development, in addition to overseeing all marketing efforts for the frontline roster,” says the WK team Advertising sign. “I'm delighted to be a part of The WK team as the label continues into its fourth year. I look forward to contributing my expertise and leading the next generation of music here at WK Records,” says Rangel. His credits include contributions to the 2022 hit song “Pantysito” by Alejo, Feid and Robi, as well as facilitating collaborations for Vega with industry heavyweights such as Carin León, Jasiel Nuñez and mariacheño superstar Christian Nodal. Rangel's prowess was further demonstrated when he secured Vega as the opening act for CNCO's farewell tour in Mexico and fueled the growth of emerging Puerto Rican producer OG Flamez. Rangel will report to Horacio RodriguezCEO of WK Records. – Isabella Raigoza
Stem added two new staff members, welcoming Nima Khalilian as head of international, artist & label strategy and Didi Purcell in the role of collaborating artists and record labels. Khalilian joins Stem from Interscope, where he spent six years as senior director of international marketing. Purcell joins from SoundOn, TikTok's music distribution and artist services platform, where she worked as a member of the artist and label partnerships team. Prior to SoundOn, Purcell oversaw the pop and dance/electronic playlist at Interscope. – Jessica Nicholson
The Agency TBA, which represents artists such as Courtney Barnett, CHVRCHES and Mora, revealed several promotions and hires in New York and Los Angeles. based in New York Katie Nowak promoted to vp of marketing and partnerships while based in LA Corynne Fernandez moving from marketing and partnerships coordinator to director of marketing and artist development. Additionally, Ashley Torres promoted to marketing and partnerships coordinator. TBA also works with creative services consultancy The Department, founded by Jack Pitney and Costa Elchev, to promote creative opportunities for the roster. Somewhere else, Nina Moss joined TBA as marketing assistant. Agents Marshall Betts, Avery McTaggart, Amy Davidman, Ryan Craven and Devin Landau started the agency in 2020. – Jessica Nicholson
Sarah Scales appointed senior director of digital at Artist activist management. In the new role, she will be tasked with creating and executing digital marketing strategies for artists on Activist's roster, including Weyes Blood, The Pretty Reckless, Empire of the Sun and The Lumineers. He is based in the company's Nashville office. Prior to joining Activist, Scales spent six years developing and executing advertising campaigns for global brands and artists at Marbaloo Marketing and Q Management Group. – Chris Eggertsen
Guitar Center was named Christine Shane Executive vp/chief merchandising and marketing officer. Reporting to the CEO Gabe Dalporto, Shane will oversee the integration of the company's marketing and merchandising functions to enhance the customer experience. She will also be responsible for products, promotions, visual merchandising, omnichannel experience and activations. Shane comes to Guitar Center from PetSmart, where she was senior vice president/chief merchandising officer. – Chris Eggertsen
Aiden Cullen and Alex Gruzinski launched NOVA, a curated network of creative freelancers and a marketplace designed to connect creatives with work opportunities across multiple media. NOVA launched as a private Instagram account last year and has since covered about 7,500 jobs, according to the company, which says creative executives from companies including Apple, Capitol Records, Interscope Records and Spotify are “fans” of it platform. The NOVA app allows creatives to showcase their portfolios, grow their networks, display contact information for their agents, and more. Clients can do things like filter and search the platform's creative directory, post jobs, manage applications, and create and organize talent lists that they can refer back to when it's time to fill future roles. – Chris Eggertsen
Róisín Warner appointed head of marketing at Blackstar Agency. She was most recently senior director of marketing at Believe and previously held roles at Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group. The company's former chief marketing officer, Brainer Baptistatakes up a new role on the agency's board as non-executive director of A&R. – Chris Eggertsen
Last week's turntable: WMG Vet Takes on CEO Temp Role at Deezer
