NOISEMAKERS:
THE HEAT WAVE

In our latest roundup, we present eight rising professionals from various parts of the biz whose dedication and effort make their superiors look good.

The octet also appears in our magazine, the pages of which we understand make for decent sweat rags, so handy during this heat wave.

NyAsia Burris
R&B Manager, Artist Partnerships, Spotify

Among Burris’ career highlights is a stint working for Solange’s Saint Heron, where she got to support the artist on SNL and Fallon, among other duties. Last spring she helped launch Spotify’s live series R&B First Nights (with Victoria Monét in L.A. and FLO in Atlanta) and steered the Spot into fashion with designers Latoia Fitzgerald and Christopher John Rogers, respectively supported by the “Feelin’ Myself” and “Fashion Forward” playlists. A Baltimore native, Burris has been learning how to play the bass. She might be better off learning how to avoid us.

Walter Thomas
Senior Director of Artist Development, Capitol Christian Music Group

Thomas, who was CEO of Agency 22 Entertainment before CCMG created his current role, is proud to have been part of Maverick City Music’s 2022 Kingdom Tour with Kirk Franklin, one of the highest-grossing inspirational road shows ever—which sold out 15,000-seaters in multiple cities, and the marketing of Anthony Brown and Group Therapy’s 2019 #1 gold single, “Worth.” In total, he’s helped secure 20 #1 singles, eight #1 albums and eight Grammys (five for MCM). In other news, Thomas says he’s “great at grilling and horrible at golf.” We’re horrible at both!

Coley Hunt
Director, Marketing, Sony Music Nashville

The marketing campaign for Nate Smith’s self-titled debut album stands out as a peak career experience for Hunt, who calls watching Smith’s audience grow as the plan evolved “exciting, challenging and undeniably rewarding.” She’s presently crafting new-music strategy for rising star Mitchell Tenpenny and building artists like David J, Restless Road and Tyler Booth from the ground up. In her free time, Hunt, a soccer enthusiast nearly all her life, enjoys playing in the adult leagues. We need our inhaler just thinking about all that running and kicking.

Nick Pacelli
Head of Brands, SALXCO/XO Records; Founder, Kindly Agency

In a single week, Pacelli once taught brand marketing at Berklee, accompanied French Montana to the premiere of the rapper’s documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival and presented his award-winning Doja Cat x Taco Bell campaign at Cannes Lions. Next: Doja’s album, tour and first shoe line and the first Kindly Agency tour with Ice Spice. Pacelli’s IG handle (@popepacelli) is a nod to his connection to a 19th century pontiff. We’re all that is unholy.

Nancy Stolze
Project Manager, ONErpm

Stolze will long cherish the time she spent as day-to-day-manager for British American singer-songwriter Bishop Briggs, who in May performed her double-platinum alt-rock hit “River” on Season 9 of The Masked Singer, which she won. At the moment, Stolze has her hands full with projects by ONErpm artists Taylor Acorn, Good Kid, Against the Current, DeathbyRomy and Vwillz, among others. An organizational wizard, she’s kept a spreadsheet of every show she’s ever been to so she can revisit and reminisce. Mere Word docs make us curl up in the fetal position.

Chris Kai Williams
Director, Marketing, Def Jam

As a project manager at Columbia, Williams has lent a hand to platinum campaigns for Chlöe x Halle (“Do It”) and Chlöe (“Have Mercy”), as well as Lil Nas X (the sextuple-platinum “Industry Baby”) and The Kid LAROI (the diamond “Stay”). At Def Jam he’s advanced the work of Armani White (Road to CASABLANCO.) and is implementing initiatives for Fridayy (Fridayy) and Sid Sriram (Sidharth). Williams moved from New Orleans to NYC within days of cold-calling Z100 and Power 105.1 to get his foot in the industry door. After this HITS look, he may be searching for the exit.

Audrey Pine Wright
Artist Manager, APW; Casting Producer, American Idol

Wright was thrilled to join American Idol as a producer after many years of being “hit up” by the show for her roster. Her friends now call her the “idol maker.” On the management side, Wright’s artist maryjo, whom she handles with partner Kelly King, was signed to Atlantic and released her debut track in February. Client Ava Maybee just wrapped a 15-city tour supporting lovelytheband. Back in the day, Wright helped launch Brandy and Jewel's careers with tours of high schools and lent her skills to L.A. radio stations KIIS FM and Power 106. We’ve been banned from those stations since the ’90s.

Jon Briks
Agent, UTA

For Briks, few things top seeing Denzel Curry rise from a tour of 300-capacity venues to headlining festivals like Hopscotch and Capitol Hill Block Party and Kevin Gates go from selling a few hundred tickets per city to selling out arenas. This year, he’s booked sold-out tours for Young Nudy, LUCKI, redveil and Masego—who will headline Red Rocks for the first time—and is working on plans for Gates, Flo Milli and Kenny Mason. During the pandemic, Briks learned how to make guitars, pedals and amps using a soldering iron, which could fend us off if need be.