NOISEMAKERS:
BLAZING THE TRAIL

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

This week's entrants will also find their faces in our most recent mag. Lucky for them, this feature—and $28.95—will get them a "special" Erewhon smoothie, whatever that means.

Sophia Villanueva
Head of Label Services, Double P Records and Prajin Parlay

Villanueva once helped direct a pivotal campaign for Darell, whose comeback single hit the Global Top 50, with 11m+ TikTok creations and 14b views. As head of label services, she oversees all aspects of operations, including marketing, A&R, logistics and artist relations. She was instrumental in the launch of Peso Pluma’s ÉXODO, which topped Spotify’s Top Global and U.S. Albums charts, plus Apple Music’s Top Album charts in nine countries. Before music, Villanueva trained as a professional equestrian rider, specializing in jumping horses. Too bad she can’t leap from this feature.

Jeremy Rice
Artist and Label Strategy Manager, Stem

Rice once missed his ferry to St. Tropez while product-managing a Grammy-nominated album with last-minute changes at 4am, an experience he says was “worth it.” He’s also proud to have worked with the likes of Sinéad Harnett, Jeezy and Emotional Oranges, among others, and collaborated with platforms like COLORS and TIDAL that support independent artists. Currently, he’s excited for the world to hear upcoming albums from Duckwrth and Sunni Colón. Despite his music industry cred, Rice is not to be trusted with the aux—blame his love for Marvin Gaye. Our playlists are all on cassette.

Andres Shaq
Director, A&R, Warner Music Latina

Shaq’s career soared when he immersed himself in Colombia’s music scene, catalyzing Blessd’s rise, seeing ICON craft hits for Feid, SOG produce for Ryan Castro and Peso Pluma, Maff contribute to Karol G’s latest album and Pirlo become a rising trap artist. Blending artists’ passions with their music careers, he integrated Blessd’s love for soccer with music, resulting in the Si Sabe Fest events and a collaboration with Ronaldinho, plus Blessd being invited by Spotify to become an ambassador for Barcelona FC. Shaq’s got eclectic taste in music. We’ve been told to keep ours on mute.

Sak Pase
VP A&R, EMPIRE

Pase’s first trip to Paris involved working with Ye on the Yeezus album, a trip that overlapped with his wedding week. Today, he’s focused on all things EMPIRE. He’s currently building on the success of Shaboozey, working on new albums from artists like Tiwa Savage and Fireboy DML, and is excited for ASAKE’s latest project and new music from Maro. He’s also setting up MANNA, an incubator to nurture creatives. His passion for tea might one day lead him to own a tea farm—brewing up more than hits. We smoked all of our tea.

Hannah Thompson Waitt
VP, US Commercial Strategy, Virgin Music Group

From recording sessions at Electric Lady with Clairo to backstage moments with Kate Hudson and late nights with Meek Mill and Tove Lo, Waitt’s career is nothing short of thrilling. She’s now focused on Clairo’s third album, Charm, which debuted at #8 and yielded “Juna,” which hit #1 on the TikTok chart, and is gearing up for new projects from SOFI TUKKER (8/23) and LL COOL J (9/6). Despite all the celebrity run-ins, it was Shaq stepping on her toe at Ultra Music Festival that really left an impression. We’ve been treading on other folks’ feet forever, and it’s gotten us nowhere.

Melissa McGreevy
Sr. Manager, Digital Marketing, Warner Music Nashville

McGreevy cherishes having worked on Randy Travis’ “Where That Came From,” capturing a pivotal return to music. Having been part of Avery Anna’s team since she inked with WMN, McGreevy was excited to spearhead digital marketing for her debut, Breakup Over Breakfast. She’s also leading strategy for artists like Dan + Shay, Zac Brown Band, Ashley McBryde, Ian Munsick and more. McGreevy once serenaded an international crowd at the Montreux Jazz Festival with her tenor saxophone. Our scatting is legendary, but in all the wrong ways.

Josh Mateer
Head of A&R, U.K./Europe, SoundOn (TikTok)

Among other career highs, Mateer’s shook hands with Paul McCartney on stage, contributed to the rise of Mother Mother—who sold-out X3 Kentish Town Forums in London a year into their signing—and worked with late industry icon Seymour Stein. He’s now promoting LeoStayTrill’s “Pink Lemonade,” which boasts 50m+ global streams and 3m+ TikTok uses, and Niklas Dee’s “Around the World,” currently climbing the German Spotify charts. Mateer’s first guestlist spot came at age 12 from an assertive letter to the Dropkick Murphys’ manager. Most would like to dropkick us out of their venues.

Ruby Anton
Day-to-Day Manager, State of the Art

Watching Chappell Roan perform gold certified “HOT TO GO!” at Lollapalooza to a record-breaking 80k audience was full-circle moment for Anton, who attended college and lived in Chicago for five years. She’s now prepping for Roan’s debut at the upcoming VMAs and managing new SOTA signings Debbii Dawson and garbagebarbie. Additionally, Anton is active on the board for Women in Visuals, enhancing networks for creative industry professionals. Anton claims her toxic trait is owning a white couch despite her love for red wine. J.D. Vance had no comment.