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 latest magazine, which makes an excellent coaster.
Dwight Lazarus
Lead, Label Partnerships, Spotify
Lazarus has transcribed lyrics for JAY-Z & Kanye West’s Watch the Throne in NYC, enjoyed Sunday roast with Ed Sheeran, jammed out with Bruno Mars & Anderson .Paak, flown to Miami to chat with Kodak Black, to name but a few highlights. Now, he’s continuing to paint the world BRAT green for Charli xcx’s album, supporting Cordae’s Crossroads project this fall, pushing Teddy Swims deeper into superstardom and planning celebrations for Gucci Mane’s 20-year milestone on 10/17. Lazarus champions Batman as the ultimate superhero for having no superpowers. Where’s our parade?
Paige Maloney
Agent, Wasserman Music
Having been part of Noah Kahan’s booking team since 2016, Maloney savors having seen him sell out his first two stadium shows at Fenway Park. With SUSTO recently wrapping their annual Fine 2Day Fest in Maquoketa, IA, she’s presently focused on fall dates from Katie Pruitt, Kelsey Waldon, Elizabeth Cook and Emily Nenni. She’s also gearing up for Bobby Weir to perform a few more symphony dates with his touring band, the Wolf Bros featuring The Wolfpack, playing new arrangements of the Dead catalog with orchestras. Maloney’s a furniture-assembly enthusiast. We’re missing a few screws.
Jeff “Gitty‟ Gitelman
Producer, Playground Media
Gitelman will never forget the time Hozier brought him onstage during his sold-out Hollywood Bowl show to perform “First Time,” a song he produced and a dream come true from this producer’s days as a touring guitarist. Presently, Gitelman is deeply involved with artists such as Jessie Murph, Teddy Swims, Muni Long and Anderson .Paak, focusing on collaborative projects that transcend single records. Hailing from Moldova, Gitelman didn’t speak English until moving to the U.S. at age nine. As regular readers will attest, we’re barely fluent ourselves.
Gracie Reichel
VP, Digital Strategy, The Trenches
Working with Noah Kahan and his team on short-form content strategy, Reichel relished guiding the singer-songwriter’s TikTok following from 200k to 2.8m. She was also proud to see him earn a Grammy nom and headline two sold-out nights at Fenway Park and to watch his Stick Season go multi-platinum. Now, she’s continuing to amplify Post Malone’s #1 country album, F-1 Trillion. A job perk? Reichel has met the likes of Dolly Parton, Blake Shelton and Brad Paisley. No one wants to meet us.
James Armstrong
VP, Creative Marketing, Sony Music Publishing
After closing an ad campaign for Def Leppard with Pure Leaf Iced Tea in which Phil Collen reimagined “Pour Some Sugar on Me,” Armstrong got a fist bump from Collen during the band’s show at Citi Field—sweet, right? Lately, he’s been jazzed about placing Travis Scott’s “FE!N” in a Gatorade ad and orchestrating a global campaign with Beyoncé’s “PURE/HONEY” for Paco Rabanne’s Million Gold fragrance. In his spare time, Armstrong’s been studying for a yoga-teacher certification and learning to read tarot cards. We don’t wanna know how grim our future looks.
Emmie Chambers
Operations Manager, Primary Wave Music
Chambers fondly remembers being thanked in the liner notes of Jimmy Buffett’s final album, Equal Strain on All Parts, and coordinating the release of 2023’s “Jolene” by Olivia Newton-John & Dolly Parton. When she’s not participating in the legacy of legends like Newton-John and Henry Mancini, she’s been focused on the women of Sun Records, seeing releases this year from the likes of Ruthie Foster, ZZ Ward, Shawna Thompson and Amy Helm, with no plans to slow down in 2025. Chambers secretly boasts an “uncannily accurate” Shakira impression. We wish our hips would lie.
Mark Taylor
Sr. Director, Creative, Facet House
Among other career highlights, Taylor inked Mitski to WCM, saw Dua Lipa’s first U.S. live show and watched the rise of Chappell Roan’s hit “Good Luck, Babe!” (cowritten by Facet House founder Justin Tranter). In partnership with Tranter, Taylor and Facet House publish writers like Shawn Wasabi, Blush and Skyler Stonestreet; the roster has achieved Top 10 hits at nearly every major radio format, including singles from Future, Måneskin, Tate McRae, Saweetie and Dove Cameron. In high school, Taylor’s band won the Irvine Battle of the Bands. We got pushed into our lockers.
Jessie Richard
SVP, Federal Public Policy, RIAA
Richard is proud to have supported impactful moments for artists, such as fka twigs’ heartfelt observations about AI and Smokey Robinson calling for protections in the Music Modernization Act. While educating policymakers about AI’s impact on the biz and advocating for lawful, responsible tech development, she’s focused on legislation like the NO FAKES Act, ensuring creators can leverage the benefits of AI while mitigating risks associated with deepfakes. In middle school, Richard got a standing ovation for her solo dance performance of “Vogue.” We sustained a Hokey Pokey-related injury.
DANIEL NIGRO:
CRACKING THE CODE The co-writer-producer of the moment, in his own words (12/12a)
| ||
NOW WHAT?
We have no fucking idea.
COUNTRY'S NEWEST DISRUPTOR
Three chords and some truth you may not be ready for.
AI IS ALREADY EATING YOUR LUNCH
The kids can tell the difference... for now.
WHO'S BUYING THE DRINKS?
That's what we'd like to know.
|