Merlin Celebrates Member and Partner Executives Named Billboard’s Indie Power Players for 2023

Merlin extends a heartfelt congratulations to all the executives from Merlin members and partners who have been named Billboard Indie Power Players for 2023. From groundbreaking releases to innovative marketing strategies, they continue to redefine the independent music industry’s landscape and we couldn’t be prouder to have them as part of our community.

4AD (Beggars)

Simon Halliday – Worldwide Managing Director

ATO Records

Jon Salter – President/Head of A&R

Beggars Group

Martin Mills – Chairman
Nabil Ayers – President U.S.
Claire Taylor – GM U.S.

Better Noise Music

Allen Kovac – Founder/Chairman
Dan Waite – CEO
Steve Kline – President/COO

CDBaby

Scott Williams – President
Christine Barnum – Chief Revenue Officer

Cinq Music Group

Barry Daffurn – Co-Founder/President

Create Music Group

Jonathan Strauss – Co-Founder/CEO
Alexandre Williams – Co-Founder/COO
Wayne Hampton – Co-Founder/Chief Business Development Officer

Curb/Word Entertainment

Mike Curb – Chairman

Distrokid

Philip Kaplan – Founder/CEO

Downtown Music Group

Pieter van Rijn – President
Ben Patterson – COO

EMPIRE

Ghazi – Founder/CEO
Nima Etminan – COO
Tina Davis – Senior VP of A&R
Michael Gallegus – Senior VP of Business and Legal Affairs
Jonathan Jules – VP of International Marketing and Operations

FUGA

Christiaan Kröner – President

Go Digital Media

Jason Peterson – CEO

InnerCat Music Group

Paris Cabezas – Managing Partner
Ana Gonzalez – Managing Partner
Garrett Schaefer – GM

Kartel Music

Alfredo Becerra – Co-CEO
Leonardo Soto Tovar – Co-CEO

Matador Records (Beggars)

Patrick Amory – Co-Owner/President
Chris Lombardi – Co-Owner

MNRK Music Group

Chris Taylor – President/CEO

Mom+Pop

Michael Goldstone – Founder/Co-Owner
Thaddeus Rudd – Co-Owner

ONErpm

Emmanuel Zunz – Founder/CEO

[PIAS]

Kenny Gates – Founder/Owner

Redeye Worldwide

Michael Howard – Director of Operations
Laura Pittard – Director of Marketing
Hank Stockard – Director of Business Development

Reservoir Media

Rell Lafargue – President/COO

Rough Trade Records (Beggars)

Melanie Sheehan – GM U.S.

Secretly Distribution

Darius Van Arman – CEO
Chris Welz – COO

Secretly Group

Ben Swanson – Co-Founder/COO
Chris Swanson – Co-Founder/President of A&R
Nick Blandford – Managing Director, Americas
Phil Waldorf – Co-Founder/Chief Marketing Officer
Jon Coombs – VP of A&R
Kraegan Graves – VP of Operations, Americas
Hannah Carlen – Senior Director of Marketing and Communications

Stem Disintermedia

Milana Rabkin Lewis – CEO
Kristin Graziani – President

Sub Pop Records

Jonathan Poneman – Co-Founder/Co-President
Tony Kiewel – Co-President
Megan Jasper – CEO

Third Man Records

Jack White – Founder/Owner

UnitedMasters

Steve Stoute – Founder/CEO
David Melhado – VP of Music
Mike Weiss – VP of Music

XL Recordings/YOUNG (Beggars)

Laura Lyons – Head of U.S. Campaigns

A2IM

Richard James Burgess – President/CEO

AIM

Silvia Montello – CEO

IMPALA

Helen Smith – Executive Chair

Merlin

Jeremy Sirota – CEO

WIN

Noemí Planas – CEO

SoundCloud

Eliah Steon – CEO
Tracy Chan – Senior VP of Creator