64 BILLBOARD | AUGUST 10 , 2 019
The Weeknd (Memento Mori), Virgil
Abloh (Televised Radio) and Nicki
Minaj (Queen Radio). “We create a
space,” says Seviour, “where artists
can be artists.”
A CAUSE HE SUPPORTS “The ACLU,
because we need to defend and
preserve our rights.”
Darrin Smith
VP MUSIC PROGRAMMING
SiriusXM
Smith, 53, spearheaded the launch of
Xtra Channels for SiriusXM, providing
the streaming platform’s 34.3 million
subscribers with over 100 curated
music channels. “It has opened up a lot
of creativity for us,” says Smith, who
pioneered Xtra’s New Music Mash,
which mixes pop, country and hip-hop,
as well as music discovery extensions
to such channels as Alt Nation. “It’s
harder than ever to break artists in
today’s saturated environment. At
SiriusXM, we successfully hyper-
target new artists, getting the right
songs in front of the right users.”
AN INCLUSIVE WORKPLACE IS “About
recognizing that every employee has
something valuable to contribute.
[Being out] used to be this gossip-y
thing, and now here at SiriusXM, it’s
a complete nonissue. There would be
more gossip if my socks didn’t match.”
Christian Stavros
FOUNDER/OWNER/MANAGER
Little Operation
Stavros, 38, manages indie songwriter
Angel Olsen, whose latest single,
“All Mirrors,” arrived July 30. He also
signed Devendra Banhart (“One of
my all-time favorite songwriters”),
whose 10th album, Ma, will arrive on
Nonesuch Records in September.
TO PROMOTE DIVERSITY “I’d like to see
the industry move away from showing
nebulous support of the LGBTQ+
community with rainbow avatars for
30 days a year and actively start hiring,
mentoring, promoting, signing and
supporting more women, people of
color and LGBTQ+ individuals. Their
perspective in the workplace will be
invaluable to its creative output.”
Christopher Swope
SENIOR VP STRATEGIC ALLIANCES
AND INNOVATION
Live Nation
Swope, 47, has brought lifestyle brands
like ASICS, American Eagle and
Pantene as well as spirit companies
(Bacardí, Rémy Martin, Smirnoff)
beauty into the audio space, proving
the power of iHeart,” says Troberman of
the broadcast and digital company that
reports its platforms reach nine out of
10 Americans. Now the self-described
audio “evangelist” is leveraging the
momentum into more partnerships.
“Brands embracing radio with spending
are surpassing their competitors,” she
says. “I declare it the year of audio.”
PRIDE TODAY IS “No longer a label for
the few, but a rallying cry for us all to be
more accepting.”
Toni Wallace
HEAD OF MUSIC BRAND
PARTNERSHIPS
United Talent Agency
Post Malone’s Posty Fest in Dallas
last October was a highlight of the
past year for Wallace, 38. Her team
helped close 15 sponsorship deals for
the 20,000-capacity event, helping it
turn a profit in its inaugural year. The
festival punctuated a 12-month period
of unprecedented growth in which
Wallace’s team closed 250 deals for
artists on the UTA roster, increasing
the company’s revenue by 275%,
according to the agency.
PROMOTING DIVERSITY MEANS
“Working to move away from
homogenous teams. To be a real leader
in a global and diverse marketplace,
you need to surround yourself with
people that are different from you.”
Mark Yovich
PRESIDENT
Ticketmaster International
Yovich, 45, oversaw a “transformative”
shift to mobile digital ticketing,
redesigning the company’s websites in
18 countries and 16 different languages.
During his tenure, Ticketmaster
International has launched in 10 new
markets and doubled ticket sales.
“Mobile conversion also has seen
double-digit growth,” says Yovich.
“The future is mobile.”
MOST IMPORTANT ISSUE “There are
two: sustainability and gender equality.”
1. Think beyond artists.
Daniel Horsfield, an A&R coordinator
at Warner Chappell who helped
organize British hitmaker MNEK’s
Pride Writing Camp in July, advises
hiring LGBTQ people in a variety
of roles to establish a welcoming
environment. “Whether that’s the
receptionist, the runners getting
the food or the engineer, it’s about
having people in the community who
are visible and being themselves,” he
says. That may require allies to put
in extra work, says Jess Furman, vp
sync strategy at artist-development
company Big Noise, which hosted
the Out Sessions writing camp in
July. “People tend to hire who they
know, [so] you have to take steps to
make sure you’re hiring equitably.”
2. Let queer voices take the lead.
Love Bailey, the founder of the
California-based queer artist
community Savage Ranch,
encourages allies to “give the power”
to underrepresented talent and let
them steer sessions. “Don’t give them
boxes and labels because of what you
think counts as success,” says Bailey.
“As artists, we have a good sense of
ourselves, so offer a place for us to
blossom without any boundaries.”
3. Share your connections.
Building networks shouldn’t fall
on LGBTQ artists alone. “It’s very
important to educate up-and-
coming talent about the paths
different people take,” says Livia
Piomelli, Big Noise’s director of A&R
and publishing. “Have them meet
established creatives that tell them
about their process and how they
got where they are.”
4. Consider their genres.
Not every studio environment is
the same, after all. “We see so many
LGBTQ songwriters, producers and
artists dominating the credits in pop
songs because the pop world always
has been a place that champions
being yourself,” says pop singer
L Devine, who attended MNEK’s camp.
“I wish there was as much acceptance
in urban music, rock music and
country music.” —AVERY STONE
into the festival sponsorship space,
joining existing partners like Corona
and Hotels.com. He’s a leader within
Live Nation’s media and sponsorship
division, which grew revenue by 8%
in the second quarter of 2019. Swope
also is active in Pride Nation, “which is
our employee resource group. Within
that, we did a program with The
Trevor Project [which works to prevent
suicide among young LGBTQ people].
Students were able to come in and ask
questions about [our] career decisions.”
A CAUSE HE SUPPORTS “The Point
Foundation. They provide scholarships
for LGBTQ youth who are
demonstrating a lot of potential but may
not get the support of their families.”
Arjan Timmermans
HEAD OF POP
Apple Music
“It’s a dream job,” says Timmermans*,
who built the playlists Today’s Hits,
A-List Pop and Breaking Pop on Apple
Music. “Curation is about trusting my
gut, placing bets and taking chances
while keeping the listener at the
center of programming decisions.”
As the host of A-List Pop for Apple’s
Beats 1, Timmermans invites artists
like Alec Benjamin, Stephen Puth
and Kim Petras to directly engage
with fans. “It’s about finding the right
moment and opportunities to help
launch an artist,” he says.
AN INCLUSIVE WORKPLACE IS
“Everything!”
Justin Tranter
See page 54.
Gayle Troberman
CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER
IHeartMedia
Troberman, 53, oversaw the production
of the iHeartRadio and L’Oréal Paris
Fangirls Award, which celebrates the
power of women supporting women
and was presented this year to Halsey.
“This program has been at the core
of bringing the most visual brand in
MAKE THE STUDIO
MORE INCLUSIVE
A HANDFUL OF NEW, QUEER
ARTIST-FOCUSED WRITING CAMPS
AIM TO MAKE SONGWRITING
ACCESSIBLE TO ALL
QUEER MUSIC MILESTONES
MNEK
Smith
Stavros
Swope
Timmermans
Tranter
Troberman
Wallace
Yovich
Turner (second
from left) with Big
Boys in 1982.
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Led by out singer Randy “Biscuit” Turner,
Big Boys’ frantic, funk-tinged sound
influenced everyone from the Red Hot Chili
Peppers to Sonic Youth. (Fellow Austin punks
The Dicks — which also had a gay frontman,
Gary Floyd — formed two years later.) —T.S.
1978
Big Boys form
in Austin.