THE REVOLVING DOOR

Eventbrite has strengthened its executive team with two new hires. Omer Cohen joins the ticketing tech giant as chief people officer, while Brian Irving has been named chief brand officer. Irving, formerly of Apple, Google and Airbnb, is tasked with “leading a cross-functional effort to codify the company’s global brand strategy, storytelling and positioning in the market”,  Cohen had held leadership roles at the tech firms Lytro and DigitalThink, and also served as president of the Great Place to Work Inc., which ranks America’s workplaces.

Live Nation's recently-launched Latin division in the US market has hired Patricia Flores as its Vice President of Marketing. She joins the company from rival AEG/Goldenvoice and will report to SVP of Live Nation Latin, Hans Schafer - also an AEG alumnus (MBW). 

Two of Austria’s best-known international hard rock agents, Dominik Meyer and Guenther Beer, have announced the launch of Cobra Agency, a new boutique booking agency that represents some of the biggest names in metal. Beer and Meyer – who had been with RTN (Rock the Nation) since 2005 and 2008, respectively – bring their full rosters, which include the likes of Sepultura, Sabaton, Danzig, Testament and Amon Amarth, to the new agency, whose offices are in Salzburg.

Ben Sharman has joined NEC Group Arenas as venue sales manager. Sharman – whose background in commercial marketing has seen him work on naming-rights agreements for both NEC arenas (the 16,000-cap. Genting Arena and 15,800-cap. Arena Birmingham, formerly Barclaycard Arena), as well as for Aston Villa Football Club and British Athletics – is tasked both with working with the arenas’ existing client base and bringing new business and event concepts to market.

AEG Presents has opened its first office in France, headed up by local concert promotion veteran Arnaud Meersseman who was previously MD of the MIALA/Fimalac Group. The creation of AEG Presents France follows AEG's recent investment in the Accors Hotel Arena in Paris, as well as its recent buyout of the Rock En Seine festival.

PRS for Music has hired Nigel Hall, formerly Managing Director at KPMG UK, as its new Chief Operating Officer, effective immediately. At KPMG UK, Nigel was Client Lead Partner and Lead Subject Matter Expert for a number of KPMG’s technology, media and telecoms accounts building on more than 20 years of experience including, leading the launch of Orange internationally and founding his own company, Interim-Consulting Ltd, to focus on his passion for start-ups.   Robert Ashcroft, Chief Executive, PRS for Music, said: “PRS for Music celebrated a record-breaking year in 2016, in no small part thanks to our investments in technology and data, which are becoming ever more integral to the music business. It is therefore my pleasure to welcome Nigel to PRS for Music. We look forward to having his digital expertise on hand to steer us through a time of continuing growth and transformation, not just for us, but for the industry as a whole.”

Warner Music'S Jennifer Ivory has been named GM of Warner Bros Records UK. She moves up from her role as VP, Marketing after success with Dua Lipa, who ended last year as the most streamed female artist in the UK, and Royal Blood. And Tom Corson has made his first major hire since joining Warner Bros Records. Former Epic exec Laura Swanson has been named Executive Vice President of Media & Strategic Development at WBR, based at the label's Burbank HQ in the US. (MBW)

John Fleckenstein and Joe Riccitelli have been promoted to Co-President positions at RCA Records in New York, reporting into label boss Peter Edge. The news comes after former Co-Chairman and COO Tom Corson left the Sony company to join Warner Bros. (MBW)

Daniel Lieberberg has landed a top-level position at Sony Music in Europe. The Germany-based exec has been named President, Continental Europe and Africa, Sony Music Entertainment. He will oversee Sony Music’s operations across the two regions, with the exception of Spain and Portugal. And seven months on from the abrupt departure of CEO L.A Reid, Epic Records the Sony label run by Sylvia Rhone today confirmed that Rick Sackheim is joining as Executive VP and producer, songwriter and creative executive Ezekiel 'Zeke' Lewis is also joins as EVP of A&R at Epic Lewis leaves behind his role as SVP at Universal Music Group/Capitol Music Group's Motown label, where he spent the past six years. Jenifer Mallory has been promoted to Executive Vice President, International at Sony Music Entertainment after spending two years as SVP of International. During her time at the major label, Mallory has played a key role in worldwide marketing campaigns for artists including Harry Styles, P!nk, Camila Cabello and Khalid.

Vevo has parted company with its product head, Mark Hall. The news comes a month after the abrupt exit of the company's Chief Executive Officer, Erik Huggers. Hall joined Vevo when it bought his video aggregation startup, ShowYou. And Vevo's Senior Vice President of Creative Content and Programming, Tom Connaughton, is also leaving the company in the coming weeks. (MBW & Variety)

Kristen Burke is stepping up from her role as SVP of Marketing at Universal Music Canada to become EVP and General Manager. In her new position, she will report to CEO Jeffrey Remedios. 

Molly Neuman, who has been Kickstarter's Head of Music for the past two years, has joined Downtown-owned publishing royalty admin platform Songtrust as Head of Business Development. The exec previously worked at indie trade body A2IM.

After 33 years at the label, Peter York has been promoted to lead Capitol Christian Music Group. In his new role, York will continue to manage the company's Label Group and publishing division. He takes over from founder Bill Hearn, who died last year. (MBW)

Demi Lovato and Nick Jonas manager Phil McIntyre has joined ABC series American Idol as executive producer representing CORE Media. "I understand the balance between artist development and making good television," he says. "I think we have the platform and the heritage brand to be able to do that [with Idol]". (Variety)

Rob Harvey, Head of Label Relations at Spotify in the US, has left the streaming service amid a handful of lay-offs at the company, MBW understands. MVW understands the mini-restructure is the result of a merger between Spotify's Artist & Label Services and its Artist Marketing teams.

One year after Pandora cut 100 jobs from its global workforce, it's once again taking an axe to headcount. The streaming music company has announced an 'organizational restructuring' which it says will 'shift resources to focus on ad-tech and audience development efforts while positioning the company for improved operating leverage over time'.

Loeb & Loeb LLP has announced that Josh Brackin has joined the law firm’s Nashville office as Senior Counsel, bringing more than 15 years of experience in various segments of the music and new media industries.