Latest Music Industry Hires: Symphonic, SiriusXM, Pipeline, More

Ari Gelaw, Sony Music Publishing’s SVP of creative A&R. Photo Credit: Presley Ann

Here’s a recap of recent music industry hires and in-house promotions as of July 31st, 2026.

If you have a job shuffle to share, we’re all ears. Send us a note to news@digitalmusicnews.com. If you’d like to post a job on our Job Board, just send us a request to noah@digitalmusicnews.com. And, keep track of all the latest music industry hires here.

Warner Music Group

Another shakeup at WMG?

After a little more than one year with Warner Music, CFO and COO Armin Zerza has suddenly exited the company “for personal reasons,” with DMN getting the low-key email alert late on Friday. Following the abrupt goodbye, Chief Accounting Officer Louis Dickler has once again been tapped to serve as interim CFO, having temporarily assumed the title in 2021.

And on the COO side, Tom Corson will remain Warner Records’ COO “for a transitional period” in addition to stepping into the same role on a company-wide basis — per the aforementioned late-Friday update.

SiriusXM

And for those that want even more executive drama: SiriusXM EVP and COO Wayne Thorsen is also suddenly departing after less than two years with the company. The news was slipped into Sirius’ recent financial update; no word on why Thorsen is jetting exactly.

Symphonic

In calmer appointment news, Symphonic Distribution has announced four A&R hires, welcoming Spotify vet JD Parent (manager of A&R and client development) in Canada and longtime Kobalt higher-up Nick Robinson (A&R and business development consultant) in the UK.

Additionally, former Tigerspring senior A&R manager Pia Eiser (senior A&R manager for Germany, Switzerland, and Austria) has come aboard in Germany, and Nigeria-based Rhythm Managements founder David Niran is now A&R and client development manager for Africa.

Finally, in the Netherlands, Symphonic has elevated Sander Stijnen to senior director of A&R and client development.

Sony Music Publishing

Elsewhere, SMP has bumped Ari Gelaw, who’s been with the publisher for the better part of five years, to SVP of creative A&R; the exec “will be responsible for leading the company’s US R&B/Hip-Hop team.”

Secretly Distribution

Having started with Secretly Distribution in 2020, Kristian Downs has been upped to executive director of platform operations.

Pipeline

Spencer LeBoff, most recently Avex’s head of publishing and acquisitions, has signed on as Pipeline’s head of revenue.

Borchetta Entertainment Group

Borchetta Entertainment Group has added longtime Vector Management exec Kevin Spellman and Henley Halem (who likewise joins from Vector) as co-VPs.

Emirates Arts & Music Rights Association (EMRA)

The EMRA has brought on Hani Masgidi as association director. In the post, the Qanawat business development VP will “lead the development of EMRA’s framework.”

Sphere Entertainment

Multi-decade comms and marketing specialist Karen Laureano-Rikardsen is now Sphere Entertainment’s global head of corporate marketing and communications.

GLP

Austria’s Georg Leitner Productions has expanded in the UK by hiring Arts & Entertainment Productions MD Manfred Seipt, who resides in London, in a senior position.

Music Venue Trust (MVT)

Longtime UK government official Chris Hurne is officially the MVT’s head of external affairs.

Patreon

Not to end on a dour note, but Patreon has now laid off 93 employees, some of whom joined the company earlier in 2026. Impacted roles include a staff engineer, the head of top creator partnerships, plus a senior fraud prevention specialist, associate manager, content moderation specialist, social media manager, and recruiter.