Symphonic Distribution, a music distribution and technology provider, has announced the launch of its third annual Women Empowered+ mentorship program, which aims to bridge the gender gap in the music industry by connecting aspiring female music professionals with experienced C-level executives to provide mentorship and support over a six-month period.
Building on the success of its programs over the past few years, Symphonic has assembled a diverse group of mentors, including industry leaders from Amazon Music, Meta and ASCAP. These experts have extensive experience in various areas of the music business and will provide mentors with insights on areas such as streaming strategy, marketing and artist development.
Mentors joining the program in its third year include Ana Martínez (Senior Label & Artist Relations Manager, Latin Global, Amazon Music), Fernanda Bas (Strategic Partners Manager, Music Label Partnerships, Meta), Kate Cordova (Senior Director, ASCAP), Portia Sabin (President, Music Business Association), Paola Vacca (Cámara de Comercio de Bogotá) and Jessica Sobhraj (CEO, Cosynd).
Additional mentors will be on hand from Sony Music Publishing, SiriusXM + Pandora, Beatport, SoundCloud, Music Managers Forum-US and more.
“We are incredibly proud of the continued growth of our mentorship program and the start of another exciting year,” said Janet Berrios, vice president of corporate marketing at Symphonic Distribution.
“This program not only creates a space for professional development, but it fosters real support to help women and other gender-diverse people navigate our industry, which is something I wish I had when I was just starting out as a Latina in the music industry.”
Janet Berrios, Symphonic Distribution
“We’re thrilled to have so many new executives join us this year who share our passion for mentorship. This program not only creates a space for professional development, but also fosters real support to help women and other gender-diverse people navigate the industry, something I wish I had when I was just starting out as a Latina in the music industry.”
Now in its third year, the program has connected 340 mentors from across the U.S., Mexico, Latin America, South America, Europe and Africa with 165 mentors from various music industry companies.
The selection of mentors and mentors will be finalised in April, with introductions to follow and mentors and mentors to mentors interacting at least once a month for the next six months, both online and in person.
Symphonic plans to hold a kickoff call in April to review best practices, a mid-term check-in in July to assess progress and potentially recalibrate, and a final wrap-up meeting in November to reflect on program outcomes and learnings.
“The Symphonic Women Empowered+ mentorship program was a great experience and I am so grateful to have found my mentor Maria, who shared valuable advice from her work and life experiences and helped shape the next steps in my career.”
Stephanie Falbo Liang, Smule
“The Symphonic Women Empowered+ mentorship program was an amazing experience,” said Stephanie Falvo Liang, Senior Manager of Artist Relations and Business Development at Smule, a former mentor in the program.
“I am so grateful to have had my mentor Maria. She has shared her valuable advice from her work and life experiences and helped me decide on the next steps in my career. Maria really went out of her way to support me and I look forward to continuing our mentor/mentor relationship!”
The program’s host, Symphonic Distribution, provides a content management and distribution platform, global royalty collection and installment payment services, and label services to independent labels, managers and artists.
Founded in 2006 by music producer Jorge Brea, Symphonic has locations in locations including Los Angeles, Miami, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Spain, Ireland and Africa.
Blair said the company aims to become a “real alternative” to traditional record labels later in 2022. The company is one of the founding members of Music Fights Fraud, a global task force “dedicated to rooting out streaming fraud,” along with other music companies such as platforms like Spotify and Amazon Music, and CD Baby and its parent company Downtown.
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