The American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) has renewed the contract of President and CEO Dr. Richard James Burgess.
A2IM has also made a number of new hires, including the appointment of Andrea Pagnanelli as General Manager.
Meanwhile, Chase Varga has been hired as A2IM’s new Marketing Manager.
Andrea Pagnanelli previously served as Executive Vice President, Venue and Event Strategy for the Los Angeles Football Club where she oversaw all events outside of LAFC home games including concerts, festivals, sporting events, conferences, and more.
She has also held roles at Relevent Sports, the Phoenix Suns and the New York Jets, where she became one of the youngest sales managers in the history of the league.
Additionally, she founded LeapSeats, an in-venue seat upgrade app, that allowed fans to upgrade their seats and get closer to their favorite artists in venues around the US.
In 2013, Chase Varga cofounded Engine Driver Presents, which in less than three years produced over 500 events in Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, and San Francisco.
From 2015 to 2017, Varga worked with many labels and artists as a freelance marketing and booking consultant. These included Strange Famous Records, Rench Audio Records, Gangstagrass, Rench, Sage Francis and more. Moving to Austin, TX in 2017, Chase worked with SXSW co-founder Louis Black to assist in developing and enhancing his various companies digital marketing and technological efforts.
In September 2018 Chase relocated back to NYC to accept the position of Marketing Manager at A2IM.
“Since having the good fortune to be appointed CEO of A2IM three years ago, I have been blessed with enthusiastic and talented team members along with a highly participatory and knowledgeable board.”
Richard James Burgess
Elsewhere at A2IM, Patrick Ferrell has been promoted to Head of Label Relations from his previous position as Director, Member Services. Patrick joined the A2IM team in April of 2016.
Lisa Hresko has been promoted to Senior Director, Associate Member Services and International Relations from her previous role as Senior Manager, Member Services.
Sheryl Cohen has been promoted to Senior Director, Culture & Oversight from her previous role as Director, Culture and Oversight. Sheryl has been with A2IM since March of 2016.
Courtnay Newman has been promoted to Manager, Member Services and Partnerships from her previous role as Coordinator, Member Services.
Richard James Burgess said: “Since having the good fortune to be appointed CEO of A2IM three years ago, I have been blessed with enthusiastic and talented team members along with a highly participatory and knowledgeable board.
“Thanks to our team’s hard work and the dedication and vision of our board, we have more than doubled revenues, increased membership by nearly seventy percent, and attendance at our various events is up by several hundred percent.”
Burgess was appointed to SoundExchange’s Board of Directors in 2016.Music Business Worldwide
