New York, May, 10, 2021 -- SoundCloud today announced the appointment of music and technology executive Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood as Chief Content and Marketing Officer for SoundCloud. Reporting to Michael Weissman, CEO of SoundCloud, Wirtzer-Seawood will guide the company’s artist development, industry relations, and brand marketing strategies to drive the company’s evolution as a next-gen music entertainment company. Wirtzer-Seawood will join SoundCloud on June 1, 2021.
As Chief Content and Marketing Officer, Wirtzer-Seawood will be responsible for artist development and marketing encompassing artist management and promotion, editorial programming, creative, brand marketing and communications. Wirtzer-Seawood’s expertise in artist empowerment and producing culture defining moments will help build an integrated ecosystem to drive artist relationships across multiple touch points, showcase the breadth of talent and communities on SoundCloud, and new outlets and opportunities for artists and fans.
Alongside, SoundCloud announced that Senior Vice President, Marketing, Anthony Gabriele, will take on a new, expanded role to lead SoundCloud’s consumer-facing business and products, including soundcloud.com and the SoundCloud app.
Michael Weissman said, “Lauren’s impressive background spanning labels, social media, and artist services is unique in the industry. She is known for pioneering strategies and building teams that utilize music and tech to connect artists and fans -- enabling artists to stay independent while building long-term, successful careers in music. I’m excited to welcome Lauren to SoundCloud and partner with her to further strengthen SoundCloud’s unique position and relevance between artists and fans around the world.”
Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood said, “My career has been defined by my passion for empowering artists to maximize their potential in the ever-changing digital world. I’m proud to join Mike and the SoundCloud team as it redefines how artists, particularly those who are independent, grow and thrive in the modern music industry and how the next generation of fans experience music and entertainment.”
Most recently, Wirtzer-Seawood served as President of UnitedMasters, an independent music distribution startup launched in 2017 providing premium music distribution services and artist business opportunities. At UnitedMasters, Wirtzer-Seawood led a team of creative, music, and tech professionals building an industry alternative for independent artists that amassed over 1 Million users during her time with the company, launched an unprecedented product integration and partnership with TikTok, and recently landed a $50m Series B investment led by Apple.
Prior to UnitedMasters, Wirtzer-Seawood was the Head of Music Partnerships at Instagram, overseeing efforts to connect artists with Instagram’s 1 Billion-plus global community. Wirtzer-Seawood led a team responsible for enabling artists across every genre to connect directly with their fans via Instagram's suite of tools. Under her leadership the team ignitined headline-making initiatives for artists such as Ariana Grande, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, and Lady Gaga.
Wirtzer-Seawood also served as the Head of Digital at Beyoncé’s entertainment and management company, Parkwood Entertainment, where she was instrumental in the widely acclaimed, and first-of-its-kind surprise launch of the singer’s self-titled visual album which set the standard for surprise releases.
Wirtzer-Seawood's career spans positions at Zynga where she implemented entertainment, brand, and celebrity partnerships and at Def Jam Enterprise managing brands and artists, as well as developed and incorporated content marketing across digital platforms.
A 20-year music industry veteran, Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood serves as the Chair of the board of the Music Business Association (MusicBiz) and has been named one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business and featured on Billboard’s Power 100 and Women in Music. Wirtzer-Seawood is a graduate of New York University and currently resides in Brooklyn, New York with her family. She will remain based in New York.
SoundCloud is a next-generation music entertainment company, powered by an ecosystem of artists, listeners, and curators on the pulse of what's new, now and next in culture. Founded in 2007, SoundCloud is an artist-first platform empowering artists to build and grow their careers by providing them with the most progressive tools, services, and resources. With over 250 million tracks from 30 million creators heard in 190 countries, the future of music is SoundCloud.
