As Warner Music Group (WMG) works to cut annual costs by $300 million, it has made significant changes at Warner Records and Warner Music Nashville.
In a realignment of its marketing department, Warner Records has combined the digital and traditional marketing teams, resulting in several promotions and at least three staffers being let go.
WMG CEO Robert Kyncl informed the staff of the pending changes in a July 1 staff memo obtained by Billboard.
“Many changes will be implemented in the next three months, with the remainder in fiscal 2026,” Kyncl wrote. Staff cuts will account for $170 million of the planned reductions.
Warner Records’ revamped marketing team will now be run by Dalia Ganz, who has been promoted to executive vp/head of digital & marketing and will report to Warner Records GM Mike Chester.
Reporting to Ganz are Sam Riddle, who has been promoted to senior vp/head of digital marketing and Will Morrow, who has been upped to senior vp/head of viral marketing. Three executives have also been raised from vps to senior vps of marketing strategy and operations: Jesse Ervin, TJ Landig and Shawnae Corbett-Rice.
The commerce team has also been restructured and will be led by Axel Hyge, senior vp of streaming strategy, and Dave Edwards, senior vp of revenue & operations.
A number of executives are leaving as a result of the changes, Warner Records said in a statement, including Dionnee Harper, executive vp of marketing & artist development; Josh Remsberg, senior vp/head of commercial revenue and Kristine Ripley, vp of artist development.
“This is a reimagining of how we can best market and develop exceptional talent. It’s designed for speed, intelligence, collaboration, and top flight service to our incredible roster,” Chester said in the July 1 memo. “Dalia is a future forward executive whose digital marketing expertise has been pivotal to our recent success. And Sam, Will, Jesse, TJ, Shawnae, Axel, and Dave are the best in the business, bringing incredible enthusiasm, knowledge, and experience to their work. Together with their entire teams, I have no doubt they’ll do a phenomenal, industry-leading job for our artists as we continue to build groundbreaking careers in a rapidly expanding musical universe.”
Additionally, Warner Music Nashville, which reports through Warner Records, let go of four staffers in the restructuring: radio manager Ray Mariner, manager of video content Andrew Schollnick, director of catalog marketing Sarah Sigro and director of global marketing Caitlin Cadden. Country Aircheck first reported the cuts.
A Warner Music Nashville representative confirmed the cuts and added in a statement, “As we continue to deepen our commitment to original artists, we’re working with Warner Records and our global network to create faster, more impactful opportunities for Nashville talent. As part of this evolution, we’re forming two supercharged radio promotion teams to deliver even greater results for our artists. Today, we made the difficult decision to say goodbye to four colleagues who all leave with our deep gratitude and best wishes for their next chapters.”
In his July 1 memo, Kyncl indicated that the money freed up through these cuts will be reinvested in A&R and M&A. Also on July 1, WMG announced the launch of its $1.2 billion catalog acquisition venture with Bain Capital.
This is the latest in a series of WMG layoffs since 2023, including a 4% staff reduction in March 2023, a 10% cut in 2024 and an Atlantic Records restructuring last September.
