Brittany Schaffer formally joins the Nation Music Affiliation Tuesday (Sept. 8) as Sarah Trahern’s successor as CEO, however the two executives have been engaged on the transition ever since Schaffer was introduced in her new position in July.
“Sarah and I’ve had a mentorship and friendship for a few years,” Schaffer tells Billboard, within the pair’s first joint interview. “It has been outstanding to look at how she has opened her arms and her thoughts for me, sharing not simply what we’re doing or choices which are developing, but in addition having the ability to assist me unpack and perceive how we acquired to this place or what the historical past of selections has been. I like the analogy of don’t take away a fence till why it was there within the first place.”
Associated
Now, the 2 will spend the subsequent three months previous to Trahern’s Dec. 31 exit working aspect by aspect earlier than Schaffer, who has been on the CMA board of administrators for five-and-a-half years, formally assumes the CEO position Jan. 1, 2027.
“After I began in 2014, there was an interim individual within the CEO job, so there have been some issues that I didn’t get to expertise ’til they really occurred,” Trahern says. “And so, one of many presents that I hope Brittany and I are collectively giving the group is that this peaceable transition time.”
The pair are actually divvying up obligations as they go into the subsequent three months. “There are the issues that Sarah will proceed to take the lead on that I can sit alongside of her and be taught,” Schaffer says. “After which [there] are the issues which are just a little extra future trying that I’ll fairly instantly be leaping in on as we take into consideration what does the way forward for CMA appear to be.”
Trahern continues to take the lead on the 60th anniversary of the CMA Awards, which is able to happen Nov. 18 with Lainey Wilson returning as host for the third time.
And Schaffer is now the primary level individual on CMA Fest’s transfer to the brand new Nissan Stadium for subsequent June’s occasion. Trahern has taken the venture up to now, however says, “Brittany must be making these choices [going forward], as a result of I wish to simply be sitting within the stands and cheering it on subsequent June.”
Every step of Schaffer’s background offers essential expertise that she is going to take into totally different sides of the CEO job. As an legal professional at Loeb & Loeb for greater than a decade, she has expertise with contracts and rights circulate. “I feel it provides me a extra full understanding of how this ecosystem works collectively,” she says.
That features inheriting a brand new deal between the CMA and Disney that expands their partnership for six extra years and consists of streaming the CMA Awards dwell on Disney+ for the primary time, in addition to airing on its long-time dwelling, ABC. “The No. 1 factor was we needed to have a simulcast since you’re [otherwise] robotically taking a portion of the viewers out right this moment as a result of they don’t have entry or select to not have entry to linear tv,” Trahern says.
“Advertising and marketing to these followers is a special methodology than what we did once I first began, and it was all about linear TV,” Trahern continues. “The messages will be the identical, however the instruments within the toolbox are very totally different. We’re taking a look at different methods to be companions within the greater piece, and definitely Brittany’s background and her expertise at Spotify provides a complete extra and thrilling stage to her sitting on this this chair.”
After Loeb & Loeb, Schaffer spent 5 years as Nashville head of artist and label partnerships at Spotify. “One of many issues I most worth was being there by the transformation into streaming and watching how quickly the trade remodeled,” she says. “It has given me a terrific perspective that we’re all the time going to have evolving applied sciences. We’re speaking about AI in numerous methods, and so actually fascinated about how we’re constantly keeping track of the place our audiences are and the way we join with them goes to be actually necessary.”
Most lately, Schaffer was dean of the Mike Curb Faculty of Leisure and Music Enterprise at Nashville’s Belmont College. “I used to be actually attending to expertise firsthand how a lot not solely power there may be but in addition how a lot knowledge there may be coming from plenty of our younger folks,” she says. “I feel persevering with to have a look at how we faucet into younger folks is a method of anticipating what’s coming and what are these future-looking digital, and even analog, , issues that we needs to be taking a look at.”
As nation music continues to develop internationally — Luke Combs offered out three Wembley Stadium reveals in London this summer time, and new regional Mexican festivals are popping up that includes U.S. nation expertise — Schaffer needs to harness the facility of the CMA. “How can we assist to make the most of the relationships that we have now right here and overseas to proceed to facilitate these connection factors for different artists?” she says. “We’re going to have to actually be intentional about working with our worldwide companions to really perceive what resonates of their native market and the way can we construct on that organically.”
Trahern is encouraging Schaffer to place her personal stamp on the group and belief her personal judgment.
“After I first got here into the job, there have been board people who have been like, ‘This individual needs to be your No. 2. It’s good to fireplace that individual.’ And if I had listened to that, it could have been a catastrophe. The individual they thought needs to be my No. 2 we ended up letting go down the highway, and the one that they wished me to fireside ended up being a very trusted confidant till that individual retired a number of years in the past. So, I feel you need to be within the chair to know what’s coming at you, and don’t simply take what different folks say.”
As a lot because the three months are to assist Schaffer be taught the ropes and supply the group with a clean transition, the 2 hope to mannequin habits different executives can be taught from.
Despite the fact that Trahern is staying till the tip of the yr, her aim is to be moved out of the workplace by November’s CMA Awards, and whereas she’ll lead the September board assembly, Schaffer will deal with the December one. “And I’ll be there to do a last toast goodbye,” Trahern says.
“A mutual pal of Brittany’s and mine drew the analogy to a tune from Hamilton known as ‘Elevate a Glass.’ The concept is that George Washington is stepping apart as a result of they want to have the ability to present a peaceable transition and a brand new era of management,” Trahern says. “That’s one of many issues I hope that Brittany and I can present plenty of different companies: how nice it’s to have the ability to be considerate and strategic in a transition. It’s an evolution, not a revolution.”
