September 22, 2026
Daniel “DC” Calderon
Senior Editor, U.S. Latin Music, Spotify
Calderon is thrilled to be a key part of how Música Mexicana is represented at Spotify, from La Tierra del Corrido—the first U.S. event of its kind, where Xavi and Chino Pacas played their first-ever sets—to a three-day L.A. run he closed with a fan concert featuring Gabito Ballesteros and Oscar Maydon. Presently, he’s excited for New Music Friday features, such as being on camera for “Watch Feed” spotlighting the Mexican-American audience he comes from. At 18, he left nursing school to chase music production. We are perplexed by the instructions on the Band-Aid box.
Alyssa Castiglia
Senior Director of A&R/Head of A&R Research, UnitedMasters
The daughter of funeral directors, Castiglia counts catching Emotional Oranges at Hollywood Forever Cemetery among her favorite nights on the job. She also once heard an a cappella voice note from Alice Longyu Gao, told producer Tim Randolph to put a beat under it and watched it eventually become KATSEYE’s “Gnarly.” Now, she’s readying Elise Elvira’s debut album, Mary Ann Alexander’s next EP and monthly releases from Armanii, with projects from Vic Mensa, Tkay Maidza, KAMAUU and more in the works. Castiglia is an avid PS5 gamer. We just keep leveling down.
Avi Chez-Shaw
CEO, Run Things
Chez-Shaw still gets a charge walking into any music company’s office, buildings he says carry decades of history in the walls. He’s now building label venture Run Things and working with Tiffany Day, whose HALO debuted at #25 on the electronic chart, Inji (fresh off Lollapalooza), Campthehills before a Q4 EP and rapper Boohavinn—not to mention publishing signee Mcevoy, who landed a placement on Drake’s HABIBTI. Fittingly, Chez-Shaw archives every visitor badge, ticket and call sheet in a storage unit. We live in one of those for a while, but the owner found out.
Carolyn Moore
A&R Manager, Livelihood Music Company
Moore set up Stella Lefty’s first L.A. sessions in 2024, watched “Boston” climb to #2 on the Hot 100 and stood in the Lollapalooza pit as thousands sang along to songs that weren’t even out yet. She also put together the session behind “The Kill,” a Lefty single that opened Scream 7. She’s now celebrating Lefty’s debut, Long Way Home, and a big year for writer Victoria Zaro, with cuts landing for Lainey Wilson, Lyn Lapid and Henry Moodie. At a corporate job before this, Moore traded heels for rollerblades to lift morale. We couldn’t stand up on either.
Michael J. Montante Jr.
International Music Agent, WME
Montante counts watching Don West play a sold-out Elysée Montmartre in Paris among his career highs, capping an EU run that followed sold-out dates in Australia, Malaysia and South Korea. He handles all contemporary festivals in Asia for WME, where 2026 brought record booking volume and 2027 is looking even stronger. He recently booked Massive Attack to headline Incheon Pentaport, their first Korean show since 2010, with the next 12 months bringing many tours from his roster. Montante once negotiated a BMW as part of an artist’s payment. We once traded an ad for a chicken.
Brianna “BRI” Dowd
Project Manager, Marketing, Motown Gospel/TAMLA
Dowd is the art director behind a string of Grammy-nominated gospel projects, including Tye Tribbett’s Only on the Road (Live)—a first-year project for her that landed a 68th Grammy nod for Best Gospel Album—along with nominated work from DOE’s Heart of a Human and Melvin Crispell, III’s Covered Vol. 1. She recently steered the rollout for Eric Bellinger’s self-titled album (8/21) and reunited with Koryn Hawthorne ahead of her next EP, Big Gospel, on 10/2. Most of Dowd’s colleagues don’t know she’s a fraternal twin. We’re told that one of us is too many.
Tyler Stimmel
Agent, Music Brand Partnerships, UTA
Stimmel has raced high-performance cars through Big Sky, Montana, with Don Toliver for a Porsche collab, shut down Wynwood with Eladio Carrión and New Balance for a World Cup block party and brokered a deal between Quavo and Zaxby’s, one of the rapper’s favorite chicken brands—all of which still feels like a surreal part of the job. He’s now overseeing brand partnerships for Quavo, Toliver, Latto, Monaleo and Justine Skye, among others. A twin and a lifelong Mets fan, Stimmel once worked for the Miami Marlins. We once took a fastball to the nads.
Alissa Endres
Account Director, Results Global Agency
Endres led the marketing team behind Megadeth’s 17th and final studio album, watching it debut at #1 and top the charts in 11 countries—a career high she counts alongside meeting Dolly Parton. Recently, she ran campaigns for Dave Mustaine’s memoir, In My Darkest Hour (9/8), and the Megadeth tour, while also producing a pair of Busch Country events with Jordan Davis and Nate Smith. Endres once drove the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile—official title: Hotdogger—and Al Roker dubbed her “Wiener Lady” on national TV. We’ve been called that too, but totally at random.