The AvA Connection

💬 Join our Group Chat

We are setting out to build the largest community of young professionals in entertainment, and launching a WhatsApp community to bring everyone even closer.

Think AvA exclusive event announcements, sharing resources, free tix, talk shit about your job etc.

🐝 The Weekly Buzz

Rams owner steps into Hollywood and looks to bring back projects to L.A. Stan Kroenke is building a major TV and Film production facility next to SoFi Stadium, which will include five 180,000 sq ft. soundstages and serve as a hub for broadcasters during the Olympics. Read more.

Apple Music looking to steal Spotify users. Support documents show that Apple may be rolling out a tool to import Spotify playlists. Read more.

Christopher Nolan Breaks New Ground: ‘Odyssey’ will be the first film shot fully shot on Imax cameras. Read more. 

‘A Minecraft Movie’ nears $1 billion at the global box office. Only around 60 movies have ever reached that mark, and it currently sits at $910 million one month in.

The Billboard 200 is led by two Spanish albums for the 1st time in history. Bad Bunny and Fuerza Regida hold the top positions, and notably Bad Bunny was the first artist to ever have a Spanish-speaking album on top of the chart back in 2020.

Janet Jackson is set to receive the ICON Award. She is only the third person ever to receive the honor along with Rihanna and Lionel Richie.

AMC slashes ticket prices in half. Every Wednesday during the summer you can hit the movies in a move that was made in response to the “box office showing true signs of sustained recovery.” I only half-buy that..

UK artists generated over $1 billion on Spotify in 2024. This is a rise of 8% from the year prior, and it is double the royalties of what they were making in 2018.

Sony Pictures operating profit spiked 70% in Q1 of 2025. Their profit was $354 million, and overall revenue was at $2.7 billion, nearly the exact same number year over year.

The Weeknd is rebranding? His movie ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’ starring Jenna Ortega is reportedly the end of his current stage name, but “it could also just be a rebirth.”

Twenty One Pilots had their drums stolen, and then found by fans. A concertgoer casually took one of Josh Dun’s drums after a show in Manchester, and fans of the band proceeded to go Sherlock Holmes mode to save the day.

📞 The Call Log: Nicole Barsalona, President of Women in Music

Nicole Barsalona was named one of the Five Women Positively Impacting the Music World (Shondaland) & Billboard Women in Music 2025, and serves as President of Women in Music. She is also on the Board of Music Managers Forum (US), and is on the Advisory Board of Moms in Music. She has been quoted in Forbes, Billboard, the Wall Street Journal, Yahoo Finance, the Boston Globe, and Music Row, among others.

Barsalona started her career at Steven Van Zandt's multi-media company, Renegade Nation, where a week-long temp gig turned into the most formative years of her career. She eventually served as Chief of Staff and Director of Communications at Renegade Nation, and Road Manager to Van Zandt on tours with Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band.

Our conversation is below:

AvA: You've been on all sides of the music business including Artist management, Communications and now as the President of WIM. Can you talk about your journey and unique path? 

Barsalona: When I was in college there were no music business programs, so I studied Communications & Psychology (including Crisis PR and Non-Profit, which have come in handy!), and what was then called Women’s Studies. I didn’t know how or if those would intersect, but it’s a good reminder to follow your passions no matter how disparate they seem.

After school, I took what was supposed to be a one-week temp gig at Steven Van Zandt's company, Renegade Nation, where I worked VIP credentials for a festival he was hosting. It turned into a full-time job, and it was the best learning experience of my life. I gained experience in just about every area of the industry - tour managing Steven on stadium tours across the U.S. and Europe with Bruce Springsteen & the E Street band, working with the cast and crew of The Sopranos, coordinating with our teams at SiriusXM, launching an indie label, and so much more. Toward the end of my time there, we launched the Rock and Roll Forever Foundation (Teach Rock) and we traveled to D.C. where I got to meet Representative John Lewis and sit in his office as we discussed the impact this new form of music education could have.

It reminded me of the transformative power of music, and just how meaningful this work can be. I knew from there I wanted to focus on artist management, where I could help fulfill the goals and dreams of artists who in turn change lives; and on the heels of my experience with Teach Rock, I knew I wanted to get involved with an organization like Women in Music, where we’re able to create positive change every day to make an impact for the future.

AvA: Most people think of advocacy work as separate from the commercial side of the industry. How have you carved a path merging the two? 

Barsalona: Advocacy is a part of everything we do in the music industry - you can’t separate it from the commercial side of things anymore, audiences are too astute. If you're working on behalf of an artist, of their music, then you're advocating for what that artist or music stands for - whether it's pushing culture forward, a specific point of view, a cause, or something else. We live in a time where you are what you eat - policy, politics, philosophy - these things are at the forefront, and what you work on reflects your advocacy.

Personally, my advocacy work at Women in Music also helps me align with partners I want to work with in my artist management business, and opens me up to entire networks I wouldn’t have otherwise. Its a real gift to find people you respect and admire, and get to do business with one another, knowing that those people will lift up others along the way and create an industry where everyone is represented and included. Some examples are fellow artist managers and moms who I get to collaborate with around our artists, and also include in our WIM Mentorship Program. Or working with a festival like All Things Go through WIM, where their stats on inclusivity on their lineup is just off the charts and attending is the most joyful experience. I will bring those folks business and be their cheerleaders every chance I get. 

AvA: Looking back, how did growing up in a household immersed in music on the business side, influence how you approach leadership and artist advocacy today?

Barsalona: My dad was a collaborative leader - he was an agent, but none of his relationships were transactional. The artists he represented were over at our house for dinner, they were coming on vacation with us, they were an extension of our family. Seeing those relationships in action is what made me fall in love with artist management - I loved the idea that rather than just working on projects, I’d be able to build a career with an artist based on their dreams and our shared goals and vision. And to align on advocacy is the icing on the cake - to work with artists and executives who share a vision of our industry for the future is what makes this industry so inspiring.

AvA: There’s a lot of talk about breaking into music, but what’s one skill or mindset that you think actually helps people stay in this industry?

Barsalona: I think it’s creative inspiration and sense of community that keeps people in the business - it’s certainly not job security! This industry is volatile, and stability isn’t something anyone comes into it expecting. I have a friend who jokes that the benefit of the entertainment industry is that you get paid in fun points - and while not everyone has the stomach for it, there’s definitely never a dull moment.

I think above all, it’s the artists and the music that keep us all here - there’s a greater sense of purpose, that you’re helping music reach audiences who need it. Music has the power to change the world, and when you see artists creating in the studio and coming out with something that didn’t exist before they walked in, it’s hard not to get hooked on the sense of hope and awe for what we have the capacity to create. 

AvA: Whether it’s a boardroom or a tour bus, women in the music industry have often been underestimated and overlooked. How has that changed since you started your career and where is there room for improvement still? 

Barsalona: When I was growing up in this business, I had a few mentors in senior executive roles and I can only imagine what they had to put up with, how hard they had to work and what they had to sacrifice to get there. Today, the industry has had to make significant changes to compete with tech to recruit and retain top talent - from work/life benefits to HR policies, it’s definitely better in a lot of places. But this business is so vast and there are so many areas that those things don’t touch - the tour bus, venue crews, the writing rooms.

Last year, Women in Music launched two incredibly important initiatives to fill some of those holes - the first is WIM Safe(r) Spaces, which provides a resource directory and as a next step, a certificate program where teams/companies can receive training to become certified as a WIM Safe(r) Space. The second initiative is our "WIM Best Places to Work" list, in partnership with InHerSight. Based on a variety of metrics that matter to women - salary satisfaction, remote work options, leadership opportunities, family leave, etc. - we named some of the companies that are making significant improvements, and issued a call-to-action to raise standards across the industry. We have a long way to go, but every step forward is important and a reason to celebrate. [Add your voice and take the survey here.]

AvA: What is one piece of advice you have for someone just starting out their career? 

Barsalona: You are not supposed to have all of the answers, and you will not do things perfectly - don't let that stop you! Be open and learn from people you admire, and join the many communities that exist within the industry to align with your passion and values - be it Women in Music, jump.global, Queer Capita, Music Business Association, A2IM or others - learn from them and lean on them.

AvA: Dream festival headliners (dead or alive)?

Barsalona: I will watch Maggie Rogers rock her heart out any day of the week. 

AvA: If money was no object, what would your job/career be (outside of the Entertainment Industry)?

Barsalona: CEO of a tech startup that connects communities (more on this later...) OR, if money were really no object, you would find me sitting on a beach drinking something with an umbrella in it. Is that a job/career?! 

AvA: Book or podcast recommendation? 

Barsalona: I can't get enough of the We Can Do Hard Things podcast with Glennon Doyle and Abby Wambach - guaranteed to make you laugh or cry, whichever you need on any given day!

👋 See you back here on Tuesday for a brand new selection of Entertainment jobs

Want this newsletter in your inbox every week?

This newsletter is written by Warner Bailey and edited by Riley Furey

Get in touch! Email us at [email protected].

Want to partner with us and reach 18k+ music and entertainment professionals? Email [email protected]