PANEL: The Power of Independent Distribution
Featured Speakers:
Panos Polimatidis - Director Label & Artist Solutions, Believe UK
With over 10 years of experience in A&R and label management, Panos Polimatidis serves as Director of Label & Artist Solutions UK at Believe Distribution Services - a leading fully independent distributor and label services provider for artists and labels worldwide, with a presence in over 50 markets. In his role, he leads the UK team across A&R, business development, and distribution, providing strategic support to a wide range of independent labels and artists navigating the modern music landscape.
Brian Miller - Chief Revenue Officer, TuneCore
As Chief Revenue Officer, Brian Miller is responsible for defining and leading revenue growth strategies on behalf of TuneCore, securing high-level strategic partnerships to bolster the company’s market presence, and developing innovative tactics for expanding and retaining TuneCore’s talented roster of self-releasing artists. He also oversees TuneCore’s Marketing, International, Publishing Administration, and Artist & Partner Relations teams, acting as a visionary leader to drive the growth strategy of each department and cultivate a creative & inspiring culture across teams.
For more than 15 years, Miller has been instrumental in the growth of multiple companies, launching new revenue opportunities and helping them grow into successful, sustainable businesses. Miller brings a wealth of experience to TuneCore, having most recently served as Chief Growth Officer at Angi, where he led multiple teams across accounts, business development, digital marketing, strategy, operations and partner success, grew the company’s P&L by helping to develop and launch strategic partnerships, new business lines and expand its footprint internationally.
Brian Moroney - Music Partnerships Manager, SoundOn/TikTok
Brian Moroney is an A&R executive with over six years of experience in the music industry, specializing in artist development, marketing strategy, and deal negotiation. He has played a key role in generating multi-million dollar independent artist deals, contributing to Grammy-winning and chart-topping releases, and building a catalog with billions of streams. Brian has signed and developed artists across pop, indie, alternative, and hip hop. He previously worked as Director of A&R at Records Co. / Sony Music and ONErpm and runs Fly on the Wall Music, where he continues to manage artists and producers.
He is currently on the Music Partnerships team at SoundOn, leading A&R efforts and building the roster with artists such as Cafuné, ALINA, Charlotte Sands, Catie Turner, and more.
Leah Kraft - Member Relations Manager, Merlin
Leah Kraft is a Member Relations Manager at Merlin, where she helps strengthen the collective bargaining power of independent rightsholders to secure better pay and opportunities. Before joining Merlin, Leah worked in Artist & Industry Research at Spotify and spent many years as an artist manager. She holds a dual Master’s in Public and Business Administration and is passionate about bridging sectors to support and sustain a thriving independent music ecosystem.He is currently on the Music Partnerships team at SoundOn, leading A&R efforts and building the roster with artists such as Cafuné, ALINA, Charlotte Sands, Catie Turner, and more.
Khufu Reign - We Make Music, Manager - De La Soul, Awkwafina, Tyla, & Wild East Radio
For over a decade, award winning manager Khufu (koo-foo) Reign has worked in various roles. While leading business development at We Make Music, he manages the careers of De La Soul, Tyla, Awkwafina, & Wild East Radio. He has engineered for Nas, Mary J. Blige, Tricky Stewart, will.i.am & DJ Khaled and won an A2IM Hip Hop Album of the Year award as a producer. As a developer, he created ‘A Web3 Blueprint’ & the creative directory ‘Atlas’.
Tony D. Alexander is co-founder, President & Managing Director of Made in Memphis Entertainment LLC (MIME), a full-service entertainment group comprising MIME Publishing, an independent music publishing company that handles the copyrights of some of the most sought-after young producers in hip-hop and R&B; Heavy Hitters Music, a film, TV, and ad sync company with an all-female creative team and Emmy-winning music catalog; Beatroot Music, a leading independent music distributor, as well as its subsidiary Beatroot Africa; and 4U Recording, a state-of-the-art recording studio brand with locations in Memphis and Atlanta. MIME is dedicated to developing and empowering diverse talent on both the creative and business sides of the industry.
Mr. Alexander is a proud member of the Leadership Music Class of 2023 and also serves on the Boards of the Music Business Association (Music Biz), the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) as Treasurer and is President of the Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) Atlanta Chapter. He has been featured in publications such as Billboard, Wired, Music Ally, Music Week, Pitchfork, and Memphis Business Journal. He has also been selected as a Billboard Indie Power Player (2021), Worth Magazine Worthy 100 (2022), and Memphis Magazine Power Player (2020-24) among other honors.
Mr. Alexander is a magna cum laude graduate of Morehouse College. He also holds both Master of Science and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
He has been married to his best friend, Dr. Gwendolyn Alexander for thirty years and they have three children, eighteen-year-old Natalie, sixteen-year-old Philip and fourteen-year-old Memphis Paige and reside in Memphis, TN.