Secret Sounds Connect Expands

Jade New, former GM of EDM festival promoter Future Entertainment, is new GM, overseeing business operations with a focus on the new Talent & Content division. Former Sony Music marketing manager Nicole Lembke takes over as strategic partnerships manager to drive new business for festival clients including Laneway, Falls, Southbound, Listen Out, Field Day and Harbourlife.

Zoe Murdoch, most recently music marketing manager for the Nova radio network, takes on strategic partnerships manager duties specifically for Byron Bay’s Splendour In The Grass to build up its brand integration. The festival, organised by Secret Sounds and with a 30,000 capacity, had a record number of brand partnerships through Connect in 2015. These included online payment system PayPal, which received tickets for its customers, while major teleco Telstra live-streamed some of the sets. Other new additions to the team include Peita Dixon as talent and content manager.

She was previous head of partner services at entertainment brands broker Mixitup Australia. Lucy Morris is partnerships coordinator and Charlotte Ibbotson is integration coordinator.

Connect also unveiled new partnerships for its summer festivals. Cable network Foxtel will set up a marquee where Falls Byron Bay patrons can watch up to 1,000 movies from nine channels.

Clothing store Topshop becomes the five-city Laneway’s official fashion sponsor, carrying its merchandise in-store and setting up a store onsite. Pandora signed on as Laneway’s official streaming sponsor for 2016 and 2017, playing tracks from a Laneway playlist in the run-up to its Feb. 5-14 shows, and will broadcast on site.