CMA Announces Hirings, Promotions

Pictured (L-R): Amber Williams, Haley Steinbuchel, Taylor Viegut

The Country Music Association has named Amber Williams as Vice President of Communications and Talent Relations; Haley Steinbuchel as Strategic Partnerships Coordinator; and Taylor Viegut as Digital Coordinator.

The following staff members have been promoted to new roles: Catherine Blackwell has been named Senior Director of Marketing, Marty Filogamo rises to Brand and Design Specialist, and Tiffany Kerns becomes Director of Community Outreach.

Williams comes to CMA from running the New York City office of PR and marketing agency Beck Media & Marketing. Prior to her work at Beck Media, Williams served as Senior Director of Artist and Media Relations for Universal Music Group in Nashville, overseeing national publicity plans and album release campaigns for seven years. Her roster included Vince Gill, Julianne Hough, Reba, Sugarland, Josh Turner, Shania Twain, Lee Ann Womack, and Trisha Yearwood.

Before joining UMG, she worked in Los Angeles as Senior Publicist for Hallmark Channel with talent such as Bruce Dern, Bridget Fonda, Wynonna Judd, and Burt Reynolds; and in the Publicity, Promotions, and Talent Relations department at Columbia Tristar International Television/Sony Pictures, focusing on series Dawson’s Creek, Days of Our Lives, and Just Shoot Me. Williams graduated with a Bachelor of Arts & Science in Public Relations and Communications with a minor in Advertising from the University of Central Oklahoma. She is a member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Williams will report to CMA Chief Marketing Officer Damon Whiteside.

“We are excited to welcome Amber’s diverse background and skillset to the CMA team,” said Whiteside. “With experience in television, music, and digital, she has an intrinsic and unique understanding of the platforms that propel CMA’s mission. She will be critical in driving the CMA Communications strategic initiatives along with current Director of Media Relations, Jay Jones.”

Before joining CMA as Strategic Partnerships Coordinator, Steinbuchel worked for the M Street restaurant group in Nashville. Her background includes membership and event sales, as well as event planning and execution. At M Street, she pioneered a partnership program to broaden the organization’s community reach, which extended into a rewards program for salaried employees. She also has touring merchandise and concourse management experience.

Steinbuchel will report to CMA Director of Strategic Partnerships Emily Evans.

Viegut comes to CMA from the Social Strategy and Public Relations team at Crowd Surf in Nashville. Viegut’s background experience extends across social media and web management in e-commerce, digital communications, event marketing, analytics, and content development. A Wisconsin native, Viegut graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Strategic Communications & Communications Arts.

Veigut will report to CMA Director of Digital Strategy Meryl Johnson.