Dawn Gates

Dawn Gates is a widely respected trailblazer with nearly three decades of experience in digital business and creative development within the music industry. Known for harnessing emerging technologies, exceptional creativity, and unwavering tenacity, Gates sets herself apart in developing partnerships, programs, exclusive opportunities, and more for her artists and projects. She has driven numerous groundbreaking collaborations, helped grow the careers of hundreds of major label artists, played a key role in building multiple divisions at various major record labels, and paved the way for colleagues now in leadership roles across recording labels, music distributors, management firms, music and video streaming platforms, and beyond. Throughout the course of her career, she has built and led digital, streaming, research and strategy, and tv/film departments across three prominent record labels. Gates recently departed her role at Universal Music Group Nashville where she served as the primary liaison for global digital business, integration strategies, and commercial growth while also overseeing the label’s content strategy, execution, and syndication across digital marketing initiatives. Additionally, Gates helped launch and led UMGN’s Sing Me Back Home Productions, a new division focused on developing documentaries, original scripted and unscripted television, feature films, and short-form content. In a role created to foster music integration and tap into the label group’s artist roster and catalogue, Gates served as an Executive Producer of the documentary Gloria Gaynor: I Will Survive and of the celebratory live tribute show and NBC television special Toby Keith: American Icon. Gates’ early career included several years at Word Entertainment (Warner Music Group) pioneering new technologies and digital spaces for Christian music artists before she joined Capitol Records in 2006. While at Capitol, Gates was responsible for overall online marketing plans for each artist and project, digital advertising, and event campaigns including signature events like The Road To Nashville and the Capitol Pub Crawl. As Capitol Records merged with EMI to become Capitol Music Group, which was later acquired by Universal Music Group, Gates’ opportunities, responsibilities, and oversight continued to expand. Gates remained focused on uncovering new streams of revenue through the creation of new partnerships for e-commerce, artist fan clubs, cutting-edge digital stunts, online contesting and sweepstakes, and innovative digital distribution deals for a roster once topping 40+ artists. She has been at the forefront of interactive marketing and grassroots opportunities for nearly 30 years and marks claim to some of the industry’s most talked about digital campaigns including George Strait’s “60 for 60”, Vince Gill’s “Six Degrees Of Vince Gill”, and Luke Bryan’s “Just A Sip” interactive fan video, as well as ground-breaking alternate fan driven mash-up music videos for Keith Urban and Dierks Bentley. From the early days of purchasing downloadable ringtones to the onset of artist set-ups with online partners and music streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, and YouTube Music, Gates provided unique opportunities for Country and Christian music artists. Gates’ innovation and dedication are boundless. Her ability to anticipate industry shifts, coupled with her willingness to take bold, often unconventional steps, enables her to create dynamic new ways to develop artists, build stories, and connect with audiences.

Cindy Mabe

Cindy Mabe is one of Music Row’s most respected music executives and distinguished marketers. A trailblazer throughout her career, she became Nashville’s highest ranking woman label executive when she was appointed UMGN President in 2014. She made history again in 2023 by becoming the first woman to serve as Chair & CEO of a Nashville-based major label group. During her tenure at UMG Nashville, the label group which included Capitol Records Nashville, EMI Records Nashville, MCA Nashville, and Mercury Nashville, Mabe helped guide and grow the careers of some of country music’s biggest stars including Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Jordan Davis, Mickey Guyton, Sam Hunt, Alan Jackson, Parker McCollum, Reba McEntire, Kacey Musgraves, Jon Pardi, Chris Stapleton, George Strait, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Brothers Osborne, and Little Big Town, among countless others.

Also, during her tenure at UMGN, Mabe launched a new comedy-centered imprint in 2023, Capitol Comedy Nashville, with Grammy-recognized flagship comedian Nate Bargatze. That same year, Mabe unveiled Silver Wings Records, a distribution and independent artist services arm of the label group, and Sing Me Back Home Productions, a TV and Film production company. Sing Me Back Home executive produced the NBC special Toby Keith American Icon which was the highest rated live special on NBC for 2024.

Mabe joined UMGN in 2012 as Senior Vice President, Marketing responsible for leading marketing across Capitol Records Nashville, EMI Records Nashville, MCA Nashville, and Mercury Nashville and UMG Nashville’s expanded suite of country labels following its acquisition of EMI. Prior to that, Mabe spent five years at Capitol Records Nashville, where she held the position of SVP, Marketing and played an integral role in the long-term creative and commercial success of the label that saw it named Billboard magazine’s “Country Label of the Year” consecutively for seven years from 2005 – 2012.

A North Carolina native, Mabe attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and graduated from Belmont University in Nashville with a B.S. in Business Administration. She began her music career as promotions coordinator at RCA Nashville, before shifting to sales and then artist marketing and development, during which time she worked with artists including Clint Black, Martina McBride, and Alabama. She later served as Senior Director, Marketing and Artist Development at Arista Records Nashville from 1999-2007 working with the likes of Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood, Brooks & Dunn, and Diamond Rio before joining Capitol Records Nashville in 2007.

Mabe’s dedication and tremendous work for her artists and her countless contributions to the music community have earned the industry leader multiple awards and honors including the Country Music Hall of Fame’s Louise Scruggs Memorial Forum Award, the SOURCE Hall of Fame Award, and recognition by Save The Music Foundation. Mabe was named as one of Billboard’s Women in Music 2015-2024 and landed on Billboard’s Country Power Players list every year since its inception in 2015 including earning 2019’s Billboard Country Power Players Executive of the Year. Mabe also serves on the Country Music Hall of Fame board. Mabe is also the recent recipient of “The First Responders Children’s Foundation Corporate Hero Award.” Her ongoing commitment to philanthropic leadership led to the creation of the Joan of Arc Music Preservation Foundation, dedicated to protecting the timeless legacy of Country music while championing its continued evolution. Defining JOA’s ethos from day one, every project across its ecosystem supports the Foundation through charitable initiatives that benefit the Country music community.