Tag: casey acierno

Spotify EQUAL Presents the All Things Go Creator Summit to Inspire Action Through Music

September 29, 2023

Fans flock to music festivals to see dozens of their favorite artists in one go, embrace their fandom as a pack, and celebrate the power of music. But to this day, there stands a gender equity issue: organizers unveil lineup after lineup with a consistent lack of women headliners and acts.

So in 2018, All Things Go, the DC-based music festival, partnered with singer-songwriter Maggie Rogers to co-curate a women-led lineup. The festival has only grown since, doubling attendance year after year. This weekend, 32 artists—including Lana Del Rey, Maggie Rogers, boygenius, Carly Rae Jepsen, Mt. Joy, MUNA, Arlo Parks, and more—will perform across multiple stages at the iconic Merriweather Post Pavilion. And as fans count down the hours to the sold-out two-day experience, All Things Go’s organizers are getting ready to kick off their biggest, most impactful weekend yet.

Spotify is also joining in with the chorus of voices calling for gender equity in music. As the festival’s digital-streaming partner and sponsor of the All Things Go Creator Summit 2023 Presented by Spotify EQUAL, held the Friday before the festival, we’ll host panels and programming featuring some of the most notable voices in music, entertainment, and journalism.

“Fans have always said that our festival feels like their ultimate playlist, so when we had the opportunity to partner with Spotify EQUAL, it was a no-brainer given the diverse group of artists that the EQUAL ecosystem empowers through equity in the audio sphere and celebrating women’s contributions in music,” says All Things Go cofounder Stephen Vallimarescu.

“We built the Creator Summit as a place for festival fans to connect and get inspired via a sneak peak behind the curtain of music, technology, activism, and entrepreneurship, with engaging panel discussions featuring some of those industries’ brightest stars alongside ATG festival artists. I’m so pleased this is the fifth consecutive year we’ve been able to host it,” adds cofounder Will Suter. “There’s a lot of great speakers and information in store.”

Harmonizing Equity

NYLON Editor-in-Chief Lauren McCarthy will moderate a dynamic conversation that celebrates the multifaceted roles of women in the music industry. The panel brings together streaming visionaries like Spotify Rock & Alternative Artist Partnerships manager and Global Chair of Education for Women in Music Chissy Nkemere and Spotify Global Music Programs Social & Equity Lead Bel Aztiria. It also includes non-profit and equity work pioneers like Amplify Her Voice founder Kristina London and Cities Without Houses Head of Memberships Autumn Merritt. Together, they’ll explore how women are reshaping the landscape, from the creative process to the business strategies that drive the industry forward.

These panelists are industry professionals who are constantly creating new opportunities and designing diverse spaces for women’s voices and talents to be recognized across the music industry. Join them for a discussion on empowerment in male-dominated business spaces, the importance of the mentor-mentee relationship, the streaming-equity evolution, and the role women play in creating electrifying live-music experiences.

“At Spotify, we wholeheartedly acknowledge the importance of lifting women’s voices within the music industry,” says Bel Aztira. “Our wish is that panel attendees depart with a deeper appreciation of Spotify’s EQUAL initiative and its mission, as well as knowing that each person can play a role in fostering positive change through active listening. The Creator Summit sets an inspiring tone for what promises to be an unforgettable weekend, and I am humbled to share the stage with so many industry trailblazers.”

Inspiring Action Through Music

The second panel will see U.S. Congressman Maxwell Frost moderate a conversation between Calling All Crows founder Sybil Gallagher, Spotify Social Impact Media Responsibility Lead Casey Acierno, The Ally Coalition Director of Operations and Community Engagement Geoffrey Morrissey, and Meet Me @ The Altar vocalist Edith Victoria. These visionary voices from different corners of music and activism will discuss how music can be a transformative tool for democracy and advocacy.

“After our panel, I hope attendees walk away recognizing that impact has always been a critical part of music,” says Casey Acierno. “Artists have played a key role in the major social movements of our time—not only as the soundtrack, but as leaders that inspire action.”

Together, they’ll explore the influence of music in catalyzing positive change, driving social impact, helping with collaboration and coalition-building, providing LGBTQIA+ representation, and positioning artists as advocates.

“I also hope that attendees walk away recognizing that we can demand better from the live-music spaces that we’re in,” Casey adds. “We’re proud to partner with organizations like Calling All Crows and The Ally Coalition, who are leading the charge in making the music industry safer and more inclusive. By learning more about their work, music fans can find out how they themselves can build a stronger community and support the most marginalized among us.”

Can’t attend in person? Stream the All Things Go 2023 Official Playlist.

Spotify Is Encouraging Voters To Make Their Voices Heard Ahead of the 2022 Midterms

October 25, 2022

In 2016, Spotify began using the power of our platform for the important work of civic engagement, and in 2020, we unveiled Play Your Part ahead of the pivotal U.S. presidential election. Our nonpartisan campaign encouraged eligible voters to get out and vote, and supported potential first-time voters in getting ready to do so. Now, two years later, as the U.S. heads into a midterm election cycle, we’re once again encouraging listeners to make their voices heard through the power of voting, and supporting artists and employees who wish to do the same.

Voting in non-presidential years is critical to ensuring your voice is heard at the federal, state, and local levels, yet, on average, turnout for midterm elections tends to be lower than presidential years, especially among young voters. So ahead of the midterms, we’re focused on helping “second-time voters” return to the polls for the first time since 2020 and continue to build their voting habits.

We’ve reached tens of millions of Spotify users worldwide to encourage them to vote in their local elections in France, Germany, Brazil, and elsewhere through Play Your Part. This year in the U.S., we’re utilizing our platform to showcase civic engagement opportunities and educational resources, as well as support artists and podcasters who want to remind their fans of the importance of heading to the polls. We’ll be driving listeners to a custom resource hub created by HeadCount that utilizes BallotReady and TurboVote tools to help them make a plan to vote and learn what’s on the ballot they’ll cast in just two short weeks.

Where it counts

Andy Bernstein is the Executive Director and Founder of HeadCount, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that works in the music and culture space to register voters and get people generally participating in democracy. He created it in 2004 after realizing “if I can get people who go to the same concerts I go to to vote, maybe that’s a change I can make in the world.”

“Civic engagement is really essential because it’s really foundational,” Andy explained to For the Record. “It’s at the core of so many other issues and causes, so when people get out there and vote, their values are reflected. Programs like Spotify’s that get people voting—getting their customers voting, getting their employees engaged, and really using their reach to make participation a social norm—are really important.”

Andy Bernstein, Executive Director and Founder of HeadCount

Andy notes that this is particularly the case in a midterm election. “In most midterm elections, only one in five young people turn out. And even in 2018, which was a historically high election turnout, it was one in three. So you still have the majority of young people who are sitting on the sidelines for the midterm elections. So the opportunity to create awareness and create a culture of participation is really, really great.”

As part of Play Your Part, we’re not only creating a custom resource hub with HeadCount, but we’ve also worked with shows like Call Her Daddy and Not Past It to encourage listeners to vote through tools such as PSAs, social content, and in-show integrations. Listeners may even hear voting-related PSAs in other podcasts they love over the next two weeks. We’ve also created an original playlist, Focus on the Midterms, to help keep voters on task while they’re studying their ballots and updated our Play Your Part: Civic Engagement Hub.

Furthermore, going into the election, Spotify in partnership with PLUS1 sponsored an off-the-record, invite-only virtual salon to encourage artists and podcasters to use their platforms to help their fans vote. Attendees will also receive custom, unbranded assets to use on their platforms.

For Spotify employees, we’ve created a program in partnership with Power the Polls and Invisible Hand to help guide our employees to become poll workers. “This year we continue to see jurisdictions struggle to staff polling places—especially with bilingual and tech-savvy poll workers,” says Casey Acierno, Media Responsibility and Civic Engagement Lead on Spotify’s Social Impact team. “Poll workers are critical to operating our elections and ensuring all eligible voters can cast a ballot. Our employees can help fill this need, ensure their community votes, and get a front-row seat to the democratic process.”

Casey herself has been engaged in civic engagement and voting work since she was a teenager. “During elections in the early 2000s, I was too young to vote and I remember feeling helpless—and that not enough people were paying attention. So I found a way to get involved by making phone calls to encourage people to get out and vote,” she shared with For the Record. Casey’s just as involved now as she was then—and she’s still working to spread the message about the importance of voting and democracy to younger voters.

Casey Acierno, Media Responsibility and Civic Engagement Lead on Spotify’s Social Impact team

“You think of elections as something you do, you vote, and that’s that,” she said. “But when you think about it more deeply and you realize what people have fought for to have the right to vote, you realize how important it is to help people understand that it’s such a privilege to live somewhere where our vote counts. We’re able to make a real impact on the issues we care about. It’s so critical to vote all the way down the ballot, because sometimes those smaller elections that you don’t even think about are the ones that make the most impact on your day-to-day life.”

We’re proud to promote safe, secure, responsible—and engaging—information on Spotify about the U.S. midterm election and how creators, employees, and fans can take part. But we can’t do it alone—it takes all of us to make an impact.

“HeadCount has been such an incredible partner in this space,” says Casey. “They thoroughly understand how to talk to artists, how to talk through culture, and how to do it in a way that really moves young people to take action. Voting is super complicated, it’s so different in every state, a lot of the information is super dry, and they’ve really cracked the code on how to use artists and creators to make voting cool and fun, and something you do with your community.”

So don’t wait: Join the conversation and make your voice heard on November 8.

Dispatches From Our 2021 Equity & Impact Report: Impact

April 4, 2022

We always say that Spotify reflects culture—but we are also shaped by it. And that means it’s important for us to ensure that both our platform and our company reflect the very best of the culture for the good of our listeners, employees, and planet. We do this through employee resource groups and mental health offerings, sustainability initiatives, and the representation of a diverse set of voices on our platform—as well as much more.

We take stock of all this every year in our annual Equity & Impact Report. There’s a lot to read, so we broke it out into a few key takeaways from some of our leaders who spend their days ensuring our passion translates into purpose.

Read on for a discussion with Social Impact Lead Casey Acierno; Sustainability Manager Ebba Grythberg; and VP, Global Head of Equity and Impact Elizabeth Nieto on impact at Spotify in 2021. You can also read about our equity work throughout the year.

As a global company with hundreds of millions of users, Spotify is positioned to create real change through its platform. How did Spotify use the platform as a tool to create positive change last year?

Casey: We strongly believe that reaching our audience where their needs are is one of the most powerful ways we at Spotify can drive real impact. That was the driver behind our COVID vaccination campaign last year where we identified the opportunity to provide our listeners with accurate information. Over the course of late 2020 and 2021, we launched a global information hub with up-to date news on COVID and vaccination; integrated information into over 50 podcasts worldwide with original content, host reads, and PSAs on vaccination; and ran a campaign reminding music lovers that the best way to bring live music back was to get vaccinated, by leveraging in-app messaging.

Where are you most excited to continue raising awareness of important issues in 2022?

Ebba: We’re excited about finding new, innovative ways of using our platform to raise awareness on the climate crisis and make sure that we amplify the voices of the people that are most impacted by it. We want to bring awareness to what’s happening and the severity of it, but at the same time, provide hope and highlight all the interesting solutions out there. With our platform, we have the opportunity to promote and curate content based in climate science, like the Spotify Original podcast How to Save a Planet and the Climate Action Hub, and we look forward to developing this further in 2022. We are also excited to explore new audio formats, using storytelling to engage our listeners on climate issues.

Casey: In 2022, we’re excited to continue to scale our work globally and ensure we’re making a worldwide impact. Beyond working with the Sustainability team on encouraging our audience to take action on the climate crisis, we’ll also be continuing to shine a spotlight on historically marginalized communities around the world through our celebrations of cultural moments like International Women’s Day and Pride. We’re also looking forward to broadening our civic engagement work to provide our listeners with nonpartisan information and make it easier to vote by engaging in the U.S. midterm elections, as well as other countries around the world with elections this year.

The report also highlights Spotify’s commitment to reaching net-zero emissions within the next decade. What will Spotify do in 2022 to further progress toward this important goal?

Ebba: In 2022 we will continue to develop our pathway to net zero, driving reduction efforts across the company. As the majority of our emissions are coming from our value chain, collaboration with our suppliers and partners is key to achieve change, both when it comes to working with existing suppliers and choosing new suppliers that share our ambitions. In addition to reducing our emissions—and equally important—we will continue to leverage our platform to raise awareness on climate change, showcase different perspectives, and amplify voices of the most affected.

2021 continued to be a difficult year for many people around the world. How has Spotify supported our employees and listeners regarding mental health during this time?

Elizabeth: Since we started our Heart & Soul mental health initiative in 2018, our goal has always been to normalize the conversation and reduce stigma around mental health. Our aim is to create a stigma-free environment where we look after ourselves and each other and where it’s OK to not be OK. When COVID-19 hit, Spotify had a robust mental health support system in place. Our Heart & Soul Ambassadors across the globe could quickly mobilize around efforts to specifically address the anxiety people felt about COVID and having to adjust to work from home from one day to the other.

Our Heart & Soul Ambassadors, who alongside their day jobs have helped us to plan and drive initiatives around mental health, have recently become Mental health First Aiders through a training program that teaches participants how to notice and support an individual who may be struggling with their mental health. They are able to have supportive conversations, listen nonjudgmentally, and guide Spotifiers toward the right support.

In 2021, we offered a Wellness Week in early November to help Spotifiers recharge, focus on themselves, spend time with loved ones, and do something that brings them joy.

Casey: This year, we brought World Mental Health Day to our listeners as well, encouraging them as well as our employees to “take a beat” and listen to themselves. A special edition of the Wellness Hub featured special playlists, video content, and mental health resources.

With our broad sphere of influence around the world, Spotify has a responsibility to continue our mission to be a force for good. Where do you see opportunities to continue to invest in these endeavors in the coming years?

Elizabeth: As a global company, we see ourselves as a citizen of the world with a responsibility to make the planet and the communities that we serve and live in a better place—where creators can share their art and listeners enjoy music, information, and real connections, on and off platform. We are driven by our values. The work the Equity and Impact team does straddles our commitment to our employees, the listeners, and creators around the world. I am so proud of how the three teams came together in 2021, leveraging our different skills and raising the bar in our work.

We have very bold goals for 2022 and beyond, supported by the commitment of our most senior leaders who believe in the positive impact that we can bring to the world. As a practice, Equity and Impact continues to evolve and we are having a much more global approach to our strategy in both DIB and Social Impact. In the case of Sustainability, we are excited to report that Spotify as a whole is committed to climate action. Just last month, we hosted a Hack Week focused on “making the planet cooler” with more than 2,400 participants and 208 hacks (and you can read about four of them here, here, here, and here). We are excited to report the results in the 2022 E&I Report.

Read the full 2022 Equity & Impact Report here. You can hear more from our leaders on our work in equity.

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