January 5, 2021 (Nashville, TN) – American Songwriter announced the hiring of industry veteran Lisa Konicki as its Editor in Chief, effective immediately.
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Konicki has been involved on the press side of the music industry for 20 years, bringing a wealth of experience and relationships to the brand. As a music media executive, Konicki has helped share the stories of countless musicians and writers, through print and online media, for the past two decades. She began her career as photo editor of Country Weekly magazine, working her way up to helm the magazine as Editor in Chief. She later created the website nashcountrydaily.com for Cumulus Media where she was also Editor in Chief. The past three years have had Lisa in the Editor position once again for onecountry.com.
“I’m thrilled to join the American Songwriter team as Editor in Chief,” says Konicki. “The Magazine’s 35+ year history exhibits an outstanding quality and has cemented its place as a staple in the music community. I look forward to being able to work with the incredible staff and bring my experience to such a prestigious publication.”
American Songwriter experienced the best year in the history of the publication during 2020 with exponential growth in users to its site and readers of its magazine. It has become a more genre agnostic property – expanding from an indie darling to an all-encompassing brand for songwriters of any musical ambition – a course it will continue to follow.
Konicki will be stepping into a role that was previously held by Dallas Jackson. Jackson will remain with American Songwriter as part of its ownership group, Savage Ventures, and will continue to be involved with the operations.
“Lisa Konicki is an amazing addition to the team,” Jackson said. “When we were looking for a new editorial leader we had several ‘must-have’ qualities and Lisa checked all of the boxes, and then some.
“The last year was one of the most enjoyable of my career in restoring the shine to American Songwriter; I am over the moon excited to pass the torch to Lisa and help have a hand in its future, albeit from a distance.”
As part of Savage Ventures, the American Songwriter brand saw a growth in writers, readers, and most every metric measured by the industry and advertisers.
The resurgence has been guided by Sam Savage from acquisition to its current state. The timing of the transition from Jackson to Konicki, according to Savage, was just as the group had planned.
“We had a schedule in place from the onset and we wanted to stay that course to ensure a thriving, viable, media property and that has happened,” Savage said. “Being able to have Lisa come into the fold is an opportunity to push us to yet another level.
“American Songwriter is a timeless institution that has seen unprecedented growth and that is something that we believe will be said again next year as we continue to add to the team, with Lisa being on the front end of it.”
