Harmonix co-founder Alex Rigopulos and esteemed lawyer Priyanka Khimani join Songtradr board

Los Angeles-based Songtradr has welcomed two new names to its board of directors: Alex Rigopulos and Priyanka Khimani.

Rigopulos is the co-founder of Harmonix, the music-based interactive entertainment studio behind Rock Band.

Today, Rigopulos continues to lead Harmonix at Epic. Over the years he has played an instrumental role in the development of Rock Band and other gaming series such as Guitar Hero and Dance Central.

Songtradr said in an announcement that Rigopulos’ “deep understanding of both music and technology will be invaluable as Songtradr continues to expand its global footprint”.

Harmonix was acquired by Epic Games in 2021.

In 2023, Songtradr acquired superfan/D2C platform Bandcamp from Epic; as a result of that deal, Epic became a shareholder in Songtradr.

Also joining Songtradr’s board is Priyanka Khimani, entertainment lawyer and managing partner at Khimani Associates.

One of South Asia and MENA’s most influential music entertainment lawyers, Khimani has represented many high-profile clients in the entertainment industry such as AR Rahman, AP Dhillon, Divine, Reservoir Media, Warner Music Group, Snap Inc, Netflix, and others.

Songtradr said that her “expertise in entertainment law and her commitment to protecting creative works align perfectly with Songtradr’s mission to empower artists and rights holders worldwide”.

Paul Wiltshire, CEO of Songtradr, said of the new board members: “We are thrilled to welcome Alex Rigopulos and Priyanka Khimani to our Board of Directors.

“Alex’s visionary approach to integrating music, technology, and video games, along with Priyanka’s extensive rights knowledge and dedication to the creative community, will provide strategic insights and strengthen our leadership as we continue to innovate and grow in the global music marketplace.”

The duo join existing Songtradr board members Lindsay Nahmiache, Helge Steffen, and Paul Wiltshire.

“Alex’s visionary approach to integrating music, technology, and video games, along with Priyanka’s extensive rights knowledge and dedication to the creative community, will provide strategic insights and strengthen our leadership as we continue to innovate and grow in the global music marketplace.”

Paul Wiltshire, Songtradr

Last week, Songtradr-owned Bandcamp announced it was partnering with EMPIRE to bring artists such as Key Glock, Conway the Machine, Dinner Party, Olamide, Asake, Black Sherif and Shaboozey to the superfan platform.

Within that announcement, Bandcamp confirmed that it is used by 47 million fans and that it has “played a pivotal role in the careers of over 5 million artists”.

According to Bandcamp, fans have paid artists and their labels $1.32 billion via Bandcamp since it was founded in 2008.

In July last year, Songtradr forged a partnership with Twitch to bring Songtradr’s music service, Pretzel, to Twitch streamers, offering what it said is “a treasure trove of licensed music to enhance their streams”.

In addition to Bandcamp and Pretzel, other companies under the Songtradr umbrella include MassiveMusic, Big Sync Music, 7Digital, Tunefind, and a range of other B2B and B2C solutions for rightsholders.Music Business Worldwide [STAGING]