Michelle Tigard Kammerer & Emily Cohen Belote Upped At Amazon Music

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Michelle Tigard Kammerer & Emily Cohen Belote

Amazon Music has promoted Michelle Tigard Kammerer to Global Head of Country Music and Emily Cohen Belote has been promoted to Global Lead, Country Music Programming, expanding their reach worldwide.

“There’s been a lot of growth for country music in the U.S., but also ex-U.S.,” Kammerer told Country Aircheck. “This change helps us streamline support for all of these growth territories.” Cohen Belote added, “We always want to be global, but also stay hyperlocal. Yes, a lot of country is programmed out of the U.S. and veneered locally, but this also allows us to lift up territories that have their own versions of country music.”

Kammerer has led the growth and evolution of the genre on the service since joining the Amazon Music team in 2021. She leads all efforts to continue growing country music listening on Amazon Music, inclusive of marketing and artist and label relations through new initiatives and collaborations with a wide range of artists. Kammerer and her team oversee one of country’s most influential brands—Country Heat.

Under her leadership, Amazon Music has significantly expanded its country music footprint through innovative partnerships and initiatives. She leads the Amazon Music livestream work with Stagecoach Festival and has overseen major artist collaborations, including Jelly Roll’s performance on Amazon Music Live after Thursday Night Football. She was instrumental in the Academy of Country Music Awards’ streaming deal with Prime Video. She also develops the service’s Country Music Month programming, which has featured livestreams and exclusive content from artists like Kacey Musgraves, Lainey Wilson and Nate Smith.

Belote is the Global Lead of Country Music Programming at Amazon Music, where she has been shaping the streaming service’s country music strategy since 2016. Her leadership has been instrumental in developing and overseeing several of Amazon Music’s most successful initiatives, including the Country Heat playlist, which has generated billions of streams since its launch.

In 2024, Belote launched the innovative Bonfire playlist, a genre-blending collection that brings together storyteller artists across country, indie, and alternative music. Her work extends to curating specialized playlists like “Brushland” for Americana and left-of-center country music, and Neon Stars, which spotlights country artists who have made significant impacts on both social media and culture.

Beyond playlist curation, Belote has been crucial in identifying and elevating new talent through initiatives like the Breakthrough playlist and Amazon Music’s Artists to Watch program.

LB Cantrell
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