{"id":696352,"date":"2026-06-10T20:55:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T20:55:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/696352\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T20:55:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T20:55:16","slug":"indie-power-players-photos-2026-raye-ruben-blades-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/696352\/","title":{"rendered":"Indie Power Players Photos 2026: RAYE, Ruben Blades & More"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Tuesday (June 9), Billboard honored this year\u2019s Indie Power Players during an event held at the Cutting Room in midtown Manhattan, celebrating many of the independent music industry\u2019s top artists and music executives.<\/p>\n

Billboard co-chief content officers Jason Lipshutz and Leila Cobo kicked off the evening, highlighting how indie music\u2019s market sector has continued to expand over recent years.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany of the world\u2019s biggest artists are signed to indie labels,\u201d Cobo said. \u201cSome of them are here in the house. And, more importantly, what you do is really fueling creativity and musicianship at a very essential and existential time for music.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zena White, COO of Partisan Records, accepted the award for Executive of the Year, which was presented to her by Femi Koleoso, the drummer and leader of British jazz group Ezra Collective. The group has had two top 10 hits on Billboard\u2019s Contemporary Jazz Albums chart with 2019\u2019s You Can\u2019t Steal My Joy and 2024\u2019s Dance No Ones Watching. Partisan is also the label home to Geese, Cigarettes After Sex, Blondshell and Interpol, among many others.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour belief and support is allowing us to scale and genuinely compete with established players with much bigger pockets than us,\u201d White said in her acceptance speech. \u201cArt is not a luxury. It\u2019s necessary for us to connect with and understand one another, as well as ourselves. It can be a balm, an escape and in some cases, even a lifesaver.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read the full recap of Billboard\u2019s Indie Power Players event here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\tZena White and Femi\u00a0Koleoso<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Zena
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Zena White and Femi Koleoso accept the Executive Of The Year Award onstage at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tBrad Navin<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Brad
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Brad Navin speaks onstage at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tJason Lipshutz and Leila\u00a0Cobo<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Jason
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Jason Lipshutz and Leila Cobo at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tRub\u00e9n Blades<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Rub\u00e9n
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Rub\u00e9n Blades accepts the Icon Artist Award onstage at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tExecutives from The\u00a0Orchard<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Alan
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Executives from The Orchard at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tMolly Neuman<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Molly
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Molly Neuman speaks onstage at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tNat Pastor, Pieter van Rijn and J.T.\u00a0Myers<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Nat
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Nat Pastor, Pieter van Rijn and J.T. Myers at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tRAYE<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Raye
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

RAYE at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tRichard Gottehrer<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Richard
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Richard Gottehrer accepts the Lifetime Award onstage at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tExecutives from Virgin Music Group and Downtown Music\u00a0Group<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Ben
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Executives from Virgin Music Group and Downtown Music Group at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tRub\u00e9n Blades<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Rub\u00e9n
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Rub\u00e9n Blades at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tAlex Silverstein, Gregory Hirschhorn and Az\u00a0Cohen<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Alex
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Alex Silverstein, Gregory Hirschhorn and Az Cohen at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\tRAYE<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Raye
\n\t\t\t\tImage Credit: John Nacion\t\t\t<\/p>\n

RAYE accepts the Indie Spirit Award onstage at the Billboard Indie Power Players 2026 held at The Cutting Room NYC on June 09, 2026 in New York, New York.<\/p>\n

\t


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