Kristian Downs promoted to Govt Director, Platform Operations at Secretly Distribution

Secretly Distribution (SD) has promoted Kristian Downs to Govt Director, Platform Operations.

Downs will report back to SD COO and Companion Chris Welz.

The position will see Downs proceed to supervise SD’s Digital Operations crew, whereas taking what the corporate referred to as “strategic possession, governance, and long-term operational path” throughout its core platform infrastructure.

Central to that remit is RIOT, SD’s bespoke repertoire administration system, which Downs helped construct with the distributor’s improvement companion, Babel Ops.

He’ll lead RIOT’s continued improvement with the Babel Ops crew, together with future operational and metadata infrastructure instruments.

Downs may even work with SD’s senior management to align its platform technique with the corporate’s wider objectives because the tech stack grows.

“As we proceed to put money into our know-how and infrastructure, we’re thrilled for Kristian to be main the subsequent part of our platform improvement.”

Chris Welz, Secretly Distribution

“Kristian has remodeled our digital operations since becoming a member of Secretly Distribution six years in the past,” stated Chris Welz. “His strategic imaginative and prescient, technical experience, and collaborative management have been instrumental in constructing the platforms that help our shoppers right now.”

“As we proceed to put money into our know-how and infrastructure, we’re thrilled for Kristian to be main the subsequent part of our platform improvement.”

Welz was named a Companion at SD in February, following what the corporate referred to as its “largest yr ever”.

“I’m excited to step into this position at a time when know-how is taking part in such an necessary half in serving to impartial labels develop and adapt,” stated Downs. “A key a part of my focus might be persevering with to develop the methods and platforms that help our companions, guaranteeing they’ve entry to best-in-class know-how that permits them to function extra successfully and make knowledgeable selections.”

“One of many actual strengths of Secretly Distribution is that, as an impartial enterprise, we are able to work intently with our label companions, reply rapidly to their wants and construct know-how that displays the way in which they really work,” Downs added.

“Along with our long-standing know-how companion, Babel Ops, we’re investing in platforms that may proceed to evolve alongside our labels and help the subsequent part of their progress.”

“A key a part of my focus might be persevering with to develop the methods and platforms that help our companions, guaranteeing they’ve entry to best-in-class know-how that permits them to function extra successfully and make knowledgeable selections.”

Kristian Downs, Secretly Distribution

Downs joined Secretly Distribution in 2020.

He beforehand held senior management roles at AWAL/Kobalt and Beggars Group, and based a music companies distribution and rights platform for impartial artists and labels.

He was named a Billboard UK Energy Participant in 2026.

Secretly Distribution acquired Babel Ops in April, bringing the know-how firm in-house together with its knowledge and analytics platform Leisure Intelligence (Ei).

Babel Ops, based in 2020 by Erik Gilbert and Greg Delaney, builds bespoke knowledge administration, analytics and royalty processing instruments for impartial music corporations.

Secretly Distribution CEO Darius Van Arman framed that acquisition in opposition to a backdrop of trade consolidation, with main corporations buying distribution know-how companies reminiscent of FUGA and Revelator.

The deal comes as impartial music corporations navigate a quickly altering know-how panorama.

Van Arman, who additionally serves as Chairperson of Merlin, the digital licensing company for impartial music corporations, has beforehand highlighted a few of these challenges, together with the affect of generative AI on impartial music companies in an MBW op-ed printed in February.

For greater than 25 years, Secretly Distribution has operated because the in-house distribution arm of Bloomington, Indiana-based Secretly Group, whose labels embody Lifeless Oceans, Jagjaguwar, Secretly Canadian and the Numero Group.

SD’s wider distribution roster additionally contains Third Man Data, Rhymesayers, Ipecac Recordings and Ghostly Worldwide, amongst others.Music Enterprise Worldwide