The AFM & SAG-AFTRA Intellectual Property Rights Distribution Fund, AFM, and SAG-AFTRA today announced the appointment of veteran music industry executive Stefanie Taub as Chief Executive Officer of the Fund. Taub comes to the Fund from SAG-AFTRA, having served as the head of its Music Department for more than twenty years, and as a trustee of the Fund for the past six years. In her new role, Taub will oversee the Fund’s collection and distribution of more than $45 million annually in royalties to non-featured musicians and vocalists.

Taub’s hiring concludes an extensive, nine-month long national search led by the consulting firm Korn Ferry. Taub will assume her new responsibilities on April 15.

“We could not hope for a more qualified, excellent CEO than Stefanie Taub,” said Ray Hair, co-chair of the Fund board of trustees and American Federation of Musicians International President. “She has the complete confidence and trust of not only the leadership, but also the membership of the AFM. Stefanie is a ‘music person’ with the skill set and dedication to musicians to lead the Fund to new heights.”

“Stefanie’s vision for the future of the Fund is inspiring, and she brings the management experience and industry expertise to not only hit the ground running but also to take on the immense challenges brought on by the volatility in the music world. We will miss her deeply at SAG-AFTRA but are so glad she will be staying in the family and continuing to use her considerable skills to the benefit of our membership and AFM’s as well,” said Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, co-chair of the Fund board of trustees and COO and General Counsel of SAG-AFTRA.

“I am truly honored by the trust and confidence placed in me by the trustees and the members of SAG-AFTRA and the AFM. I’ve spent my professional life working to further the cause of performers in the music industry, and the opportunity to do that as the chief executive of an organization as important as the Fund was simply too good to pass up. The Fund faces a challenging industry environment but has a very bright future. I look forward to teaming up with the incredible staff of the Fund, the trustees, and the unions to make that future the very best it can be,” said Taub.

The AFM & SAG-AFTRA Intellectual Property Rights Distribution Fund is a trust fund and collective rights management organization established by the AFM and SAG-AFTRA to collect and distribute royalties to non-featured performers, including vocalists and musicians. Headquartered in Los Angeles, California and with approximately 70 staff, the Fund collects and distributes approximately $45 million annually on behalf of artists, from royalties paid on domestic non-interactive digital use of sound recordings, as well as for use in foreign territories subject to reciprocal agreements with collective management organizations in those territories.