The ARIA Network, an integrated media group bringing billions of physical and digital assets to life through advanced recognition, augmented reality, 360° immersive experiences and original “living” NFTs, today announced the latest additions to its leadership team today.

“As ARIA endeavors to break the mold, we are excited that our current partnerships and growth trajectory have attracted industry titans who want to work with us to build the future of marketing, media and advertising.”

The ARIA Network, which recently launched with announcements of exclusive long-term partnerships with the National Basketball Retired Players Association, the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association, the NHL Alumni Association, the Roberto Clemente Estate and Brookfield Properties, expanded their leadership team in advance of additional partnership announcements scheduled for Q4.

Additions include:

• Evan Greene, former 17-yr Chief Marketing Officer of The Recording Academy (the GRAMMYs), joins ARIA as Chief Business Officer. Greene has also served in executive marketing positions with Disney and Sony.
• Jason Turner joins ARIA as Chief Operating Officer where he will lead the product roadmap. He is the former Chief Business Officer of The Virtual Reality Company, as well as having served in leadership roles at Playboy Enterprises, Endemol and FremantleMedia (American Idol).
• Travis McMichael III, ARIA’s SVP of Creative Strategy, brings over a decade of multi-faceted brand building experience, having developed culture shifting creative strategies across the tech, media and lifestyle spaces at Observatory (CAA Marketing), Pollen, Bang & Olufsen, Beats by Dr. Dre., Lionsgate and more.
• Ilona Stepanyants, SVP of Brand and Partnerships, is the former head of marketing at adidas for the Beyoncé / Ivy Park and Pharrell Williams partnerships. Prior to adidas, Stepanyants spent more than a decade at Nike leading multiple brand and retail initiatives including partnerships with the NFL, MLB and NCAA as well as athletes Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and the first ever World Basketball Festival across Nike Basketball, Jordan Brand and Converse.
• Jimmy Nguyen, ARIA’s SVP of Growth, served formerly with Warner Bros, Voya Financial and Salesforce, and brings significant experience in building strong foundations for hyper-growth brands geared towards constant evolution.

Earlier this year, ARIA brought on board Barry Sandrew, Chief Technology Officer and industry recognized VFX, AR, VR pioneer; as well as an additional Advisor to ARIA, Raja Rajamannar, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer and President of Healthcare of Mastercard.

“As ARIA endeavors to break the mold, we are excited that our current partnerships and growth trajectory have attracted industry titans who want to work with us to build the future of marketing, media and advertising,” said Rebecca Jonah, Co-CEO, The ARIA Network. “This ‘dream team’ will undoubtedly help to propel ARIA into its next phase, most immediately in the NFT market where we have a multitude of exciting partnerships to announce in the near future on the ARIA Exchange.”

The ARIA Exchange, part of The ARIA Network, is pioneering a new frontier of the NFT market with living, original NFTs designed in partnership and on behalf of some of the world’s most iconic celebrities. Geared to grow over time with dynamic content and immersive experiences, ARIA NFTs will drive greater 1-to-1 connections between fan and icons than previously possible. Further, as ARIA is committed to reducing the impact of NFTs and technology on the planet, the ARIA Exchange is a sustainable NFT marketplace that is carbon negative.