A&R Administrative Assistant

GoodTalk; New York (NY); On-site; USD 33,000 - 39,000; Part time

Job summary

GoodTalk is seeking an operations-focused A&R administrator and contractor in New York to manage budgets, process invoices, log expenses in real time, maintain budget summaries, and uphold catalog data quality for all active releases.

You will coordinate distributor uploads for singles and albums, track royalties and recoupment, oversee rights clearances and agreements, manage vendor setup, and provide cross-team reporting to A&R, Marketing, Distribution, and Finance.

Qualifications

• 1–3 years in music industry operations or A&R administration
• Strong budgeting and recoupment knowledge
• Familiarity with digital distribution and metadata requirements
• Excellent Excel/Sheets skills

Responsibilities

• Process invoicing and financial tracking for artist budgets
• Maintain budget summaries and log expenses in real time
• Coordinate distributor uploads and metadata compliance
• Manage agreements and rights clearance tracking
• Support onboarding of artists and producers

Skills

Music industry ops

Budgeting & recoupment

Digital distribution

Attention to detail

Excel/Sheets

Rights management software

Communication skills

Tools

Excel/Google Sheets

Royalty management software

Job description

• Process and route all invoices related to artist advances, legal fees, and recording costs to Finance for payment
• Log all expenses against individual artist budget sheets in real time
• Monitor spend against approved budgets and proactively flag A&Rs when nearing or projected to hit budget caps
• Maintain accurate, up-to-date budget summaries for each active project
• Manage back catalog collection and ingestion, ensuring metadata, audio, and artwork meet distributor specs
• Coordinate and execute all single, EP, mixtape, and album uploads with the distributor
• Track delivery status and troubleshoot rejected or delayed releases

Agreement & Rights Management

• Log and maintain a database of all producer and side artist agreements per project
• Track clearance status across producers, labels, publishers, and other third parties, and flag bottlenecks before they delay a release
• Maintain a centralized, organized repository of all legal agreements tied to each record (recording agreements, sample clearances, features, producer deals, etc.)

Logistics & Booking

• Coordinate studio booking for A&Rs and artists
• Arrange travel for A&Rs as needed for sessions, meetings, or events

Calendar & Scheduling

• Maintain and update the production and release calendar for both GoodTalk and Jumpstart rosters
• Ensure all stakeholders (A&R, marketing, distribution, legal) have visibility into key dates and deadlines

General A&R Administration

• Maintain organized digital files for each project (contracts, session notes, deliverables, approvals)
• Assist with royalty and recoupment tracking in coordination with Finance
• Support A&R in gathering session credits, songwriter splits, and metadata for registration with PROs/publishers
• Coordinate sample clearance requests and track approval timelines
• Assist with vendor and service provider setup (engineers, studios, mastering), including W-9s and payment information
• Take notes and track action items during A&R and project status meetings
• Assist with mechanical licensing and Content ID/rights management issues as they arise
• Support onboarding of new artists and producers with contract and paperwork collection
• Provide general administrative support to the A&R department as needed
  

Key Responsibilities

Invoicing & Financial Tracking

• Process and route all invoices related to artist advances, legal fees, and recording costs to Finance for payment
• Log all expenses against individual artist budget sheets in real time
• Monitor spend against approved budgets and proactively flag A&Rs when nearing or projected to hit budget caps
• Maintain accurate, up-to-date budget summaries for each active project

Catalog & Distribution

• Manage back catalog collection and ingestion, ensuring metadata, audio, and artwork meet distributor specs
• Coordinate and execute all single, EP, mixtape, and album uploads with the distributor
• Track delivery status and troubleshoot rejected or delayed releases

Agreement & Rights Management

• Log and maintain a database of all producer and side artist agreements per project
• Track clearance status across producers, labels, publishers, and other third parties, and flag bottlenecks before they delay a release
• Maintain a centralized, organized repository of all legal agreements tied to each record (recording agreements, sample clearances, features, producer deals, etc.)

Logistics & Booking

• Coordinate studio booking for A&Rs and artists
• Arrange travel for A&Rs as needed for sessions, meetings, or events

Calendar & Scheduling

• Maintain and update the production and release calendar for both GoodTalk and Jumpstart rosters
• Ensure all stakeholders (A&R, marketing, distribution, legal) have visibility into key dates and deadlines

General A&R Administration

• Maintain organized digital files for each project (contracts, session notes, deliverables, approvals)
• Assist with royalty and recoupment tracking in coordination with Finance
• Support A&R in gathering session credits, songwriter splits, and metadata for registration with PROs/publishers
• Coordinate sample clearance requests and track approval timelines
• Assist with vendor and service provider setup (engineers, studios, mastering), including W-9s and payment information
• Take notes and track action items during A&R and project status meetings
• Assist with mechanical licensing and Content ID/rights management issues as they arise
• Support onboarding of new artists and producers with contract and paperwork collection
• Provide general administrative support to the A&R department as needed
  

Qualifications

• 1–3 years of experience in music industry operations, A&R administration, or business affairs (label, management company, or distributor experience preferred)
• Strong understanding of recording budgets, advances, and recoupment structures
• Familiarity with digital distribution platforms and metadata requirements
• High attention to detail and comfort managing multiple deadlines across a busy release slate
• Proficient in Excel/Google Sheets; experience with royalty or rights management software a plus
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for cross-departmental coordination

Engagement Terms

• This is an independent contractor engagement, not a full-time employee position
• Compensation: $3,000/month, paid against a monthly invoice submitted by the contractor
• Contractor is responsible for their own taxes, equipment, and benefits; no employee benefits are provided