Melinda Newman

Melinda is Billboard’s executive editor, West Coast and Nashville. She returned to Billboard in 2017 after serving as West Coast bureau chief from 1998 to 2006. She helms Billboard’s country coverage, including the Country Power Players annual issue, and is also on the music business team covering various aspects of the industry. She also enjoys writing about film and TV music, rock (particularly classic), and comedy. The 2020 recipient of the CMA Media Achievement Award, she has written numerous cover stories on such artists as Jelly Roll, Eric Church and Lainey Wilson. In 2022, her Dolly Parton cover profile won second place for celebrity features over 1,000 words from the Los Angeles Press Club’s National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards.