Team
Meet the Team
None of this could be possible without the fierce group of women, men, and organizations who believe in empowering women in music. We’re also excited to introduce you to our first grant recipients and strategic partners who help makes this possible. Want to join the team? Want to be a special guest on the Backstage Chats with Women in Music podcast?
Thea Wood President, Podcast Host
Thea Wood President, Podcast Host
Thea Wood’s zest for a great live music and empowering women have come together in the form of the Backstage Chats Foundation. And she’s celebrating!
As a journalist by education and profession since the 1990s, Thea’s experience spans from interviewing artists, managing print publications, to launching the first Music Channel at America Online, to moderating celebrity online chats, to television appearances, to publishing an international digital magazine and e-book, to being the opening speaker for the first TEDx Talk at the University of Texas.
Thea said it’s now time to “shift back and give back” to the music that has brought joy, healing, and grace to her life. By hosting the podcast “Backstage Chats With Women In Music” that features female music makers and their personal stories, Thea strives to promote gender harmony in an industry she believes has the power to unite us all.
Amanda Meyer
Amanda Meyer Treasurer
Amanda has deep expertise as a finance and operations executive within several industries including Technology, Accounting, Recruiting, Engineering and other professional services. This diversity allows her to transfer concepts into industries where they do not traditionally bubble up and she is very excited to exercise this muscle in the Music industry with Herizon. Amanda is also a huge champion of women in leadership and gets charged up when given a challenge. Nothing is more fun to her than a problem to solve or an endeavor to see through to completion. More than anything, Amanda enjoys helping people however she can and usually in a very concrete way. She holds an MBA from Johns Hopkins Carey School of Business, where she graduated with Honors.
In her free time Amanda enjoys reading, writing and playing sports, particularly tennis and golf. She is passionate about listening to music and actually prefers it to television. Amanda does not have any musical talent, but does believe she might be able sing after a glass of wine.
Mary Beth Appleton Secretary
Mary Beth Appleton Secretary
Mary Beth is a builder. She gets excited to see a quality product get out into the world that brings communities together. MB enjoys pitching in, meeting people, and figuring out how to reach a common goal. She’s worked in media sales and management (including NBC, ABC, and Fox) for 25 years and worked on political campaigns for another 10.
Fun Fact: MB loves public speaking and performing. She’s given plenty of speeches and toasts, performed in quite a few improv shows, done a smattering of stand up, sang at open mic nights, and accompanied her school choir on the piano. “All of them scared me, and doing all of them anyway has made me stronger and ready for more!”
Grace Lanni Director
Grace Lanni Director, Networking
Grace owns All About That Brand, an award-winning branding consultancy and podcast, and is a best-selling author. An entrepreneur at heart, Grace was one of only two women to publicly fund a $1MM venture in Austin (2000) and is the managing director of Austin’s E-Women Network where she oversaw the top growth of all EWN chapters in the U.S in 2018.
Ever the entrepreneur, Grace is continually engaging the cutting edge of personal branding. Grace was recently referred by William Arruda (Forbes columnist on Personal Branding) to lead a 2hr workshop at the ‘19 Intl Career Thought Leaders conference on the personal branding dynamics of the gig economy.
Grace (singer/keyboardist) plays gigs with her guitarist husband, and enjoys a glass of wine with friends in the Texas Hill Country.
Christine Greeneisen Director
Christine Greeneisen Director
As a founding partner, Christine’s industry knowledge comes from a broad-based career in the automotive, aerospace, defense, and medical industries. A graduate of Lawrence Technological University in Industrial Management, she has built her executive search practice around industry leadership with state, national, and international clients and is a proponent of advancing female professionals. Christine is a supporter and volunteer for several philanthropic organizations and past Board member of The Detroit (Michigan) Science Center, and Michigan FIRST Robotics. She enjoys traveling and reading historical fiction as well as watching black-and-white films.
Organizations we Support:
Use 
