Senior Editor, Content Strategy, Communications
Bio
Nick Williams is a writer, editor, and communications expert with a decade of experience in print and digital media and the entertainment industry.
As a contributing editor and writer, Nick has pitched and written trend stories, company profiles, brand spotlights, executive bios, and interviews for various outlets and B2B companies. His by-line has appeared in THR, Variety, Harper’s Bazaar, Architectural Digest, RobbReport, American Way Magazine, and Dazed, among others. He enjoys shaping narratives and telling stories that cover the intersection of culture, music, technology, film/tv, wellness, fashion, and art. He is ever curious about the personalities and projects that fuel the creative world.
Before his freelance career, Nick spent a decade in publishing, most recently as a Senior Editor at Billboard magazine. He co-managed the special features section, The Players, which includes business spotlights and power lists (Top Music Lawyers, Top Business Managers, New & Renovated Venues). He mobilized a cross-functional team of freelancers, staff writers, photo editors, and designers to finalize the weekly print layouts through to publication.
He is tenacious and devoted to attaining excellence in his work, which is why Billboard tasked him with launching new print sections of the magazine, including My Billboard Moment in 2019. It featured artists and executives (songwriter Diane Warren, Judy Collins, Weird Al’s manager Jay Levey, etc.) discussing their career highlights on the music charts. In 2014, he advised the re-branding of Billboard’s in book event coverage as 7 Days On The Scene--a curated collage of the week’s best music photos from festivals, galas, and award shows, which is still in print today.
Nick has always had a lifelong penchant for fighting injustice and used his platform as a journalist at Billboard to make an impact. In 2017, he secured an op-ed from Russian punk activist Pussy Riot -- ‘In Case of Political Catastrophe’ -- in response to Trump’s first term as president of the U.S., and spearheaded coverage of the Women’s March in Washington D.C. That included a social media takeover from Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz and an exclusive photo diary from Angélique Kidjo. Alongside his mentor, deputy editor Isabel Gonzalez-Whitaker, he co-produced Billboard’s first two philanthropy issues in 2015 (cover: Lady Gaga & Elton John) and 2016 (Bill Clinton and Jon Bon Jovi).
He charted new territories, too, pioneering a new column and playlist feature #TBT Mixtape in 2016 to boost the brand’s Spotify channel. It featured a weekly playlist curated by an artist – SZA, Def Leppard, Juanes, Dido and more – and ran on Billboard.com for three years.
He found his sweet spot as an editorial advisor on video and photo shoots, where he interviewed talent on camera– notably, Sam Hunt and Miguel for Billboard’s Men of Style issue in 2015-- and for branded content productions with clients Sour Patch Kids, Silk and Ford. He enjoyed making high-profile talent feel comfortable on set and coaching responses, as he is at ease around celebrities and executives alike.
In 2017 he decided to step away from the editorial space to work directly with talent behind the scenes. He joined boutique music communications agency Fancy PR as a Senior National Publicist, where he shaped the branding and PR for a roster of rising music artists including Sofi Tukker, MUNA, Lany, Chelsea Cutler, Linying, joan, RALPH, Blondshell (fka Baum), and Penguin Prison.
He wrote news releases, pitched and secured press opportunities at top media outlets, and drove creative and artistic strategy to maximize returns for clients around new albums and tours. The company had a reputation for breaking artists and many of their acts were signed by major labels after their work with the firm. During his time there, Fancy’s client list doubled.
Prior to joining full-time, Nick moonlighted as a publicist for the agency, writing artist bios and promoting events including MATTE Projects’ Full Moon Fest in 2016 and 2017, which has since been re-branded as La Luna. Full Moon Fest was held on Governor’s Island and featured acts including Santigold, Vic Mensa, and Zoe Kravitz’s band Lolawolf. He managed the press tent, and secured social and online coverage from W Magazine, the New York Times’ T Magazine, and the FADER.
Elsewhere Nick is a musician and singer-songwriter who performed in a pop-rock band called Twin Wave. He steered the group’s booking – at venues across New York City including le Poisson Rouge and Mercury Lounge – as well as their digital marketing efforts, which included features in EW, Vice, and USA Today. He led the promotion of their 2016 single “Matador” which reached the viral top 50 on Spotify.
In 2012 Nick began his career with internships at Brooklyn Magazine/the L Magazine and Girlie Action Media & Marketing, which represents Robert Glasper, My Morning Jacket, and They Might Be Giants. Prior to working in the music industry, he served as a Sales Manager for a London-based translation services firm, whose clients included law firms and financial service companies such as DLA Piper and Blackrock. He trained in their London office and mobilized a database of translators around the globe.
In 2010 he graduated cum laude from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., with a Bachelor of Arts in English-French and a minor in Art History. In 2024, he completed a certificate program in Video Editing and Motion Graphics with Noble Desktop in New York City.
Nick grew up halfway between Boston and Cape Cod in the sleepy town of Duxbury, Massachusetts. As a kid he was fascinated by all things culture. He acted in plays and musicals, sang in an a cappella group and gospel choir, and studied graphic design and photography. He wrote and filmed movies and obsessively made mix tapes of indie music for his friends.