Hot Topic Careers

Do you listen to new releases on Thursday night at 9pm? Are you the first to discover the next breakout artist, album drop, or cultural moment before it hits the mainstream? We are looking for a creative, analytical, and results-driven Manager of Brand Marketing, Music to lead marketing strategy and execution for Hot Topic’s music category. This role is responsible for developing breakthrough campaigns and artist-focused initiatives that reinforce Hot Topic as the ultimate destination for music, fashion, and pop culture.

Reporting into Brand Marketing leadership, you will spearhead integrated product marketing strategies across multiple artist and music-related projects, partnering closely with internal stakeholders and external music industry partners. You will help build and launch innovative go-to-market plans that drive impressions, engagement, traffic, and sales—both in-store and digitally.

A successful candidate is a proactive problem solver with strong business acumen, exceptional communication skills, and the ability to lead multiple projects simultaneously in a fast-paced environment. 

Pay range

$80,000 - $100,000 a year

Please note the pay range for this position starts as listed in the job posting, but other factors such as an individual’s education, location, meeting the minimum job requirements for the role, training, and experience, will determine the final salary for potential new hires.

WHAT YOU'LL DO:

• Support the planning and execution of marketing initiatives for Hot Topic’s Music business, ensuring alignment with established brand vision, customer experience, and growth priorities.
• Develop and execute integrated marketing plans for artists and music-related product launches, including albums, merchandise, content drops, and live or experiential activations.
• Contribute creative ideas and campaign concepts, applying powerful storytelling, strong positioning, and culturally relevant creative direction.
• Responsible for campaign measurement and collaboration with the brand team.
• Lead campaign execution, including kick-offs, timelines, and cross-functional workflows to ensure marketing deliverables are completed on time and at scale.
• Partner cross-functionally with Promotions, Social Media, Influencer Marketing, CRM, Digital Advertising, Creative, Merchandising, Ecommerce, Store Ops, and Licensing to execute integrated and compliant campaigns. Coordinate brand marketing integrations across consumer-facing digital platforms, social channels, and in-store experiences
• Collaborate  with external partners across labels, management teams, distributors, licensors, and talent agencies to support campaign execution and activations.
• Identify marketing opportunities  and white space, and provide recommendations for external activations such as tour sponsorships, festival booths, and in-store events
• Track and report on campaign performance, leveraging metrics and insights to provide optimization opportunities and inform ROI-focused decision-making.
• Share campaign, progress, results, and learnings with stakeholders and leadership  to support continuous improvement.
• Regularly interface with artists, management, and music stakeholders to support alignment on commercial release plans, branding, and campaign execution.
• Collaborate with content and copy teams to ensure brand voice and messaging consistency across channels.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

• 5+ years of marketing experience, preferably within music, retail, brand, entertainment, or franchise marketing
• Experience working with record companies, artist management teams, talent agencies, or entertainment partners
• Strong understanding of artist development, streaming/digital business models, touring, festivals, and pop culture trends
• Proven ability to define and drive project management, execution, and cross-functional collaboration
• Creative thinker with a passion for innovative marketing ideas and cultural storytelling
• Excellent communication, writing, presentation, and stakeholder management skills
• Strong communication skills including ability to work in a team environment, give honest, direct feedback and is a solid verbal and written communicator
• Meets deadlines, prioritizes appropriately, copes well with change, and maintains composure under pressure
• Accountable for results, approaches obstacles proactively and looks for ways to resolve problems and issues
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), project management tools, and budget tracking/reconciliation
• Bachelor’s Degree required, preferably in Marketing or related field