Cindy Charles Passed Away Following Traffic Accident in The Netherlands

Twitch’s Head of Music and renowned digital music executive, Cindy Charles, tragically lost her life earlier this week in The Netherlands due to injuries sustained in a traffic accident. She was 69 years old.

The heartbreaking news was shared by her husband, Ricky Fishman, in a Facebook post on Tuesday. He expressed, “There will be no filling the hole in the universe left by Cindy’s departure from this world. She gave love and she received love, building a network of friends unrivaled by any person I have ever known. So many are grieving right now.”

Cindy Charles was instrumental in Twitch’s recent success, particularly in launching the platform’s new DJ category. Her efforts made Twitch the first platform to legally allow artists to livestream, secured through licensing agreements with all three major labels—Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music Entertainment—as well as indie labels through Merlin.

The Queens native was en route to a speaking engagement at the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) when the tragic accident occurred. She was scheduled to participate in a panel discussion on October 17, sharing her expertise with DJs using the platform.

“Most of the members of the Twitch community may not be familiar with Cindy’s work, but she has led our team in managing our relationships with the music industry. Cindy has a rich history in the music business and has been vital in fostering the strong connections we have today,” said Twitch CEO Daniel Clancy on LinkedIn. “Anyone who uses music on Twitch owes a debt of gratitude to Cindy’s work. She always had a bright smile on her face, even while negotiating groundbreaking music licensing agreements for Twitch, including the recent DJ agreement.”

“Every success, every setback, every moment of working toward our shared mission felt deeply personal because Cindy made it that way,” reflected Kira Karlstrom, Twitch’s Head of Music Label Relations, in a post on Medium. “She cared about her team with all her heart, and our work was an extension of that care.”

Cindy Charles had an illustrious career in the music industry that preceded her time at Twitch. She held roles at MediaNet, Viacom, and the interactive divisions of MTV, VH1, and CMT. Additionally, she operated her own digital media consulting firm. Cindy also served as an advisor to the Board of Governors of the Recording Academy and co-founded Women in Digital Media as well as the San Francisco chapter of She Is the Music. Before becoming the Head of Music at Twitch, she spent three years focusing on business development for Amazon Tickets and Amazon’s Video Shorts initiative.

She is survived by her husband, Ricky Fishman, her son, Ben Charles, and her stepson, Sam Fishman.

We at EDM Identity extend our heartfelt condolences to all those who knew and loved Cindy Charles during this challenging time.