Adam Vodofsky is a music agent and director of tour marketing at APA, one of the largest diversified talent agencies in the industry with offices in Beverly Hills, Nashville, New York, Atlanta, Toronto, and London. In his tour marketing role, Vodofsky oversees a large roster of music clients that includes Matoma, Brian Wilson, Azealia Banks, and CAKE in addition to a comedy roster that includes Lewis Black, Leslie Jones, and Tiffany Haddish to name just a few. As an agent, Vodofsky spearheaded APA’s signing of Korean hip-hop artists Epik High and AOMG, as well as K-pop superstar CL, which resulted in highly successful first-ever U.S. tours for all three artists in 2016. Vodofsky came to APA in 2014 from Live Nation where he worked as a marketing manager on arena and amphitheater shows via their North American Concerts division.

Andrew Hampp joined MAC Presents in 2015, and is focused on helping companies build industry-leading music strategies and experiences. His work with brand clients Citi and Bud Light has been recognized by the Clios and the Billboard Touring Awards, and artists he’s represented to brand partners include Chance The Rapper, Khalid, Andra Day, Wyclef Jean and Taylor Bennett, among many others.

Prior to joining MAC, Hampp spent four years as senior correspondent at Billboard, where he led coverage of music business, advertising and tech and interviewed notable personalities for cover stories. Hampp also spent five years at Advertising Age, including two as L.A. bureau chief, and has contributed stories to The Hollywood Reporter, Vulture.com, The Columbus Dispatch and Adweek. He has also appeared as a speaker on “Today,” “Good Morning America, “CBS Morning News, CBS Sunday Evening News, CNN, Bloomberg and CNBC.

Andrew Jackson is an artist manager with over 19 years’ experience in the music industry with a background in advertising. He is the Founding Director of Milton Archer – an artist management company that represents a handful of acts including streaming giant Matoma, legendary house duo The Aston Shuffle, and breakout artists BAYNK and FRND. Earlier in his career, he co-created releases that have sold over 2.5 million records in Australia in his time as A&R and General Manager for the Ministry of Sound business, and signed acts like Mylo, The Knife, Two Door Cinema Club and PNAU to his boutique imprint etcetc Music, through Universal Music Australia, and Disclosure’s debut EP to his vanity label Avoca Drive.

Blake Foster is the Head of Marketing for Big Beat Records, the dance/electronic imprint of Atlantic Records. He is responsible for guiding the careers of artists such as Skrillex, Matoma, David Guetta, Galantis, and more. Blake started his career as a drummer in a hardcore band where he learned the ropes of DIY marketing. In 2011 he joined the marketing department at Atlantic Records in New York City, before going on to his current position.

Brent Smith is a senior partner in WME’s music department. He represents a variety of artists including Big Sean, Calvin Harris, Childish Gambino, Drake, Frank Ocean, Ice Cube, James Blake, John Legend, Kendrick Lamar, Kid Cudi, Maroon 5, Miguel, Pharrell, Snoop Dogg, Tyler the Creator, and Wiz Khalifa.

Smith graduated from the University of Southern Maine. He got his start in the music industry after traveling to New York and meeting with legendary agent Ian Copeland of Frontier Booking International. He then joined the William Morris Agency in 1999 and transitioned to WME following the agency’s merger with Endeavor.

Bruno del Granado is an Agent at leading entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA), and represents many of the most accomplished musicians working in Latin music, including Maluma, Nicky Jam, and Luis Fonsi, among others.  Del Granado also represents Cisneros Media, and works across the agency helping to create opportunities for clients in the multicultural marketplace.

Del Granado joined CAA in 2013 from RM Entertainment Group, which he formed in partnership with Ricky Martin. He was an integral part of the team that orchestrated the joint venture between RM Entertainment Group and Zodiak Entertainment to establish RM 5to Elemento. This new company helped to spring board RM Entertainment in to the television space, by allowing it to sell and produce Zodiak Entertainment’s range of products to the Latin American and U.S. Hispanic markets.

Previously, del Granado founded Entertainment Media Factory, Inc., a music, television, and film production and programming company specializing in content for Latin America, Europe, and Asia. Prior to Entertainment Media Factory, Inc., he was the President of Maverick Recording Company’s Latin Division, where he signed and developed artists, such as Jorge Moreno, Chilean singer-songwriter Nicole, and Jose Padilla, among others, and Vice President of Programming for MTV LatAm. He has also served as a marketing advisor to Enrique Iglesias; spearheaded a music video channel for RTVE, Spain’s state-owned television network; and held senior executive positions at EMI Music Publishing and CBS/Sony.

In addition, del Granado was part of the Sky TV Latin America launch team and produced/hosted TV specials for CNN’s World Beat and The Music Room, VH-1’s Latin Explosion, Universal TV, and PolyGram TV. His film activities include executive producing and music supervising a number of projects, including Ricky Martin MTV Unplugged, Maverick Films/VH-1’s 30 DAYS UNTIL I’M FAMOUS and the critically-acclaimed documentary COCAINE COWBOYS.

New York Times bestselling author and hospitality entrepreneur, Chip Conley, at age 26, founded Joie de Vivre Hospitality (JdV), which became the 2nd largest boutique hotel brand in the world. Chip’s books share his theories on transformation and meaning in work and life. After 24 years as JdV’s CEO, he accepted an invitation from Airbnb’s founders to help transform their start-up into the world’s largest hospitality brand. As Head of Global Hospitality & Strategy, Chip taught his methods to hundreds of thousands of hosts and created the Airbnb Open. He is the founder of Fest300 (now Everfest) featuring the world’s best festivals. The recipient of hospitality’s highest honor, the Pioneer Award, Chip holds a BA and MBA from Stanford University, an honorary doctorate in psychology from Saybrook University, and serves on the boards of the Burning Man Project and the Esalen Institute.

Dan Berkowitz is a firm believer in the transformative power of music and is dedicated to creating experiences that are immersive, unforgettable and seamless. Dan started in the music business handing out flyers for his favorite bands while laying the groundwork for CID Entertainment, which he founded in 2007

Under his leadership, the company has expanded from a one-man operation to a team of more than 70 hardworking, passionate, caring individuals. Headquartered in Philadelphia with offices in Denver and Nashville, CID Entertainment offers enhanced live music and travel experiences at a wide array of events, festivals and tours worldwide.

CID partners include Coachella, Bonnaroo, Metallica, MUSE, Blake Shelton, Imagine Dragons, My Morning Jacket and Kendrick Lamar, among others. In 2015, the company launched CID Presents, a boutique event production branch of the company that offers superfans once-in-a-lifetime music destination events, including Luke Bryan’s Crash My Playa and Phish: Riviera Maya.

As executive vice president of MSG Live, Darren Pfeffer oversees The Madison Square Garden Company’s (MSG) live entertainment events and sets the strategic direction for MSG’s bookings, which includes exploring opportunities to develop new signature events, artist residencies and unique experiences for MSG’s customers. MSG’s live entertainment portfolio includes an array of concerts, family shows, performing arts and special events that are presented or hosted in the Company’s diverse collection of venues. Those venues are: Madison Square Garden, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, the Forum, The Chicago Theatre and the Wang Theatre. MSG also produces outdoor festivals through Boston Calling Events, the entertainment production company responsible for New England’s premier music festival – Boston Calling.

Prior to joining MSG in 2017, Mr. Pfeffer spent more than two decades at iHeartMedia, a leading media and entertainment company, in roles of increasing responsibility.  Most recently, he served as senior vice president of Music and Entertainment Marketing, where he was responsible for overseeing all strategic, operational and promotional aspects of more than 160 iHeartMedia events, including high-profile properties such as the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas, the iHeartCountry Festival and the iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina.  Starting in 2006, Mr. Pfeffer served as executive producer of Z100’s Jingle Ball, turning the annual holiday concert into an iconic New York City event that is nationally televised on The CW Network.  He also oversaw the multi-market iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour, which included stops in Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago and Miami. His experience at iHeartMedia also included spearheading the Company’s B2B event strategy and creating exceptional live experiences at key industry events around the world for leading brands. Mr. Pfeffer began his career at iHeartMedia in 1995 as an intern.

Ferry Rais-Shaghaghi is a music agent at APA, one of the largest diversified talent agencies in the industry with offices in Beverly Hills, Nashville, New York, Atlanta, Toronto, and London. Based in APA’s electronic music department’s office in Beverly Hills, Ferry Rais-Shaghaghi’s roster includes streaming powerhouse electronic producers Matoma and Martin Jensen, along with up-and-coming electronic artists such as Crankdat and Two Friends. Ferry originally launched his music industry career by starting a company called MSH Sessions, which specialized in producing an average of 150 arena-sized concerts and club shows in Western Canada per year for a wide range of well-known artists. Through his work at MSH, Ferry was largely recognized for his influential role in introducing Dubstep and Bass into Canada’s mainstream music scene.

Gail Mitchell serves as Billboard’s senior correspondent covering R&B/hip-hop and music industry news for the magazine and online. Mitchell has moderated panels and Q&A’s for industry organizations such as ASCAP, BMI, the Recording Academy and the Grammy Museum. She has also represented Billboard in stories and broadcast interviews for various media outlets including CNN Entertainment, CNN.com, CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Tonight with Don Lemon, NBC’s Today Show, CBS This Morning, CBS News Radio, MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show, PBS’s Charlie Rose, USA Today, E! True Hollywood Story, E! News, TV Guide Network, MSNBC, CNBC, ABCnews.com, BET, Centric, TV One, A&E, Extra, Reelz, BBC Television and Japan’s WOWOW TV. Mitchell holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles. Her music industry service also includes two terms as a national trustee representing the Los Angeles chapter of the Recording Academy.

One of the most respected executives in the entertainment industry, Jay Marciano is a member of the six-member committee that constitutes AEG’s Office of the Chairman. In this role, Marciano, who himself reports to AEG’s President & CEO, is responsible for overall operational oversight of all of the company’s holdings with specific day-to-day focus on the AEG Presents, AEG Facilities and AEG Digital (including the AXS platform) divisions.

Capitalizing on his experience in the live entertainment industry as well as his vast knowledge of the venue and facilities industry, Marciano provides not only operational guidance to the divisions but successfully oversees the growth strategies for these entities while developing their synergies to increase revenue and create new programming opportunities.

In March, 2013, Marciano was named Chairman and CEO of AEG Presents (then, AEG Live) where he has overseen the continued growth of AEG’s global, live entertainment division.  Since then through both acquisition and organic growth, the number of AEG Presents’ venues has nearly doubled more than 70 while company affiliated festivals has also doubled to more than 40 including Desert Trip, Arroyo Seco weekend and Hyde Park which all launched under Marciano.   Now with 19 regional offices, AEG Presents continues to be worldwide leaders in concert tours with recent international tours starring The Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Katy Perry, Paul McCartney, The Who and Justin Bieber among others.

Having re-joined AEG in 2011 as President and CEO of AEG Europe from his previous role as President of New York-based Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSGE), Marciano was able to utilize his extensive live entertainment and facilities experience to oversee all activity in the European region incorporating AEG Facilities’ 20 music and entertainment venues located in nine European markets, including: The O2, London; Mercedes-Benz Arena, Berlin; Barclaycard Arena, Hamburg; Ericsson Globe, Stockholm; SECC New National Arena, Glasgow; Ahoy Rotterdam and Accor Hotels Arena in Paris.  While based in London, Marciano also oversaw the acquisitions of the Eventime Apollo theater and Wembley Arena as well as the creation of the Barclaycard British Summer Time concert series.

During his six years with MSGE, Jay oversaw bookings, productions and operations at world renowned venues including Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, the Beacon Theatre and the Chicago Theatre. He also directed the growth initiative for the company resulting in numerous acquisitions and partnerships.

Prior to joining AEG, Marciano spent 18 years at Universal Concerts in a variety of positions ultimately as president and CEO of the company.  Marciano previously served as Chief Strategy Officer at AEG Live in Los Angeles from March, 2003 to March, 2005 where he was responsible for the development and overall operations of AEG Live’s regional offices and the company’s music festival division including the acquisition of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival as well as being part of the team responsible for conceiving and designing The O2.

John Pantle is Vice President in the Concerts department at APA, one of the largest diversified talent agencies in the industry.  His client roster includes Hatsune Miku, Julieta Venegas, Kinky, Ile, Natalia Lafourcade, Maldita Vecindad, Molotov, Mon Laferte, Natalia Lafourcade, Perfume, Public Enemy, Radwimps, Reik, Residente, Run DMC, Sekai No Owari, World of Dance Live! and Zoe.

Pantle started his career in 1999 as an indie promoter in Orange County before becoming the talent buyer at House of Blues Los Angeles where he later became Head of Development for the HOB Club Network, overseeing direct booking, industry relations and talent procurement for more than 2,500 events for clients that included Disney and Microsoft.

In 2004, Pantle joined The Agency Group where he developed national and international tours for several artists including Pit Bull, Café Tacvba, and many others.   In 2007, he joined UTA where he did the same for artists including Calle 13 and Pepe Aguilar.

Karyn Spencer was a talent agent in Hollywood when she received an interesting offer from Ashton Kutcher: give up her job, her assistant, and become his assistant. She took the leap, and spent the next five years helping him build Katalyst, a production company for film, TV, and digital media.

Karyn was promoted to VP of Production at Katalyst, but her attentions were diverted away from film and towards social media when Ashton launched his quest to become the first person on Twitter to reach 1 million followers. There was no turning back once the doors to the internet were opened. 

She went on to lead social initiatives for startups and celebrities like 50 Cent and Tyra Banks. As the VP of Brands at the Audience, a multichannel publisher founded by Sean Parker, Ari Emanuel and Oliver Luckett, she brought influencers and brands together to amplify their communications. As the Creator Development Lead at Twitter for Vine, she shepherded Vine stars around the globe into unforgettable content opportunities, like creating Vines at the White House with Michelle Obama. 

Now as the VP of Creator Lab at AT&T, Karyn leads talent partnerships with digital creators and traditional celebrities.  

Louis Messina promotes the tours of heavy-hitters such as Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Shawn Mendes, Ed Sheeran, Blake Shelton, George Strait, and Taylor Swift. Over his forty year career he has worked with acts like the Dixie Chicks, Led Zeppelin, Ozzy Osbourne and Metallica. He is known for special events such as Strait’s final sellout show at ATT Stadium The Cowboy Rides Away with over 104,000 tickets sold and Swift’s record-breaking sold out concerts at the Staples Center during her 1989 World Tour.

In 1975 Messina co-founded PACE Concerts in Houston. As the company evolved from PACE Concerts to SFX on to Clear Channel Entertainment, Messina established himself as one of the country’s preeminent promoters. In 2001 he started his own company and began his partnership with AEG Live.

He has received numerous “Promoter of the Year” awards and has been listed as one of Billboard Magazine’s Power 100 and Billboard’s Nashville Top 50 Power Players.

Lou Taylor has been a dominate leader in the business management industry for the last 25 years, sitting at the head of Tri Star Sports & Entertainment Group. Taylor has built an environment where she, her staff and clients, could have the freedom to succeed without limitations. She understands that this business is ever-evolving and that her practices must be forward-thinking. Taylor has been instrumental in the development of brands attached to clients like Florida Georgia Line and Gwen Stefani. She is responsible for bringing Britney Spears’ and Jennifer Lopez’s residencies to Vegas and continues to play an active role.

Taylor works to ensure her clients are financially healthy both during and beyond their careers. Lou’s motto for success is, “you need to have the right place, the right people, and the right plan.’

Taylor has been recognized in Billboard’s “Top Business Managers” (2016 &2017), and “Women in Music” (2016).

Tom Straete Lagergren a.k.a. Matoma is a 25 year old Norwegian electronic producer who in just two short years has amassed over 1 billion streams and is consistently one of the top 100 most streamed artists in the world. His breakout release was the RIAA Gold-Certified single “Old Thing Back” with The Notorious B.I.G. – this was the first of many genre-bending collaborations that have since included Jason Derulo, Akon, Popcaan, Wale, Sean Paul, Becky Hill, and The Vamps. In a short space of time Matoma has performed at some of the largest festivals in the world including Tomorrowland, Lollapalooza, Life is Beautiful, and Coachella, as well as sold out headline shows in 2,000 – 3,000 capacity venues not just at home in Norway but in major US markets like NYC, Boston, and San Francisco.

In 2015 Michel Vega co-founded Magnus Media, LLC in partnership with Marc Anthony, and currently serves as its Chief Executive Officer. In this role Mr. Vega oversees all operating units of the diversified entertainment and sports enterprise, which include an artist and athlete management division, recording label, music publishing company, television and digital content studio, and an entertainment-centric marketing practice. His responsibilities include strategic and financial planning, acquisition and development of new business interests, as well as overseeing all day-to-day operations.

For the previous 15 years Mr. Vega was the Head of the Latin Music Department and a Talent Agent for WME, the largest talent agency in the world. In 2003 he co-founded the newest William Morris office in thirty years, in Miami, making history as the first major talent agency to open a full service office dedicated to the Hispanic market. At the agency, he established the most prestigious roster of Latin artists in the industry, personally representing dozens of the genre’s most successful artists including Alejandro Sanz, J Balvin, Juan Luis Guerra, J Balvin, Juanes, Luis Miguel, Paulina Rubio, Pepe Aguilar, Pitbull, and Prince Royce, among many others.

Prior to his tenure at WME, Mr. Vega spent more than a decade as a Theatrical Booking Agent, overseeing the representation of more than 100 Broadway tours and family and variety shows. It was during this time that he represented David Copperfield, the highest ticket selling solo entertainer of all time.

Mr. Vega began his work in the Latin music and culture industries in 1989, serving as manager for legendary bandleader Mario Bauzá, whose career resurgence he orchestrated. In 1996 he produced the US tour of the Cuban National Folkloric Dance Ensemble which, at the time, was the largest cultural exchange between Cuba and the US in over thirty years.

He worked in the Artist and Repertoire Department at EMI and Blue Note Records in New York in the late 1980s. Prior to that, Mr. Vega’s career had begun in the music business in 1986 as a Production Assistant for New Audiences, a New York concert production company. There he worked with such luminaries as Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Sarah Vaughan, and Sonny Rollins.

Omar Al-joulani is a Senior Vice President of North American Touring at Live Nation.

Al-joulani, who has been with the company for nearly a decade, has engineered momentous, top-grossing tours in the worlds of rock, pop, hip-hop, and EDM.  In 2016 he orchestrated the touring strategies for the Bad Boy 20^th Anniversary, Kanye West, Florence + The Machine, G-Eazy, Kygo, and more. Al-joulani is also responsible for introducing the first Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience tour, which brought the music for HBO’s mega-hit series to 28 arenas across North America.

Most recently he has managed superstar deals for acts including Jay-Z’s 4:44 arena tour, The Weeknd’s Starboy: Legend of the Fall 2017 World Tour, and Imagine Dragons’s Evolve Tour, among others.

 Robert Gibbs is a Partner/Senior music agent at ICM Partners, a talent and literary agency representing clients in the fields of motion pictures, television, publishing, music, theater, branded entertainment and digital media.  ICM Partners, a privately held corporation, is one of the predominant agencies in the United States and Europe, with its principal offices in Los Angeles, New York and London.

Mr. Gibbs represents an extensive client list that includes, J.COLE, PartyNextDoor, H.E.R., JEEZY, BAS, ARI LENNOX, COZZ, J.I.D, RO JAMES, MARC E. BASSY, ROY WOOD$ in addition to working on several client teams with colleagues within the agency.

Gibbs was named Partner at the agency earlier this year and has been a crucial piece along with several key teammates in growing the Urban/Pop Contemporary department since joining the agency in 2006.

Prior to joining ICM Partner’s music division, Mr. Gibbs was an agent at Creative Artists Agency (CAA).  Mr. Gibbs started his career at the age of 19 working at a boutique music agency in Philadelphia and then in Atlanta.  Mr. Gibbs was recruited by CAA in 2001 while in Atlanta.

Originally from Ann Arbor, MI, Mr. Gibbs graduated from The Art Institute of Philadelphia.

Sam Hunt is an agent at the Paradigm Talent Agency, handling clients such as Major Lazer/Diplo, Flying Lotus, A-Trak, Chromeo, Run the Jewels, Jamie xx, and more.

He is based in Oakland, California and has been with the Windish Agency since 2004.

TOM WINDISH is the founder of The Windish Agency, a three-time winner of Pollstar’s Independent Agency of the Year Award. Prior to joining Paradigm in 2017, Windish had grown The Windish Agency from his Chicago apartment with two employees to more than 80 employees with offices in six cities.

He is known for developing the touring careers of  such artists as Lorde, alt-J, The xx and Hot Chip. Working with these musicians from the early days of their careers, Windish has seen clients grow from playing small local venues to dominating stages at major festivals like Coachella, Lollapalooza and Electric Daisy Carnival. Many have earned Grammy nominations and wins.

Windish lead the agent team that developed Lorde’s Melodrama World Tour, which played to sold-out crowds at Coachella, Governor’s Ball, among many others.  The album itself hit number one on the Billboard Top 200 Chart.

He has been recognized on Billboard’s Power 100 list both individually and as a member of Paradigm’s Music Executive Group in 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017.

Ty Stiklorius is the founder and CEO of Friends At Work, a media and impact agency that partners with leading artists and thinkers. FAW launched in 2015 and manages artists and influencers including John Legend, Lindsey Stirling, Fletcher and Madame Gandhi.

Alongside Legend and Mike Jackson, Ty is one of the principals of Get Lifted Film Co., production company based in Los Angeles. Under the Get Lifted banner, the trio has served as Executive Producers on the HBO documentary “Southern Rites,” WGN’s hit series “Underground” and the award-winning film “LaLa Land.” Ty’s work with John Legend began in 2006 with JL Ventures, where she created artist-focused strategies for innovation and social impact. Fast Company recognized her work when she was named 30th most creative in their 2017 Most Creative People issue for combining traditional management services with social activism.

Next came The Show Me Campaign, advocating quality education for all. In 2015, Ty and Legend started the #FREEAMERICA campaign to shift the national conversation around incarceration policies. Ty is co-founder of Prosecutor Impact, highlighting the power of prosecutors to shape judicial outcomes. Ty earned an MBA from The Wharton School of Business and a BA from The University of Pennsylvania. She serves on the board of LIFT Communities, a national non-profit dedicated to helping families break the cycle of poverty. Ty is also on the board of LRNG, which works to redesign learning so all youth have the opportunity to succeed.

Mitch Rose is Co-Head of Contemporary Music at leading entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA).  Rose represents many of the world’s most prominent and talented artists, serving as a consultant on their overall brand strategy and career trajectory. He has helped expand the reach and service of CAA’s music department to clients through marketing, tour sponsorship, and corporate consulting.  Rose works with an array of artists, including Katy Perry, Harry Styles, Bill Maher, KISS, Harry Connick, Jr., Journey, Hailee Steinfeld, Matchbox 20, among others.

In 1982, Rose joined CAA as a trainee in the mailroom and was promoted to agent two years later.  Over the course of his more than 30-year career at the agency, he has been instrumental in building CAA’s music department into the dominant industry leader.

Jim Cressman, founder and President of Invictus Entertainment Group Inc., has been in the music industry in some capacity since the time he was sixteen and convinced his local radio station to let him do on air shifts.

In 2011, Invictus Entertainment Group was born out of the intention to build a team that was consistently immersed in education and evolution to bring the utmost value to it’s customers and clients. As a result of that intention, Invictus has become the premier catalyst for merging arts, culture and commerce. A collective of elite experts in the entertainment industry offering an extensive spectrum of services, with over 700 promoted and produced shows yearly. The immaculate reputation of Invictus has also fostered their reputation as one of Canada’s premiere talent buyers for festivals and special events. Five-time CCMA Talent Buyer/Promoter of the year and one of the most respected brands in Canada.

Dina LaPolt, Esq. is the owner of LaPolt Law, P.C., a boutique transactional entertainment law firm in Los Angeles that specializes in representing music creators.  She is an expert at strategizing and solving complex and sophisticated legal and business issues relating to contracts, copyrights, trademarks, rights of publicity, and litigation.

In addition to practicing law, Dina serves as an activist for the broader music creator community in Washington, D.C., often becoming involved in legislative matters that affect their rights.  She is one of the attorney advisors to the GRAMMY Creators Alliance and Songwriters of North America (SONA).

Dina was named to both the Hollywood Reporter’s Power Lawyers 2015 and 2016 Top Music Business Attorneys and Billboard’s Music’s Most Powerful Attorneys.  She teaches a course entitled “Legal and Practical Aspects of the Music Business” at the UCLA Extension Program, and has since 2001, and served as the editor of Building Your Artist’s Brand as a Business, published by the International Association of Entertainment Lawyers in 2012.    Follow Dina on Twitter @DinaLaPolt and @LaPoltLaw.

As Chief Executive Officer of Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, Brett Yormark oversees the business enterprise that manages and controls the Brooklyn Nets, Barclays Center, the New York Islanders business operations, NYCB LIVE, home of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, LIU Brooklyn Paramount Theatre, Webster Hall, and the Nets’ NBA G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets. Yormark is a member of the Board of Advisory Directors for both the Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center. Alongside Charlie Walk of the Republic Group, Yormark co-founded the BSE Advisory Board, which provides strategic guidance and supports development initiatives and unique content opportunities for Barclays Center.

Since its grand opening in September 2012, Yormark has had oversight for all facets of Barclays Center, including operations, event programming, sales, and marketing. In January 2007, Yormark secured a 20-year strategic marketing partnership with Barclays, which includes the naming rights to Barclays Center.

As The Marketing Arm’s (TMA) President of Music and Chief Innovation Officer, Larry’s primary role is helping the agency and its clients, 150 of the world’s largest brands, utilize music and emerging technology to smartly engage with their customers.

Larry came to The Marketing Arm in 2011 when TMA’s parent company, Omnicom, purchased the company he co-founded, social media marketing pioneers, Fanscape. His inspiration for creating Fanscape in 1998 was recognizing a void in how consumers were interacting with the musicians, celebrities, and brands they loved and knowing that the Internet would soon bridge that gap. As such he created what would become the first social media marketing agency. Originally rooted in music, Fanscape grew to provide social and digital media guidance for all forms of entertainment and consumer brands.

Prior to his founding Fanscape, Larry was a well-known music industry veteran, specializing in artist management, album production, music & tour marketing and concert promotion. In 1994, he became the Vice-President of Artist Development / Artist Relations at A&M Records, expanding the careers of musicians including Sheryl Crow, Gin Blossoms, Blues Traveler, Soundgarden, and more. For many years Larry also operated a personal management firm representing multi-platinum artists Korn, The Offspring, Social Distortion, and Taking Back Sunday.

Darin Lashinsky, a Los Angeles native and third generation concert promoter, is the CEO of National Shows 2, LLC (NS2). In 1998, Lashinsky helped launch Outback Concerts and later became the Sr. Vice President until he left in 2010 to form NS2 with business partners Larry and Fred Frank, of Frank Productions, Inc.

Prior to his 12-year stint at Outback Concerts, Lashinsky spent 6 years working at his father’s Nashville based concert promotion company.  NS2 pays homage to the original National Shows, which was owned and operated by his late father, Philip, and uncle Gary.

Lashinsky has promoted artists of all music genres including: Kings of Leon, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Tim McGraw & Faith Hill, Avenged Sevenfold, Alan Jackson, Keith Urban, Aerosmith, Aretha Franklin, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Muse, Zac Brown Band, Metallica, John Prine, Green Day, Motley Crue, The Black Keys, Dolly Parton, Jason Isbell, KISS and many more.

NS2, together with partner Frank Productions, Inc. of Madison, WI, has promoted numerous artist’s arena tours throughout the country including: Brantley Gilbert, Eric Church, Five Finger Death Punch, Avenged Sevenfold, Cage the Elephant, KISS and Shinedown/Breaking Benjamin. 

Lashinsky served on the Country Music Association Board of Directors in 2013 and 2014 and currently serves on the IEBA Board of Directors. He has been nominated four times for the Academy of Country Music “Promoter of the Year Award,” as well as the “Pollstar Bill Graham Promoter of the Year Award” from 2011-2016. He was also nominated for the International Entertainment Buyers Association “Promoter of the Year” award from 2012-2015 and received the award in 2016. Lashinsky is a 2006 Leadership Music alumnus and he participates each year in various panel discussions for conferences such as IEBA, Pollstar, IAVM, Leadership Music and Billboard.

Lashinsky continues to be active in the community and supports several charitable and non-profit organizations, including the Nashville Humane Association.

Lee Anderson is an Agent and part of the Music Executive Group at Paradigm. He is a driving force behind the success of the agency, representing artists including Skrillex, Zedd, Disclosure, SBTRKT, and Jacob Banks. Lee is also overseeing the growth of Paradigm’s hip-hop roster, booking Gucci Mane, and continuing to develop DJ Mustard into one of the most in-demand live performers around, as well as shepherding breakthrough artists like MadeinTYO and Stormzy.

Lee has twice been featured in Billboard’s “40 Under 40” list, as well as twice making their “Dance Power Players” list. He has also been nominated for Pollstar’s Bobby Brooks Award for Agent of the Year.

He has nearly fifteen years of experience in the live music industry. Starting out as a music lover with a desire to create great events, he took on an internship booking shows while studying marketing at Champlain College in Vermont, which ultimately led to him launching his own concert production company. After six years of promoting concerts in the northeastern U.S., Lee joined boutique dance music agency AM Only in 2008. He rose to the level of vice president at AM Only, which was acquired by Paradigm in 2012 and came under the Paradigm name in 2017.

With a passion and focus on Artist Development, agent Cheryl Paglierani has knack for finding talent early on and building it from the ground up. At UTA, she has overseen and developed the touring careers of rising superstar clients including Post Malone, whose entire 34 city “Stoney” tour recently sold out, and whose album “Stoney,” has totaled more than 3 billion streams, yielded 3 platinum/2 multi-platinum singles. Paglierani also represents 21 Savage, whose single “Bank Account” hit at #1 on the Spotify and Apple Music’s charts. Other noteworthy clients include internet sensation Rich Chigga, Jazz Cartier, and newcomer Saint JHN.

Paglierani has been with UTA since the acquisition of the Agency Group in 2015 (she was at TAG since 2014). Previously, Paglierani was an agent with CAA from 2012 to 2014 and with William Morris Endeavor from 2008 to 2012.

She is a graduate of the University of New Haven.

CORRIE CHRISTOPHER MARTIN is renowned for identifying and developing artists. Whether that be alternative rock superstars Imagine Dragons, melodic hardcore favorite Rise Against, or hip-hop rebel K.Flay, Corrie books artists that fans don’t just listen to, but are inspired by. Her current roster also includes Dirty Heads, Descendents, Sir Sly and R.LUM.R.

In August 2017, Corrie produced the LoveLoud Festival in Orem, Utah with Dragons front man Dan Reynolds. The sold-out show supported Utah’s LGBTQ youth, bringing awareness to the state’s high suicide rates among teens. As a partner in Riot Fest, Corrie was involved in booking the Jawbreaker reunion that headlined this year’s festival, marking the first time the band has played together in 21 years.

She serves as a mentor within her team at Paradigm, encouraging young agents to work hard for the artists they believe in.

Nick Farkas has been booking shows in his hometown of Montreal for over 25 years. He started with punk and metal acts in the late 1980’s, eventually co-founding Greenland Productions in 1993. Four years later, he was recruited by legendary Montreal promoter Donald K. Donald. Nick worked for DKD from 1997 to 2002; over this 5 year period the company merged into DKD/Universal, then Universal Concerts Canada and finally House of Blues Concerts Canada. For the past fifteen years, Nick has headed the Talent Buying division of evenko (formerly Gillett Entertainment Group), which books over 1,200 shows a year in venues ranging from small clubs to arenas and large outdoor venues, in Montreal, Quebec, Atlantic Canada and Vermont. He is also oversees all of the evenko festivals, Osheaga, Heavy Montreal, IleSoniq, Yul Eat and ‘77 which all take place in Montreal.

Rich Schaefer launched LoyalT Management in January of 2017 with his partner and longtime friend Rich Cohen.  Our current roster (www.loyaltmgmt.com) includes Animal Collective, Brian Fallon, The Gaslight Anthem, Chromeo, Lord Huron, Passion Pit, Sigrid, Aurora, Wet and several other incredible acts. Schaefer has also worked with Soundgarden since they reunited in 2010 and has overseen all of their touring over the last 8 years.  Prior to LoyalT, Schaefer was a partner at Mick Management and the President of The Artists Organization where he worked with such clients as John Legend, Lenny Kravitz, Counting Crows and more. Prior to joining TAO, Rich was a Manager from 2001 to 2008 at Hoffman Entertainment a NY-based management company for John Mellencamp, Jessica Simpson and Ricky Martin.

2006 – Present – Live Nation Entertainment acquired House of Blues Concerts and responsibilities continued to expand in booking talent, communicating with agents and artist management to identify tours.  Interfacing with talent buyers across the country and national touring team to maximize booking opportunities with our alliances internationally and routing of talent across the country.   Oversee all aspects of marketing to include press announcements, ad mats, on sales and continued sales through show date.

Instrumental in the growth of Latin bookings of recording artists such as Vicente Fernandez, Alejandro Fernandez, Shakira, Enrique Iglesias, Juan Gabriel, Mana, Luis Miguel, Ricardo Arjona, Marc Anthony, Jennifer Lopez, Gabriel Iglesias, George Lopez, Celia Cruz, Rocio Durcal, Tito Puente, Pepe Aguilar, Marc Anthony, Chayanne, Juanes, Menudo, Ricky Martin, Ramon Ayala, Banda Recodo, Los Tigres del Norte, Café Tacuba, Thalia, Paulina Rubio, Intocable, Gerardo Ortiz, Don Omar, Daddy Yankee, Yandel.

Don Strasburg has over 25 years of experience as a promoter, venue operator, and owner. He is Co-President of AEG Presents Rocky Mountains and Pacific Northwest, promoting events at the Bluebird Theater, Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater, Gothic Theatre, Ogden Theatre, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, 1stbank Center, Pepsi Center, and additional venues in Colorado, as well as venues in Utah. Don started promoting concerts while attending Colorado College. His first shows were with a then relatively unknown but up-and-coming band called Phish. While finishing college, he put together a team and opened Boulder’s Fox Theatre in 1992. Don oversaw operations and handled all booking, quickly elevating the Fox to one of the most successful music clubs in the region. In 1998, Don joined Chuck Morris to help with promoting duties of the newly formed Chuck Morris Presents. Chuck, Don, and Brent Fedrizzi together started the AEG Live Rocky Mountain office in 2007 and last year expanded their oversight to the Pacific Northwest. As a board member of two charitable organizations, Headcount and The Conscious Alliance, Don is committed to voter registration efforts, providing meals for those in need, and poverty on American Indian reservations.

Eric Milhouse is the Director of Talent for Nederlander Concerts and promotes live entertainment across the country.  Milhouse programs Nederlander’s core roster of Northern California venues including the City National Civic of San Jose, Vina Robles Amphitheatre in Paso Robles and Papa Murphy’s Park in Sacramento as well as third-party facilities such as The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles and The Theatre at ACE Hotel, among others.

Prior to Nederlander, he worked for Goldenvoice / AEG Live, booking acts at Club Nokia at LA Live and The Fox Theater Pomona. Milhouse also served as Talent Buyer for the Belly Up in Solana Beach and the Glass House in Pomona.

Maura Gibson is President of Front Gate Tickets, the Ticketmaster owned, Austin, TX-based leader in festival ticketing.  Supporting the major market-share the world’s top music festivals including EDC, Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits Music Festival, BottleRock and countless others, Front Gate is the only turnkey ticketing solution for ecommerce, digital marketing, onsite support, customer service, fulfillment, RFID access control, experiential marketing RFID activations, cashless technology and performance analytics.

Gibson began her career promoting bands in Lincoln, Nebraska.  She spent the 90’s working for a variety of promoters and ticketing companies in the Midwest, landing at Live Nation in 1997 (then, Contemporary Group/SFX).  In 2005, as VP of Ticketing, Gibson was a key player in LN’s transition to its in-house solution, Live Nation Tickets.  In 2009, Gibson was handpicked by “the Charlies” to lead ticketing efforts at C3 Presents and in 2012; Gibson was named President of Front Gate Tickets.

David Marcus is EVP, Head of Music for Ticketmaster, where he is responsible for the company’s largest business segment selling more than 60M concert tickets annually. Before joining Ticketmaster, Marcus was Chief Commercial Officer at ScoreBig, the country’s first name-your-own-price ticketing platform. Before Scorebig, Marcus spent 4 years as Warner Music Group’s SVP, Worldwide Artist Services, where he had direct oversight for the development of new lines of business for the music group, including global touring, ticketing, merchandising, and e-commerce.  Previously, he was SVP, Global Music at Ticketmaster, LLC, where he built and led an international team that provided sales and marketing strategy and operational support to touring musical artists.  Marcus began his career as an entertainment and intellectual property attorney at O’Melveny & Myers.

Reggie Watts is an internationally renowned vocal artist/ beatboxer/ musician/ comedian who wows audiences with his live performances which are 100% improvised.  Using his formidable voice, looping pedals, and his vast imagination, Reggie blends and blurs the lines between music and comedy.  No two performances are the same and to that end, ”genius” is the word most often used to describe Reggie Watts.  LA Weekly crowned him ”the most wildly inventive new talent of the past five years” while New York Magazine hailed Reggie as “Spectacularly original,” Rolling Stone featured him as “Hot Comedian,” SPIN named him as “Best New Comedian” and the LA Times praised Reggie is “a superstar.” Rolling Stone also listed him as one of the “50 best stand-up comics of all time”.

As a solo performer, Reggie was handpicked by Conan O’Brien to open nightly on Conan’s sold out North American “Prohibited From Being Funny on Television” tour. Reggie released his debut comedy cd/dvd ‘Why $#!+ So Crazy?’ on Comedy Central Records in May 2010 and it was made available on Netflix June 2013.  At the invitation of Jack White, Reggie recorded ‘Reggie Watts Live at Third Man Records,’ now available in limited edition vinyl. Reggie has performed sold out headlining tours in the US and Europe, performed sets at Bonnaroo, SXSW, Bumbershoot and more.  At the prestigious TED Conference he received a standing ovation.  He recorded his facinatingly sublime original score to the Ridley Scott film “Legend” to a sold out house at SF Sketchfest and made the soundtrack available for free download online. ‘Reggie Watts:  A Live At Central Park’ is out on cd/dvd via Comedy Central Records.  He is a founding member of JASH.com which launched Spring 2013 with fellow founders Michael Cera, Sarah Silverman and Tim and Eric. Many of his original videos have gone viral.

As a musician, Reggie can be seen as musical co-hort in the IFC series “Comedy Bang! Bang!” and in his many “Reggie Makes Music” videos.  He joined LCD Soundsystem as guest onstage at the final NY shows and he appears in the documentary “Shut Up And Play The Hits.”  Reggie also sang on Regina Spektor’s “Dance Anthem of the 80s” and toured Europe with her, toured the US with DEVO, was featured in Hot Chip’s “Night and Day” video and recorded an original session for the Daytrotter series.  As the frontman for Seattle rock outfit Maktub, Reggie and his band released five albums.  Reggie composed original music for “Louie” on FX and performed the theme song for “Comedy Bang! Bang!”

On screen, Reggie co-stars in the IFC series “Comedy Bang! Bang!”  His special “Reggie Watts:  A Live At Central Park” aired on Comedy Central in May 2012.  He also has appeared multiple times on Conan, and on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel Live, John Oliver’s Stand-Up New York, HBO’s The Yes Men Save The World, IFC, Comedy Central’s Michael and Michael Have Issues, UK’s “Funny Or Die,” and PBS’ Electric Company. Spring of 2015, Reggie Watts will be taking on the role of bandleader on CBS’ Late Late Show with James Corden, premiering March 23, 2015. His stand-up special “Spatial” is currently available on Netflix.

With over ten years of experience in the ticketing industry, including co-founding Eventellect, Patrick prides himself on providing proven, expert service to sports teams as well as select entertainment companies.

Eventellect, combining proprietary software and unparalleled experience, helps content rights holders build custom strategies as it pertains to ticket distribution and pricing to accomplish their revenue and attendance goals.

Eventellect’s ability to deliver for its partners is reflected in the firm’s growth. The company has been recognized by the INC Magazine as one of the top 5000 fastest-growing privately held US companies for seven consecutive years.

Patrick has appeared on ABC News, CNN and ESPN as a ticketing expert to discuss market trends and prices. He lives in Houston, where the company is based, and is a 2003 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.

Blythe Scokin started her career in entertainment working at William Morris Endeavor. While at WME | IMG, she worked on film, music, and fashion projects, as well as marketing opportunities for various artists such as Tyler the Creator, Alicia Keys, fashion house Rodarte, and F1 driver Lewis Hamilton.

The industry soon took notice of her “wise-beyond-her-years” sensibility and sharp acumen and she was tapped to joined Ty Stiklorius’ newly formed Friends at Work management and social impact firm.  Blythe has signed acts Ciara and up & comer FLETCHER, as well brokered Ciara’s new record deal with Warner Brothers.

She has worked closely with organizations I AM THAT GIRL, Girl Up, and The United State of Women to provide marketing expertise, strategy, and music talent. She is also a member of the Obama administration’s Creative Alliance team. Blythe is passionate about helping artists and thought-leaders unlock their creative potential across all platforms in order to make their vision become a reality.

Chelsea Briggs is the on-air host and producer for the global music news and charts brand Billboard.com — responsible for hosting and producing daily videos as part of the Billboard News team. As one of Billboard’s main on-air correspondents Chelsea interviews chart topping artists on behalf of the brand as well as covers music festivals and award show red carpets.

A force both on-camera and behind-the-scenes, Chelsea started out in the industry by building her own successful digital entertainment news company/ brand, Hollywire TV.

During her career as a host, Chelsea has interviewed the biggest names in the business including Madonna, Jennifer Lopez, Justin Timberlake, Justin Bieber, Pharrell, One Direction and Ed Sheeran just to name a few.

With over 8 years experience, Chelsea has also worked on a number of music related shows for Dick Clark Productions.  In 2016, she kicked off the year as the official digital host for Dick Clark’s New Years Rockin’ Eve, also appearing on the live ABC televised broadcast.  In November of 2016 she was a part of the American Music Awards for the second year in a row. This year she was the official backstage correspondent and the year before she co-hosted the live red carpet alongside former NSYNC member, Lance Bass. In May of 2015 she also hosted the official red carpet for the Billboard Music Awards, which was streamed live on Yahoo.

Chelsea graduated from Central Michigan University in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Broadcasting and Cinematic Arts. She currently resides in Los Angeles, California.

Lil Dicky is the voice of the voiceless His debt mixtape, So Hard, has been categorized as “funny,” and “impressive” by his friends. His first commercial album, Professional Rapper, debuted at #7 on the Billboard Hot 200 and #1 on both the comedy and rap charts.

A non-traditional rapper, Lil Dicky uses a mix of comedy, lyrical ingenuity, and self-deprecation to spew out entertaining and relatable content. When he was 14, he opened up for the R&B group 112 at his overnight camp. He’s been rapping ever since. Join him on his quest to change rap forever.

Mike Hertz has managed/tour managed rapper/comedian Lil Dicky and since day two of his rap career and prior to that had stints in entertainment marketing and corporate strategy at IAC, William Morris, and Ogilvy & Mather.

Hasan Minhaj is a comedian, actor, host, and writer. In November 2014, he made his debut as a full time correspondent on the Emmy and Peabody award-winning THE DAILY SHOW (and became the last hire Jon Stewart made). He is now the longest-running correspondent on THE DAILY SHOW WITH TREVOR NOAH.
In 2014, he was invited to be a part of the Sundance Institute’s prestigious New Frontier Story Lab where he developed his solo show HOMECOMING KING. The show then debuted off-Broadway at the Cherry Lane Theatre in Winter 2015 to critical acclaim, and had a sold-out national tour. HASAN MINHAJ: HOMECOMING KING is now streaming as a comedy special on Netflix, and has been received to rave reviews. Hasan had the prestigious honor of hosting the annual White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington DC on April 29, 2017.
Hasan recently shot the movie THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME for Lionsgate, alongside Mila Kunis, Kate McKinnon and Justin Theroux. He previously shot the feature films ROUGH NIGHT for Sony, alongside Scarlett Johansson, and MOST LIKELY TO MURDER for Lionsgate Digital, opposite Rachel Bloom and Adam Pally.

Thomas Wesley Pentz, better known as Diplo, is one of the most dynamic forces in music today. The Grammy-winning producer has proven himself to be a ubiquitous cultural figure, consistently bridging high and low, mainstream and underground, with remarkable tact and reverence.

2016 saw new heights of success for Diplo. Major Lazer’s “Cold Water” featuring Justin Bieber and MØ debuted at #1 on the iTunes songs chart in 58 countries worldwide and reached #1 on the U.S. pop radio chart. The song continues to top charts worldwide, with more than 861 million streams to date.

Diplo also contributed two songs, “Hold Up” and “All Night,” to Beyoncé’s Grammy Nominated #1 album Lemonade.

In 2015, Major Lazer’s collaboration with DJ Snake, “Lean On” featuring MØ became the most successful independently released song of all time after peaking at #1 on the Top 40 chart and being certified platinum by the RIAA. “Lean On” became the most streamed song on Spotify of all time with more than 850 million streams, and Major Lazer was the most Shazamed artist of 2015 with over 40 million tags. Only nine months after its release, the corresponding music video for “Lean On” became one of only a handful of videos to reach 1 billion views on YouTube, and is in the Top 10 most watched videos of all time.

The double Platinum single “Where Are Ü Now,” featuring Justin Bieber from his Jack Ü collaboration with Skrillex has enjoyed similar success and won the group an MTV European Music Award as well as an American Music Award for Collaboration of the Year.

Diplo’s rise to fame began in 2004 when Pentz released his critically-acclaimed debut album, Florida, and caught the attention of M.I.A. After producing her debut mixtape together, Diplo continued to work with M.I.A. on her first and second albums, eventually creating the Grammy-nominated track “Paper Planes” in 2007, which hit #4 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Chart and has sold more than three million copies.

In 2005, Diplo founded label/culture lab Mad Decent to serve as a showcasing platform for the myriad fascinating sounds he encounters while touring the world. Mad Decent has gone on to release music from a dynamic range of artists that include Lil’ Jon, Gucci Mane, Buraka Som Sistema, Dillon Francis, RiFF RAFF, Baauer and produces the annual and infamous Mad Decent Block Parties—a series of outdoor dance parties/concerts that now span 22 cities across North America.

Both of Diplo’s 2015 releases—Major Lazer’s Peace is the Mission and Skrillex & Diplo Present Jack Ü—topped the Billboard charts for #1 Dance/Electronic Album. 2015 also saw the launch of Major Lazer’s Beats 1 radio show “Lazer Sound,” the debut of the group’s eponymous animated television series on FXX and the continued success of Diplo’s BBC radio show “Diplo and Friends.”

Diplo continues to tour the world over, playing 300 shows a year with Major Lazer, Jack Ü and under his own moniker, including headlining Mad Decent Block Parties nationwide, the annual Mad Decent Boat Party cruise and his Vegas residency at Steve Wynn’s XS. As one of pop’s most in-demand producers, Diplo has worked with artists such as Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, Lil Wayne, Bruno Mars, Britney Spears, Wale, Chris Brown, Ariana Grande, 2 Chainz, Travis Porter, Usher, Snoop Dogg, Azealia Banks, Iggy Azalea, Die Antwoord, Robyn, AlunaGeorge and many more, producing seven tracks on Madonna’s latest, Rebel Heart.

Andrew McInnes is CEO of TMWRK Management. Andrew founded TMWRK alongside Kevin Kusatsu after successfully running his own management outfit alongside his A&R role at Epic Records in New York, and formerly at Columbia Records as an A&R scout. Andrew attended Fordham University and currently resides in New York. TMWRK’s current management roster includes Diplo, A-Trak, Major Lazer, Dillon Francis, MØ, Flosstradamus, Cashmere Cat, Ariel Rechtshaid, Lunice, and many other accomplished artists.