Music Industry’s Top Female Execs to Discuss Empowering the Next Generation of Leaders at Music Biz 2017

Kelly Clarkson, Atlantic Records’ Julie Greenwald, NPR Music’s Ann Powers, and Nielsen Music’s Erin Crawford also scheduled for ‘Music’s Leading Ladies Speak Out’ event

May 9, 2017 – The Music Business Association (Music Biz) will round out its Music’s Leading Ladies Speak Out event, powered by Nielsen Music, with a panel designed to empower the next generation of female executives in the music business, and discuss ideas to overcome and eliminate inequality. Moderated by Leslie Fram of CMT, the panel will feature insights from Sarah Trahern, CEO of the Country Music Association (CMA); Jessica Sobhraj, CEO/President of Cosynd/Women In Music; and Tracy Gershon, Manager at Red Light Management and an independent A&R consultant.

The panel will close the Music’s Leading Ladies Speak Out event, which will kick off with a welcome presentation from Erin Crawford, SVP and General Manager of Nielsen Music, who will share exclusive insights, including female-focused data and fan affinity analytics, on the marketability of female artists. Ann Powers, a critic and correspondent at NPR Music, will then lead a keynote conversation with Julie Greenwald, Chairman and COO of the Atlantic Records Group, and GRAMMY-winning recording artist Kelly Clarkson. They will each share their experiences in the music business and discuss their path to success on their own terms.

The full agenda for the Music’s Leading Ladies Speak Out event can be found below or by visiting musicbiz2017.sched.com. Admission is included in the price of a full Music Biz 2017 badge, which can be purchased at www.musicbiz2017.com. Special discounted rates are available for students and educators as well as first-time independent labels, startups, artists, managers, songwriters, and publisher attendees.

Day passes for Tuesday, May 16, are also available for only $199. These passes will allow buyers to access all Music Biz 2017 programming on May 16 only, including the fifth annual Metadata Summit; Career Development Workshops; breakout sessions on consumer trends, crowd-sourcing, remixes, D2F, and more; and the WEA Cocktail Reception. To purchase the May 16 day pass, visit musicbiz2017.eventbrite.com and use code LEADLADIES-DAY to reveal the ticket.

Nielsen Welcome: The Marketability of Female Artists

Erin Crawford, SVP & General Manager of Nielsen Music, will kick off the Leading Ladies program by sharing exclusive insights on the marketability of female artists in the ever-evolving music world. The discussion will feature female-focused data, as well as fan affinity analytics that can be leveraged to drive engagement and build meaningful brand partnerships for today’s women in music.

• Erin Crawford, SVP & GM, Nielsen Music

Creative Partnerships: An Interview with Julie Greenwald and Kelly Clarkson

Atlantic’s Julie Greenwald’s keen and often maternal instincts have helped her to uniquely nurture the careers of major artists such as Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars, Christina Perri, Janelle Monáe, Twenty One Pilots, Sturgill Simpson, Coldplay, Paramore, Rob Thomas, James Blunt, Jason Mraz, Death Cab for Cutie, Fun, Trey Songz, Flo Rida, and Wiz Khalifa. Today, her conversation with NPR Music’s Ann Power’s will illuminate how she achieved her success in a male-dominated business, as well as her views and approach on the many issues around work/life balance.

Greenwald will be joined on stage by GRAMMY Award-winning Pop superstar Kelly Clarkson for the final segment of the interview. Clarkson will talk about her relationship with Greenwald and her decision to join Greenwald at Atlantic Records Group. The two will also share stories of their experiences in the music industry and explain how they were able to achieve success on their own terms.

• Moderator: Ann Powers, Critic and Correspondent, NPR Music
• Julie Greenwald, Chairman and COO, Atlantic Records Group
• Kelly Clarkson, Recording Artist

Changing the Conversation: The Power of Women and Mentoring in Today’s Music Business

The program will conclude as a group of successful female executives explore what led them into the music business, the challenges they have experienced early in their careers, the partnerships they have formed with other successful women in the business, and the mentoring roles they have taken within their companies, as well as within the industry, to educate and empower future female executives.

• Moderator: Leslie Fram, Sr. VP of Music Strategy and Talent, CMT
• Tracy Gershon, Manager, Red Light Management/Independent A&R Consultant
• Jessica Sobhraj, CEO/President, Cosynd/Women In Music
• Sarah Trahern, CEO, Country Music Association (CMA)

Music Biz 2017, which will return to Nashville from May 15-18, is the music industry’s premier event, giving the commerce and content sectors a place to meet with trading partners, network with new companies, and learn about new trends and products impacting the music business. This year’s event will feature keynotes from Atlantic Records Group Chairman and COO Julie Greenwald with GRAMMY Award-winning superstar Kelly Clarkson, Spotify’s Global Head of Creator Services Troy Carter, Creative Artists Agency (CAA) Music Agents Jeff Krones and Hunter Williams, Cracker Barrel’s VP of Marketing Don Hoffman, Universal Music Group’s Exec. VP of Content Strategy and Operations Barak Moffitt, and more to be announced. A special line-up of Digital Service Workshops from Amazon Music, Apple Music, Pandora, Soundcloud, Spotify, and YouTube/Google Play will mark an unprecedented first for the music industry as Music Biz will bring these companies together in one place for one day packed with information about how to leverage the tools and products that these companies offer to maximize value for artists, labels, managers, creators, and the industry at large.

The eclectic Music Biz 2017 program will also cover topics including Touring, Live Streaming, Vinyl, Messaging, International, D2F, Crowdfunding, e-Commerce, Playlisting, A&R, Social Media, Licensing, Publishing, Hi-Res, VR, Management, and Professional Development. Returning favorite sessions will include the Metadata Summit, Brand & Strategic Partnership Summit, and Entertainment & Technology Law Conference, as well as an encore for Music’s Leading Ladies Speak Out and various special interest programs and breakout sessions. Music Biz will celebrate executive and artist achievements with Music Biz awards being bestowed to UMG Nashville’s Mike Dungan, Music Millennium’s Terry Currier, Adele, Paula Abdul, Hamilton Original Cast Recording and the Hamilton Mixtape, Lukas Graham, Reba McEntire, Maren Morris, and others to be announced. Registration is now open at www.musicbiz2017.com, and for a full list of currently confirmed programming, visit https://musicbiz2017.sched.org.

About the Music Business Association

The Music Business Association (Music Biz) is a membership organization that advances and promotes music commerce — a community committed to the full spectrum of monetization models in the industry. It provides common ground by offering thought leadership, resources and unparalleled networking opportunities, all geared to the specific needs of its membership. Music Biz brings a unique perspective and valuable insight into the trends and changes that innovation brings. Today, we put our collective experience to work across all delivery models: physical, digital, mobile, and more. Music Biz and its members are committed to building the future of music commerce — together.

Music Biz Media Contact

Laurie Jakobsen, Jaybird Communications — laurie@jaybirdcom.com, 646.484.6764