The schedule for the 5th Annual EDMbiz Conference and Expo, taking place Tuesday, June 14 through Thursday, June 16 at Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino Las Vegas has been announced. This year’s EDMbiz will feature headlining keynotes from renowned producer Armin van Buuren, Bob Lefsetz of The Lefsetz Letter, producer Moby, and Insomniac CEO and Founder, Pasquale Rotella. Following his Keynote, Moby, will also host a special book signing of Porcelain: A Memoir.
Spread across two stages, all elements and activations surrounding EDMbiz encompass the conference’s three cornerstones: Experience, Audiences will have the opportunity to be a part of discussions that explore the most pressing issues in the dance industry today, including After the Drop, Beyond the Boys Club, Drugs in Dance Music and an exclusive presentation by Nielsen. Kicking-off each morning, attendees have access to an invigorating yoga session by The Divine Movement. To close out each day, EDMbiz will, for the first time, host a conference wide Networking Happy Hour allowing everyone to recap on the day’s events and Specialty programming includes, the first-ever EDC Hackathon, the return of the EDMbiz A&R contest, and a one-of- a-kind mentoring program designed to empower and educate young hopefuls. The mentorship program, hosted by Little Empire Music and SkyLight, will cover a diverse range of topics and feature, newly added mentor, Christian Karlsson (DJ/Producer Mentor, Bloodshy/Galantis/Miike Snow).
The following keynote sessions and panels with noted speakers will take place at EDMbiz.
KEYNOTE: ARMIN VAN BUUREN
o Moderator: to be announced
KEYNOTE: BOB LEFSETZ, AUTHOR, THE LEFSETZ LETTER
o Moderator: John Boyle, Chief Growth Officer & Interim CFO, Insomniac
o Moderator: Jason Bentley, Music Director, KCRW
KEYNOTE: PASQUALE ROTELLA
o Moderator: John Amato, Co-President, The Hollywood Reporter-Billboard
A&R COMPETITION – BEST DANCE TRACK
o Danny Howard, BBC Radio 1
o Joe Wiseman, Label Manager/A&R, Insomniac
o Pedro Guzmán, Executive Vice President / Head of A&R, Aftercluv
ADS, FADS, AND THE FUTURE OF RADIO
o Moderator: Ted Cohen, Managing Partner, TAG Strategic
o Austin Kramer, Head of Programming-Dance & Electronic, Spotify
o Ben Gill, Head of Programming, Dance & Electronic Music, Pandora
o Danny Howard, BBC Radio 1
o George Hess, CEO, Zero2Fifty Group
o Geronimo, Senior Director of Programming, SiriusXM
AFTER THE DROP: THE STATE OF DANCE MUSIC
o Moderator: Matt Medved, Senior Editor, Dance/Electronic, Billboard
o Andrew Goldstone, Manager – Tiesto and Don Diablo, GM of Musical
o Ed Shapiro, Partner, Reed Smith, LLP.
o James Algate, Vice President of Music, Hakkasan Group
o John Boyle, Chief Growth Officer & Intertim CFO
o Sebastian Solano, CEO, ID&T
ANTICIPATION, AUDIENCE, AND NOT BEING AUSTRALIAN
o Chad Moses, Music & Events, To Write Love on Her Arms
BEYOND THE BOYS’ CLUB: WHAT'S NEXT FOR WOMEN IN DANCE MUSIC
o Moderator: Katie Bain, Contributing Writer at Beatport, Insomniac, LA
o Liz Garard, President & Founder, Nap Girls
Weekly, The Huffington Post
o MacKenzie Reynolds, Publicity Manager, Capitol Music Group
o Matthew Adell, Founder, MetaPop
o Neda Azarfar, Vice President, Marketing Communications, The Recording
o Sarah Polonsky, US Editor, DJ Magazine
BILLBOARD DANCE POWER PLAYERS 2016 PRESENTATION
o Matt Medved, Senior Editor, Dance/Electronic, Billboard
BREAKOUT WITH PAUL OAKENFOLD
o Moderator: Gerry Gerrard, Wired Artist Management
o Matt Rodriguez, VP, West Coast, AM Only
o Moe Shalizi, Artist Manager, Red Light Management
o Steve Gordon, Owner, Circle Talent Agency
DRUGS IN DANCE MUSIC: IT’S TIME FOR THE INDUSTRY TO ACT
o Moderator: Mark Lawrence, Chief Executive, AFEM
o Dede Goldsmith, Youth Advocate & President, Protect Our Youth, Inc.
o Kevin Kerslake, Filmmaker/Photographer, Director – “As I AM”
o Maren Steiner, Director of Health & Safety, Insomniac
o Patt Ochoa, Cofounder & Program Director, Sustain Recovery
o Stefanie Jones, Director of Audience Development, Drug Policy Alliance
EDM IS DEAD, LONG LIVE EDM! (EDM’S VALUE TO BRANDS AND LIVE
EVENTS), NIELSEN PRESENTATION
o Matt Yazge, Director of Brand Partnerships, Nielsen Music
LITTLE EMPIRE AND SKYLIGHT: PROMOTING THE FUTURE THROUGH
o Alexandra Greenberg, Senior VP, MSO PR
o Christian Karlsson, DJ/Producer Mentor, Bloodshy/Galantis/Miike Snow
o Ed Shapiro, Partner, Reed Smith, LLP.
o Geronimo, Senior Director of Programming, SiriusXM
o Randy Sosin, Senior Vice President, Film & Video Production, Insomniac
Stephanie LaFera, Founder & CEO, Little Empire Music & Co-Founder,
o Moderator: John Boyle, Chief Growth Officer & Interim CFO, Insomniac
o Darryl Eaton, Co-Head of Contemporary Music, North America, CAA
o Hunter Williams, Agent, CAA
o Jazz Spinder, Agent, CAA
o Rob Light, Managing Partner and Head of Worldwide Music, CAA
RAYMOND LEON ROKER, URB FOUNDER, OPENS THE URB ARCHIVES
o Moderator: Dave Ralph, Head of Talent, Insomniac
o Dimitri De Wit, Owner, Twenty4Seven Management
o Jeff Ryan, Managing Director of Dreamstate, Insomniac
o Tim Smeets, David Lewis Productions
SHOW/BUSINESS: ENTREPRENEURS IN DANCE MUSIC
o Moderator: Justin Spagg, Senior Director of Operations, Insomniac
o Ali Shakeri, Cofounder, ToneDen
o Amy Pham, DJ, Host, Actress
o Brian Lim, CEO/Founder, EmazingLights / iHeartRaves / IntoTheAM
o Nick Kneuper, CEO, Electric Styles
o Nick Ward, CFO, YourEDM
SUCCESS ON THE BIG SCREEN: EDM PIONEER JUNKIE XL MAKES
o Moderator: Jason Bentley, Music Director, KCRW
o Junkie XL, Artist & Film Composer
o Rich Thomas, Vice President, Content, Insomniac
o Tommie Sunshine, Artist/Activist
5TH ANNUAL EDMBIZ ARTIST PANEL