INSOMNIAC RELEASES SCHEDULE FOR EDMBIZ CONFERENCE

Insomniac announced today its programming schedule for the 5th Annual EDMbiz Conference & Expo, taking place Tuesday, June 14 through Thursday, June 16 at Caesars Palace Hotel & Casino Las Vegas. This year’s EDMbiz will feature headlining keynotes from renowned producer Armin van Buuren, Bob Lefsetz of The Lefsetz Letter, Insomniac CEO & Founder, Pasquale Rotella and our very own Sarah Polonsky, editor of DJ Mag USA. Spread across two stages, all elements and activations surrounding EDMbiz encompass the conference’s three cornerstones: Experience,Technology and Aspiration. 

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 unwind with their peers and mentors. 

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. Newly added speakers are italicized.*

KEYNOTE: ARMIN VAN BUUREN
Moderator: to be announced

KEYNOTE: BOB LEFSETZ, AUTHOR, THE LEFSETZ LETTER
Moderator: John Boyle, Chief Growth Officer & Interim CFO, Insomniac

KEYNOTE: MOBY
Moderator: Jason Bentley, Music Director, KCRW

KEYNOTE: PASQUALE ROTELLA
Moderator: John Amato, Co-President, The Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group

A&R COMPETITION – BEST DANCE TRACK
Danny Howard, BBC Radio 1
Joe Wiseman, Label Manager/A&R, Insomniac
Laidback Luke, Artist
Pedro Guzmán, Executive Vice President / Head of A&R, Aftercluv Dancelab
More to be announced

ADS, FADS, AND THE FUTURE OF RADIO
Moderator: Ted Cohen, Managing Partner, TAG Strategic
Austin Kramer, Head of Programming-Dance & Electronic, Spotify
Ben Gill, Head of Programming, Dance & Electronic Music, Pandora
Danny Howard, BBC Radio 1
George Hess, CEO, Zero2Fifty Group
Geronimo, Senior Director of Programming, SiriusXM

AFTER THE DROP: THE STATE OF DANCE MUSIC
Moderator: Matt Medved, Senior Editor, Dance/Electronic, Billboard
Andrew Goldstone, Manager - Tiesto and Don Diablo, GM of Musical Freedom Records
Ed Shapiro, Partner, Reed Smith, LLP.
James Algate, Vice President of Music, Hakkasan Group
John Boyle, Chief Growth Officer & Intertim CFO
Sebastian Solano, CEO, ID&T

ANTICIPATION, AUDIENCE, AND NOT BEING AUSTRALIAN
Chad Moses, Music & Events, To Write Love on Her Arms

BEYOND THE BOYS’ CLUB: WHAT'S NEXT FOR WOMEN IN DANCE MUSIC
Moderator: Katie Bain, Contributing Writer at Beatport, Insomniac, LA Weekly, The Huffington Post
Sarah Polonsky, US Editor, DJ Magazine
Liz Garard, President & Founder, Nap Girls
MacKenzie Reynolds, Publicity Manager, Capitol Music Group
Matthew Adell, Founder, MetaPop
Neda Azarfar, Vice President, Marketing Communications, The Recording Academy
Nicole Moudaber, Artist

BILLBOARD DANCE POWER PLAYERS 2016 PRESENTATION
Matt Medved, Senior Editor, Dance/Electronic, Billboard

BREAKOUT WITH PAUL OAKENFOLD
Paul Oakenfold, Artist

BUILDING THE NEXT BIG DJ
Moderator: Gerry Gerrard, Wired Artist Management
Jauz, Artist
Marshmello, Artist
Matt Rodriguez, VP, West Coast, AM Only
Moe Shalizi, Artist Manager, Red Light Management
Ookay, Artist
Steve Gordon, Owner, Circle Talent Agency

DRUGS IN DANCE MUSIC: IT’S TIME FOR THE INDUSTRY TO ACT
Moderator: Mark Lawrence, Chief Executive, AFEM
Dede Goldsmith, Youth Advocate & President, Protect Our Youth, Inc.
Kevin Kerslake, Filmmaker/Photographer, Director – “As I AM”
Kennedy Jones, Artist
Maren Steiner, Director of Health & Safety, Insomniac
Patt Ochoa, Cofounder & Program Director, Sustain Recovery
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
Matt Yazge, Director of Brand Partnerships, Nielsen Music

LITTLE EMPIRE AND SKYLIGHT: PROMOTING THE FUTURE THROUGH MENTORSHIP
Alexandra Greenberg, Senior VP, MSO PR
Christian Karlsson, DJ/Producer Mentor, Bloodshy/Galantis/Miike Snow
Ed Shapiro, Partner, Reed Smith, LLP
Geronimo, Senior Director of Programming, SiriusXM
Randy Sosin, Senior Vice President, Film & Video Production, Insomniac
Stephanie LaFera, Founder & CEO, Little Empire Music & Co-Founder, SkyLight

MEET THE AGENCY: CAA
Moderator: John Boyle, Chief Growth Officer & Interim CFO, Insomniac
Darryl Eaton, Co-Head of Contemporary Music, North America, CAA
Hunter Williams, Agent, CAA
Jazz Spinder, Agent, CAA
Mac Clark, Agent, CAA
Maria May, Agent, CAA
Rob Light, Managing Partner and Head of Worldwide Music, CAA

RAYMOND LEON ROKER, URB FOUNDER, OPENS THE URB ARCHIVES FOR THE FIRST TIME

RESURGENCE OF TRANCE
Moderator: Dave Ralph, Head of Talent, Insomniac
Dimitri De Wit, Owner, Twenty4Seven Management
Jeff Ryan, Managing Director of Dreamstate, Insomniac
Markus Schulz, Artist
Paul Oakenfold, Artist
Tim Smeets, David Lewis Productions

SHOW/BUSINESS: ENTREPRENEURS IN DANCE MUSIC
Moderator: Justin Spagg, Senior Director of Operations, Insomniac
Ali Shakeri, Cofounder, ToneDen
Amy Pham, DJ, Host, Actress
Brian Lim, CEO/Founder, EmazingLights / iHeartRaves / IntoTheAM
Nick Kneuper, CEO, Electric Styles
Nick Ward, CFO, YourEDM

SUCCESS ON THE BIG SCREEN: EDM PIONEER JUNKIE XL MAKES HOLLYWOOD'S A-LIST
Moderator: Jason Bentley, Music Director, KCRW
Junkie XL, Artist & Film Composer

WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Rich Thomas, Vice President, Content, Insomniac
Tommie Sunshine, Artist/Activist
More to be announced

5TH ANNUAL EDMBIZ ARTIST PANEL
Artists to be announced

* Additional speakers to be announced. All panels and speakers are subject to change.