• Created a process and technology that allows artist and labels to place their music and information directly on FM radio stations websites for preview and sale with real time statistical information to the zip code level.
• Partnered with various well known established organizations and individuals to validate technology
  and process.
• Featured in multiple media magazines and television shows for stand out site and process.
• Multiple Patents have been filed and are currently pending for the product, process and technology through Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP
• Successfully created a name that is marketable and has strong branding potential
• Developed and managed construction of site that is being considered a top site in the U.S.
• Demonstrated strong technical and
  entertainment integration.
• Rated a top performing site by peers and multiple
  media endorsers.
• Inc Magazine Nominee for 2006 Entrepreneur of the Year.
• Black Enterprise Magazine - Hot Pick in February 2006 Issue for technology. Also, nominated for Small Business Innovator of the Year Award
• Music Connection Magazine - Featured story in November 2005 issue.
• CBS Radio - Created radio show spotlighting emerging artists that is broadcasted every Sunday in Los Angeles and streamed over the internet.
• CNBC Biz Brief Feature story on digital distribution product for independent artists. Jane Wells was the reporter.
• SXSW Feature Show '06 - Presented six independent acts at a company showcase that performed at Jack-a-lope in front of media and fans. Drew great reviews.
• Winter Music Conference '06 - Sat on two panels during this mega conference in Miami. "The Road to Independence" and "Do It Yourself" which both focused on multiple ways independent artists can get the exposure and marketing they desire to be seen as successful.
• Summer Music Conference '06 - Panelist in inaugural San Francisco event.
• Atlantis Music Festival '06 - Panelist for two seminars in this Atlanta based event with other industry leaders like CD Baby, Urb Magazine and Yahoo Music.
• Armed Forces Network - Field reported for various special interest shows. Spotlighted special talent individuals and co-produce local show that was a "Letterman" format with vox pop interviews and special guests.
• K104 ( Dallas, TX ) - Intern and special promotion intern. Worked with Tom Joyner and staff.
• PBS Documentary host and co-producer for "To Seem, Rather than to Be". Story about the Greensboro sit ins and the women that participated from Greensboro College, a predominant white female university.
• WNND Smooth Jazz air personality for 3 years in Raleigh, North Carolina. Hosted successful show and interviewed several artist from Sade, Norman Brown, Rick Braun, Kenny G and more.
• KSBR Air Personality in Southern California. Two year recognition for introducing new styles of music and performers that are not heard on other formats
• CNN Entertainment - Associate producer (intern ) for the famous entertainment report show that focused on artist and entertainers lifestyles and upcoming events.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Eli Ball is the founder and CEO of Lyric Financial. Before his career in banking, Eli roamed the earth on a quest to find the soul of Robert Johnson. In the process, he has had the privilege of working with acclaimed artists including Ray Charles, Jason and the Scorchers, Rosanne Cash and Herbie Hancock; guiding a range of studio and live productions from award winning albums to large multi-day, music festivals.

In 1996, Eli decided to leave the music industry and return to Memphis to raise his two sons. There he began a new career as an investment banker. Through his studies and work, Eli began to recognize that the music industry, which was going through its own metamorphosis, had yet to benefit from the effective risk-management tools that Wall Street had been using successfully in other industries for years. The idea for Lyric Financial was born!

In 2007, the company relocated to Nashville, where Eli now lives with his wife, Mary Unobsky. An accomplished Grammy-nominated songwriter herself, Mary has written numerous television themes and has penned cuts for industry greats such as Anita Baker, Bonnie Raitt, Maurice White (Earth, Wind and Fire) and The Jazz Crusaders.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

From live event producer to experiential marketing manager; consulting with brands on maximizing their reach; to living life as an adventure; Jeff Beal has explored beyond established mediums!

Jeff is an eighteen year experiential marketing veteran who has received recognition for his forward-thinking, strategic approach to solving problems and creating opportunities that build brands. He has proven experience in creating connections between consumers and brands by generating big ideas that leverage the excitement of entertainment, automotive and popular culture.

Jeff has worked with numerous agencies and production companies on some of the industry’s most noted events including Ford Motor Company’s Centennial Anniversary Concert featuring Toby Keith.

As the founding partner of Hardline360, a lifestyle marketing and live entertainment agency, Jeff develops cutting-edge promotional and lifestyle marketing experiences for clients and business partners. His company customizes marketing opportunities for properties enabling them to develop revenue-generating partnerships through creative leveraging of their assets. Jeff also pitches marketing and sponsorship packages to some of the world’s most recognizable brands. 

Jeff spends his spare time with his fiancé who is instrumental in his life. He also has a multitude of other interests including traveling, attending live events (he can’t produce them all) and high-end automobiles.

Panelist bio to come.

Brad Broadrick owns and operates Rock Solid Entertainment in Atlanta, GA, a boutique booking agency, artist manager, and talent buyer for the Star Bar (Atlanta, GA), Cypress Grill (Cordele, GA) and Eighth & Rail (Opelika, AL). Broadrick has been in the music business for the last 15 years. During that time he has worked in nearly every facet of the music business from artist tour management, working at an independent record label, record store, artist management and development, booking agent, venue talent buyer, concert promoter, and stage and production manager, he maintains a vast knowledge of all things music business related.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Bruce Burch has had success in many facets of the music business including being a hit songwriter, operating his own publishing companies of hit songs, working for a major music publishing company, as well as being an artist manager.

As a songwriter, Burch cowrote two #1 singles for Reba McEntire, “Rumor Has It” and “It’s Your Call”. These two songs were also the album titles for two of Reba’s most successful albums. Burch also cowrote songs on two other Reba albums, all of which have gone multi-platinum, selling well over 15 million records and CDs. He has also had top 10 songs on Billy Joe Royal (“Out Of Sight and On My Mind”), and T. Graham Brown (“The Last Resort”), a Top 20 song “Train Of Thought” recorded by Barbara Mandrell, and a Top 40 single “You Can’t Keep A Good Memory Down” recorded by John Anderson. Bruce has also had platinum and gold album recordings by George Jones, The Oak Ridge Boys, Collin Raye and Dan Seals.

As a music publisher, Burch operated two companies, Burch Brothers Music and Bruce Burch Music. These two catalogs contain songs cowritten by Burch and recorded by Aaron Tippin (Top Twenty Hit, “I Got It Honest”), T. Graham Brown (Top 40 hit “Wine Into Water), Faith Hill (Multi-platinum album recording “I’ve Got This Friend”), and his second Collin Raye recording (“It Could Happen Again” on Collin’s critically acclaimed Christmas album w/ Johnny Cash providing narration).

Bruce has also had songs recorded by artists as diverse as Wayne Newton, Cledus T. Judd, Tommy Roe, Slim Pickens as well as many others.

Burch discovered, co-managed, and masterminded the beginning of Cledus T. Judd’s comedy career. Cledus has gone on to sell close to a million CD’s.

Bruce served as Creative Director at EMI Music Publishing, the world’s largest music publisher with over a million songs in it’s vast catalog. During this time he worked with artists such as Brad Paisley, Phil Vassar, Jamie O’neal, Darryl Worley, and Joe Nichols. He has gotten songs placed as a songplugger on projects by Travis Tritt, Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, and Aaron Tippin among others.

Burch also worked with EMI’s older catalog songs and has gotten cover recordings of the classic tunes of Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Todd Rundgren, and Tammy Wynnette. He has gone in the studio with Mac Davis, Billy Swan, and Tony Joe White (“Rainy Night In Georgia”) to produce new demos of many of their hit songs from the past to bring them up to date for possible placement in today’s market. Bruce also authored a book “Songs That Changed Our Lives”. Two chapters of this inspiring book were picked to be included in the “Chicken Soup For The Soul” series of books.

Amy Kurland, the owner of the Bluebird Café also asked Bruce to write a chapter for her new book on the history of the Bluebird that has recently been released by a major book publisher.

Burch was inducted into the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame in November 2003. Recently Burch began a new chapter in his career as he was named Administrative Director of the new Music Business Program which he helped to create at his alma mater, the University of Georgia.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Bryan Calhoun's career in the music business began before he graduated from the Terry School of Business at the University of Georgia where he obtained a B.B.A. in Finance in the Fall of 1992. He was introduced to the business while as a disk jockey for the university's radio station, WUOG, and as a member of the school's student event programming team. This involvement led him to form a company with two classmates (one, J Lett, became his partner in Label Management Systems) that would host parties and eventually began booking and handling all aspects of concert promotions with national recording artists such as Cypress Hill, 2Pac, Brand Nubian, Digable Planets, Digital Underground and others. This led to him starting a street promotion company in Atlanta and worked for major record labels such as Epic, Def Jam, Mercury, Columbia and others.

As a street promotion representative his responsibilities included Atlanta area radio, retail, club and street promotions. During this time, Calhoun remained active as a disk jockey hosting a weekly program on Atlanta 's non-commercial radio station WRFG and by spinning records in various Atlanta night clubs. A part-time job with Relativity Records as a promotion assistant, regional marketing rep and talent scout lead to a full time A&R position when Relativity signed two independent labels based on Bryan's recommendation (Three 6 Mafia/Hypnotize Minds and DJ Squeeky/Mo Cheda). As an A&R representative, Calhoun contributed creative input to the production, recording, mixing and mastering of music and developed and implemented marketing strategies. Another milestone in his career came in 1997 when he co-authored and self-published a book, The Truth of the Matter: Straight Talk for the Aspiring Artist on Getting Into the Music Business, that introduces readers to music business basics and educates the uninformed artist on the strategies for obtaining a major label recording deal.

Relativity's first Hypnotize Minds release was Three 6 Mafia's Chapter 2: World Domination. As the album approached gold status (500,000 units sold), he was offered a promotion and became national marketing and product manager in New York for Relativity. Calhoun served in that capacity for the company and was a key component to the success of the company's successful releases such as Mo Thugs Family Reunion (gold), Three 6 Mafia World Domination (600,000), Bizzy Bone (gold), Gangsta Boo Enquiring Minds (240,000 units sold), Project Pat Getty Green (350,000) Tear Da Club Up Thugs CrazyNDaLazDayz (gold), Krayzie Bone and others.

Immediately upon the reorganization of Relativity Records, which became Loud Records, Calhoun began work organizing a new department for RED Distribution called RED Urban Music Marketing (RUMM). This new division seeks out independent labels in need of distribution and guidance in releasing their product and running their labels.

After partnering with MC Serch (of Third Bass) in his Serchlite Music, an opportunity to work with the small RED distributed indie label, Warlock Records, gave them a chance to have hands on experience in all aspects of releasing records they created. Under Serchlite Music/Warlock Records, Calhoun handled all aspects of signing new artists, negotiating deals, performing A&R responsibilities, assigning and overseeing the marketing and promotion efforts of independent contractors, writing and implementing marketing plans and most other aspects of releasing albums and handling extensive business affairs responsibilities. In this time he was able to contribute to the maximization the company's profits on many releases including Project Playaz Til' We Die (sales of 70,000 ), The Last Mr. Bigg Only If U Knew (sales of 80,000 ), Christina Aguilera Just Be Free (sales of 150,000 ), Down South Bounce Volume 1, 2 and 3 (sales of 100,000 ) and others.

In 2003, Mr. Calhoun drew on his varied experiences and opened Label Management Systems, LLC to assist small and upstart labels succeed on the music industry's uneven playing field. .. He developed tools for indie labels and offers consulting services to companies that are serious about their music and company's success. .. The tools include a powerful web-based software application that allows record label users to perform comprehensive project modeling, generate detailed financial reports, including sales forecasting, expense projections, breakeven analysis, cash flow analysis, profitability analysis and much more on a project-by-project basis and at the company level. .. The other is a set of templates, forms and instructions for creating a sound infrastructure and allows labels to develop in-depth marketing strategies, create realistic release schedules, work effectively with distributors and maintain accountability of their employees/consultants.

A few current clients include: . MSN Entertainment . Getting Out Our Dreams (Kanye West) . Disturbing Tha Peace (Ludacris)
. Red Zone Productions . Coda Records (Walter Hawkins)
. Motema Records

Mr. Calhoun is frequently a panelist at music industry conferences and guest speaker at colleges and universities... A few engagements include: . Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association (BESLA), San Juan, Puerto Rico, "Independent Labels and Alternative Distribution" panelist, October 24, 2003 . Recording Artist Project (RAP), Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, "The New Paradigm of the Music Industry" panelist, November 13, 2003 . New York University..Music MBA program, New York, New York..-..guest lecturer, April 6, 2004 . American InterContinental University, Atlanta, Georgia guest lecturer, April 14, 2004 . Urban Network Music conference, Palm Springs, California - panelist, May 6, 2004 . Bay Area Gastronomic Entertainment Lawyers (BAGEL) monthly meeting, Oakland , California - guest speaker, May 12, 2004 . Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, Detroit, Michigan panelist, May 22, 2004 . Atlantis Music Conference, Atlanta , Georgia panel moderator, July 21 - 24, 2004 . San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California guest lecturer, October 22, 2005 . Urban Network Music Conference, Palm Springs, California panelist, April 1, 2005 . Howard Law School panelist, April 2, 2005 . American Inter Continental University, Atlanta, Georgia guest lecturer, . Atlantis Music Conference, Atlanta, Georgia moderator, August 12, 2005 . Three Keys, Silver Spring Maryland - speaker September 12, 2005

Panelist bio to come.

Chris Castle is Managing Partner of Christian L. Castle, Attorneys, with offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco. The firm represents artists, producers, songwriters, record labels, music publishers, film studios and technology companies. He is also Managing Member of the Digital Media Policy Group, a private consulting company. Chris serves on the board of Austin Music Foundation, the Alumni Advisory Board of the Entertainment and Media Management Institute at the Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA, and lectures at Anderson, the University of Washington School of Law and the University of Texas School of Law from time to time.

He is a regular speaker at professional meetings, including the Beverly Hills Bar Association, California Lawyers for the Arts, meetings of the State Bar of California, Minnesota and Texas, the Copyright Society and the LBJ Presidential Library, as well as industry conferences such as Digital Hollywood, Musexpo, SXSW, Canadian Music Week and the Progress & Freedom Foundation’s Aspen Policy Summit. He is a graduate of Anderson and the UCLA School of Law where he was an Olin Fellow in Law and Economics, a member of the UCLA Law Review and National Editor of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy. Chris is a magna cum laude graduate of UCLA with a B.A. in Political Science. Before founding the firm, he was of counsel to Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in Palo Alto, Senior Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs and General Counsel of SNOCAP, Inc. in San Francisco, Senior Vice President, Business Affairs at Sony Music, Inc. in New York and Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs at A&M Records, Inc. in Hollywood. Before college he attended Gordonstoun School, Admiral Farragut Academy (South) and Palo Alto Military Academy.

Chris is a Fellow of the World Technology Network, co-chair of the American Association of Independent Music legal committee and is a contributing editor of Entertainment Law & Finance. He has spoken on public policy matters at the UK Parliament, Congressional seminars at the U.S. Congress and at conferences of the Organization for Economic Opportunity and Development.

He recently co-produced the soundtrack albums for Moog (the documentary film about Bob Moog and his synthesizer) on Hollywood Records and the Advent Rising videogame featuring score by Tommy Tallarico on SEM. Before law school, Chris was a professional musician working with artists such as Long John Baldry, Yvonne Elliman and Jesse Winchester, and has played with many notable musicians from Jack Bruce, Paul Kossoff and Rick Derringer to John Mayall and Johnny and Edgar Winter. A son of Texas, long time Angelino and childhood San Franciscan, Chris now divides his time between Austin, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Dee Dee Cocheta is a 20-year entrepreneur and veteran in the entertainment industry, who founded A.B.C. Associates PR & Marketing Firm (music division - ‘A.B.C. Publicity’) based in Atlanta, Georgia. Over 9 years ago, she left behind multi-million dollar campaigns as a Marketing Director for a Radio One station to focusing on being a steady advocate for independent artists, where her integrity and reputation of her company was built on promoting indie artists. Since then her marketing firm has grown from supporting independent music artists to being recognized as the most sought after PR & Marketing agency in the South working with celebrities to philanthropists.

Since 1999, Dee Dee has consulted, coordinated publicity efforts for music events, conducted public relations and media training for hundreds of indie artists that have included Killer Mike, DJ Benny D, KRS One, Tony Terry, Producer Isaac “Ike Dirty” Hayes, III, Rudy Currence and Cherish to name a few. The company has done media relations and consulting for: BET Hip-Hop Awards, Turner South, Hosea Feed The Hungry, Tanqueray Soul Suite, Playwright – Nedra Simone, National Black Arts Festival, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes Foundation, Atlanta HipHop Film Festival, Ryan Cameron Foundation, Fashion Stylist – Kim Maxwell and UniverSoul Circus. Dee Dee’s clients have received exposure in every media outlet category from internet, TV, radio, to print. Specifically, receiving routine coverage in Vibe, XXL, Source, BRE, Billboard, Black Enterprise, Jet, Essence, Honey, Upscale, Sister 2 Sister, Women Sports Illustrated, Parents, Movie Makers, Salon City and Rolling Out UrbanStyle Weekly. Through her relationships and perseverance, Dee Dee’s clients and products have been extended invitations to appear on BET, MTV, VH1, FOX News, TV One, CNN, Montel Williams, Tom Joyner Radio Show, Yolanda Adams Radio Show, the Grammy’s and BET Awards to name a few.

Additionally Dee Dee is the Atlanta/SE Network Advisor for NABFEME (National Association of Black Female Executives in Music and Entertainment) and serves as an Advisory Board Member to SOFRAS (Society of Future Recording Artists & Songwriters), Healfromdepression.com and one of the Founding Board Members of Black Music Month Foundation. Furthermore, Dee Dee speaks to numerous youth organizations and schools throughout the nation about goal building - life's plans and purpose, leadership roles, entrepreneurial direction and rebuilding the divided bridge of the generations as well as behind the scenes careers opportunities within the entertainment industry.

Dee Dee Cocheta is native of the inner city of Portland, Oregon. Indigenous to the Yakama tribe of Washington State, she has been married for 19 years and has seven children. Dee Dee looks to her mentor - THE MOST HIGH to assist her in ultimately combating social ills to help move this nation forward. On her path of goal setting, Dee Dee's final three objectives (of seven) are to write a book, direct a film and create an Educational and Business Development Center focusing on teaching the youth to become leaders and entrepreneurs. She’s been on her own since the age of 15; thus acquiring the knowledge of how to hustle for food and shelter, insight that she now applies to her everyday business life. Dee Dee declares, "There are no time for failures and no excuses. Faith is not just knowing but doing and I am a living my movement.”

Panelist bio to come.

Michael is the Marketing Director for MusicSUBMIT.com, an online music promotion service for independent artists. He joined MusicSUBMIT.com shortly after the company's inception in 2004, becoming the point person for artist & resource site relations. As Marketing Director, Michael oversees artist submissions for over 1,000 clients and 3,000 web radio stations & sites in 40 genres.

Prior to MusicSUBMIT, Michael began his career in the music world as a roadie for San Francisco metal band Throttlefinger. Michael holds an M.B.A. in IT and Finance from San Francisco State University (SFSU), and an undergraduate degree from University of Dayton (OH). Currently he works out of MusicSUBMIT.com's satellite office in New York City.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Entertainment Publicist, Trea Davenport, deemed herself completely untalented for most her childhood, adolescence and early teens. While born into a large family of incredibly gifted artists, singers, designers, musicians and athletes, Davenport always found herself on the opposite side of the camera, microphone, or spotlight by organizing performances and special events to showcase everyone else's talents.

Although she excelled in academics and was frequently labeled, "the official spokesperson," the Motor City native never identified her skills as special. "I've been told I had the gift of gab since my tongue was clipped at the age of three, but I’ve always just brushed it off as another weak cliché," Davenport shares. Even after unexpectedly landing the lead as Sandy in her Detroit high school's production of the musical Grease, it was her role as the official PA announcer and star Debate team captain that initially showcased her natural public relations and speaking abilities.

Davenport, now recognized as a PR maven, continued displaying her talents by majoring in Communications and Journalism at Michigan State University, honing her writing skills and further exploring her yet to be discovered niche. Discontent with the mundane rigors of campus life, Davenport left MSU after her first year and headed for Hollywood. Within 24-hours of hitting the palm tree-lined streets of LA, Davenport settled into an over-priced apartment in the hills, scored a position as a top-level assistant for an entertainment promotions firm in Beverly Hills and was booked as an extra for a Bobby Brown video. Most women who flee to Hollywood would have deemed the exposure as a dream come true. However, Davenport found herself less interested in the life of a video vixen and more intrigued with identifying the key players in the room and networking on behalf of friends struggling to become the next big thing. It was then that Trea Davenport realized her calling: building relationships and giving life to the dreams, schemes, visions and talents of others. She accepted that her gift was literally right up under her nose: that infamous mouthpiece with the ability to verbally persuade, rally, promote and publicize anyone and anything!

Davenport began asserting her talent by using her friends as guinea pigs. Her first clients included high school friends Miss Nicci of R&B sensation, Brownstone, with hits "If You Love Me" and Grapevine" and Apollo legend, the critically acclaimed spoken word artist/publisher Jessica Care Moore. Davenport eventually formed Papillon, a small public relations and artist development company based in her hometown. While Motown will always be home to the public relations guru, her diverse role as a publicity manager took her across the country and around the world, ultimately landing her in the budding entertainment Mecca, Atlanta. By expanding her representation of entertainment clients and after executing the publicity component of local events and showcases, Davenport earned the Director of Publicity position with Big Cat Records. The label is now one of the southern U.S.'s most promising nationally distributed independents, and under Davenport’s reign was lauded by Billboard Magazine as one of the Top 10 Independent Record Labels in 2005. Her hands-on approach and proven track record of securing television, radio and print media hits for even the most obscure acts, catapulted the demand for her services and poised her to become one of the most widely recognized Entertainment Publicists for breaking and re-emerging artists.

In 2004, Davenport launched her own firm, Trea Day Management & Publicity, and she now represents Big Cat Records along with a host of other gifted clients. Through her own company, Davenport has broken a range of talented rising stars, such as Haben Abraham, Shyan Selah, Mick Starr and Island Def Jam recording artist; Chrisette Michele. She has also worked with several well-known celebrities, including Gregory Hines, Eve, Wesley Snipes, Kurupt of Tha Dogg Pound, The Outlawz, Daz Dillinger and international reggae star Buju Banton. Davenport is at the helm of the planning DipSet South Week for Diplomats President, Freekey Zekey and the presenter of the headline act; the Ying Yang Twins for the 11th Annual Atlantis Music Conference in September, 2008.

Even while handling the publicity of several talents, Davenport manages to regularly introduce new clients to the world, including Tha Paypa Boiz, She by Sheree clothing designer and diva socialite, Sheree Whitfield of The Real Housewives of Atlanta (Bravo) and celebrity makeup artist, Kim Elba (Ex-Wife of actor Idris Elba). She is also at the right hand of Entertainment Mogul, Leroy McMath, increasing the buzz and assisting with the production of Holla: I’m Just Frankie, starring Ms. Frankie Lons co-star of BET’s Keyshia Cole: The Way it Is. “Trea Davenport should be in a league of extraordinary publicists. She has launched some of the biggest names in Hip Hop and continues to push her creed: In the trenches, on the grind,” says Junior Publicist, Catherine Hill. “Trea is an inspiration to up and coming publicists in the entertainment industry.”

Davenport as been affectionately nicknamed by her colleagues, The Mouth of the South. She is the proud workaholic notorious for defying the stereotype that publicists are inaccessible prima donnas sitting behind glass desks, flipping through a Rolodex. Trea Davenport is and has always been a publicist that is In the Trenches…On the Grind.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

For a man who has the audacity to follow in his father’s footsteps, sure can be proud when finally succeeding and now as the name sake of a legacy - Atlanta raised, Isaac “Ike Dirty” Hayes, III is doing just that.  Yet for Ike Dirty, climbing to the top has been no crystal stairway, “People think that this is just a game for me because of who my father is. [They believe] I just got it like that!  Contrary to what some may believe, it has been twice as hard.”  After years of producing and working with other chart-toppers like Redman, Keith Murray, Too Short, Blaque, Ruff Ryders, Black Coffey, Korupt, KeKe Palmer and Raz-B too name a few, his first milestone in achieving a top hit single in 2007 with the song he produced for Lil’ Scrappy - Money in the bank! Yeah, Ike definitely took his money to the bank on that one with over million ring-tones sold to date.  But this is just the beginning for Ike Dirty who aspires to take his production company, ChartControl, to the top of very music genre chart with his hit singles.  This year Little Scrappy has invited him back into the studio for the next hit on his upcoming project.  Ying Yang Twinz asked him to “Drop” something on them producing their first single; a song kicking up the charts and Nelly has also requested to work with Ike on his upcoming project.  

Just as sure as he is the son of the multi-faceted icon Isaac Hayes, Ike Dirty is not only locking the music industry down when it comes to the producing game; he is also putting it down in all areas of the entertainment world.  ATL soundtrack was scored by none other than Ike Dirty with a majority of his songs on the soundtrack.  In addition, Ike is making great strides as a professional voiceover artist.  His credits include voiceovers for the NBA Team Atlanta Hawks, the Georgia Lottery, McDonald’s, Publix, American Airlines and Cadillac.  Ike Dirty’s talent can also be heard in the LeBron James PowerAde Comic at Flava23.com and as Cartoon Network's Aqua Teen Hunger Force character, the Broodwich.  Recently he surprised us with his writing ability and new radio show meets blog – www.dirtynthebeest.com.  So Ike definitely has in his blood the talent of his father and is here to guarantee his father’s legacy lives on.

Before his father’s passing, Ike had spoken to his father about remixing unreleased material of his.  This will prove how both of their production creativity will blend to create a new sound of the HAYES genius experience.  Ike will also ensure his family gets the ownership of his father’s masters of classic songs. 

To get a little more personal with Ike Dirty, visit his myspace page: www.myspace.com/isaachayes3

Kim Ellis, creator and CEO of KE Consulting and Marketing Solutions (KECMS), began her career in artist management in Spring 2004 and proceeded to become Sr. Project Manager for Atlanta Fever Magazine in August 2004. While with Atlanta Fever, she proved her ability to multi-task and worke d with other entities such as Stompin' Groundz Media Group, BikerGurlz Promotions, and assisted with the launch of Southern Faces Entertainment. In June 2005, Ellis became Sr. Operations Manager for BREAK Magazine, a newer publication in the market. Within 6 months, Ellis was chiefly instrumental in successfully nationally and internationally branding the magazine.
January 1, 2006, Ellis launched KE Consulting and Marketing Solutions to provide entertainment industry clientele with the connections and resources they need to begin, enhance, expand, and brand their respective organizations. Within the first year of business, Ellis has acquired It's Cool to be Smart "Single Parent Inistiative", Produced T.I. What You Know, S.E. GA Boys, Def Jam Artist Blood Raw, Grand Hustle Artist Alfamega, Slip N Slied artist Citty AKA Da Cookieman, Atlanta Hip Hop Film Festival, A-Town Day and Billboard R&B Hip Hop Conference & Awards as clients or projects with many more following. Ellis has received awards to include: Street Grinder of the Year by "Get em" Magazin in 2006, Atlanta Publicist of the Year in 2006 & 2007 by VP Hittmenn Dj VP SlipNSlide Street DJ and has been hand selectec by the southern Entertainment Awards committee to recieve the Impact Award in January 2008. The vision for KECMS is to continue to obtain diverse clientele with the similar results of succes. Ellis shows her diedicaion ot KECMS trough the time, effort, and attention to detail that she gives each and every project. With a tenured human resources background, Ellis is able to adapt to any environment she is placed in and communicate effectively. Whether negotiating contracts with other industry professionals, providing proper media exposure, or planning events, her experience has already proven to be effectiv. When asked about the goals she has for KE Consulting and Marketing Solutions, Kim says, "I want to get my name to the forefront of the entertainment industry and align myself with other prominent industry professionals so that KE consulting and Marketing Solustions becomes a familiar name for doing innovative entertainment business.

Atlanta native, Jen Farris, is a Public Relations manager and entrepreneur with an extensive background in radio, corporate marketing, music promotions, and music performing rights. She developed her media savvy working for such companies as Bank of America, MCA Records and The American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), where she co-produced live entertainment based indoor and outdoor events across the southeast region. 

After years of preparation in the creative arts world, ZDennis Media Group was established and promotes the creative arts projects through public relations, message development, interactive programming, and event management for both creative artists as well as institutions that support the arts. Clients have ranged from The Atlanta Ballet to Grammy-Award winning rap group The Nappy Roots with the ultimate mission to educate and excite diverse audiences about the creative arts as they are a powerful vehicle for social change.

Jen is a former HBCU college ‘queen’ hailing from Bennett College in Greensboro, NC where she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree with emphasis in Broadcast communications and later received her Master's Degree in Media Management from the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc, a board member on T.I.’s K.I.N.G. Foundation (Kids In Need of Giving), a charter member and 2007-08 VP of Public Relations for the Legacy Builders Toastmaster Club in Atlanta, GA, a former Atlanta Board Member for The National Association of Black Females in Music and Entertainment (NABFEME) was the 2008 chair for Atlanta Dogwood Festival Inc.’s Art in Blooms fundraising charity event.

Panelist bio to come.

Ms. Fancher received a B.A. from the University of Michigan and a J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School. She is active in many professional and community organizations. She currently serves as Co-Chair of the Unfair Competition - Trade Identity Committee of the ABA Intellectual Property Law Section and is a member of the Merchandising and Licensing Committee of the ABA Forum on the Entertainment and Sports Industries. In addition, she is a Board Member for Georgia Lawyers for the Arts. She has been featured as a "Georgia Rising Star" in Georgia SuperLawyers and
Atlanta Magazine.

Panelist bio to come.

Jay Harren began his career in the music industry in 1997 at Atlanta’s powerhouse alternative radio station 99X/WNNX where he was the music director of the station as well as founder and host of the critically and commercially acclaimed program Sunday School. In May of 2006 Jay left 99X, and began working as A&R Manager for SonyBMG’s Columbia Records where he has signed the bands Manchester Orchestra and Hey Monday.

Angela J. Henry, a senior financial executive with more than 17 years of expertise in taxation, accounting and business management, auditing, and process improvement is the CEO of The Alegna Group, Inc., an Atlanta based accounting firm specializing in providing services to companies and individuals in the entertainment and service industries. Angela holds both BBA and MBA degrees with honors in accounting and finance. She is a licensed CPA, a member of both the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Georgia Society of CPAs, a member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences and National Association of Black Female Executives in Music and Entertainment, a nationally sought after corporate professional, and an international financial speaker and professional vocalist.

She has been successful in saving tens of thousands of dollars in taxes, implementing financial systems and structures, and improving the cash management and business issues of her clients. Along with her corporate awards and successes, Angela has appeared in film, performed with top Christian music entertainers, and truly understands, from an insider’s perspective, the complexities and pitfalls of the entertainment business. Her combination of experience as a creative professional and financial strategist helps her to deliver a strong, experienced, yet unique approach to entertainment tax, accounting, budgeting, and business management.

On another note, Angela’s personal interests include vocal performance, foreign travel, snorkeling, fitness training, and networking.

Through The Alegna Group, Angela’s vision is to provide a fresh approach to entertainers and entertainment companies through service delivery based on trust, integrity, and confidentiality using ethical and sound business practices that will move clients forward to be financially strong, not just for the moment, but for life!

Christal Jordan-Mims is an award-winning author, journalist and media trainer as well as the President of Enchanted PR.  Enchanted PR is one of the leading entertainment PR boutiques in the southeast specializing in music, entertainment, and art. Since establishing Enchanted PR in Atlanta over 4 years ago, Christal has had the opportunity to work with some of the biggest artists in the business. Currently she manages her own clientele roster and is contracted as a media trainer to work with artists as they begin their journey towards stardom.  Christal's debut novel Under the Cherry Moon hit bookstores in January of 2006 and garnered a nomination for Cush City's best new author and was chosen as a Black Expression book club pick by over 10,000 bookclubs across the country.

In the summer of 2007, Christal was named one of Atlanta's "On the Cusp" entrepreneurs and was nominated for an SEA award for Best Music Industry Executive.  Christal also received an award for her outstanding achievements in PR in regards to sponsorships and media placements from Taylord Entertainment.  In the fall of 2007 the former talk show host returned to her roots and added radio host to her list of titles and she will join SlamJamz VP Mecca "Janol" Holmes for the newly added "Real Talk with Mecca and CC" in January of 2008 on AM 1380.

Christal has over 13 years experience in Public/Media Relations and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Communication with a minor in Public Relations and Literature from the University of Oklahoma.  Christal is also the founder of a t-shirt line entitled Caramelized that celebrates the legacy of strength, beauty and grace in women of color.

If there is an element of DJ’ing that Dj Judge Mental hasn’t done, then it hasn’t been created yet.  Atlanta based DJ Judge Mental takes the title of DJ as seriously as any earned professional title should be.  In his 20 year career as a DJ, he has covered every element and musical style of the art.  Dj Judge Mental began DJ’ing in Greenville, North Carolina while in college.  Quickly he created a monopoly on DJ’ing college parties throughout the city by having three mobile DJ systems, mixtapes in local record stores, managing the college radio station, and being a mix DJ/Personality on the college’s campus radio station.  With this momentum and access Judge Mental began producing remixes and soon got the attention of then LaFace A&R Kawan “KP” Prather.  Once in Atlanta, Judge Mental hit the streets hard with mix CDs and began to nurture what is now a strong foothold of relationships in the southern music scene.  As the popularity of Dirty South music rose, Judge Mental spun off another series of mix CDs under the title “Dirt Law”, which held unique on the mixtape circuit because of the non-stop mixing of new and exclusive Dirty South tracks.  Dirt Law has taken on a huge life of its own and has featured a who’s who of Southern artists as hosts and features.  “I like to focus on that hot artist that is ‘next-up’ to give them that extra push into the mainstream or that artist that has a fan base but needs more shine to get back in the light,” says Judge Mental. 

Artists that have collaborated with Judge Mental on his mix CD series include Nivea, Goodie Mob, Xscape, Rasheeda, B.G., Slick Pulla (CTE), Citty (SlipNSlide/Def Jam), and  Alfamega (Grand Hustle) to name a few.  

To this day, things continue to gravitate towards the Bluff City, especially in music. Considered by many to be the home of crunk rap music, Memphis has turned out a number of artists who have made a mark on the subgenre of Southern rap. But, to most, the man responsible for creating this strain of thugged-out hip hop is Al Kapone, a Memphis native who is following in the footsteps of his musical forefathers.

After years of attempting to make a name for himself, selling albums out of his trunk, doing odds-and-ends jobs to pay the bills and searching endlessly for the right opportunity, fate finally came knocking with the release of 2005’s “Hustle & Flow” movie soundtrack. Kapone recorded three tracks for the album with “Whoop That Trick” becoming an instant hit.

Shortly thereafter, in 2007, Kapone’s magical rise continued. With the release of the feature film, “Stomp the Yard,” Kapone once again was at the center of music production for a major movie. While Kapone has, finally, been recognized by music industry executives and peers for his stellar and unique work, it does not mean he will ever forget the roots from which he came. In an interview with the Washington Post, Kapone remarked, "…my career is a blessing. I've never sold a whole lot of albums, but I've made enough money to live and take care of my family and not have to have a job. There's a lot of people doing jobs they hate; I was one of them. And I don't want to go back."

Kapone has been a trailblazer from the beginning and his latest work is no exception. It centers on bringing the diversified musical generations of Memphis together on one album. He hopes to create a “new live hip-hop genre (that inspires) a new alternative urban scene” by combining the biggest names of Memphis’s yesteryear with the rising stars of today’s Southern rap. As a testament to his creativity and ability to make new opportunities, Kapone will reach out to BB King, Al Green and others for this new project entitled, “Rock-n-Soul Rap Star.”

Beyond that, Kapone became the first hip hop artist to be named president of the Memphis Chapter of the Recording Academy, responsible for the Grammy Awards. Also, he is working on a new web film, “5 Dollar Cover,” in conjunction with MTV and Craig Brewer.

Panelist bio to come.

A founding member of Litwak & Havkin, Mr. Litwak specializes in entertainment law. He has extensive expertise in negotiating and drafting a wide variety of contracts relating to the entertainment industry, representing filmmakers, film and TV producers, directors, writers, digital content providers, actors, models, personal managers, recording artists, music producers, songwriters as well as music production and management companies.

Margaret R. Marshall concentrates her practice on counseling clients in the media and entertainment industries. Her practice involves structuring transactions and advising clients in all aspects of their businesses, including the acquisition, protection, enforcement, monetization and sale of intellectual property rights. Margaret has significant experience in representing companies in connection with entity formation, joint venture agreements, debt and equity financing, corporate governance and shareholder and member relations.

POWER ENTERTAINMENT GROUP an Atlanta based company, originated in Saginaw, Michigan, has been in business for over 15 years.  Founder and entrepreneur, Leroy McMath, had a vision and interest in the music industry and launched his idea in 1988 by way of a progressive dance club called "The Scene".  The club garnered a statewide reputation as a starting ground for rising talent.  When the group "Ready for the World" premiered in McMath's club, his innate talent as promoter and producer surfaced.  McMath invested his personal savings and took the young group under his wing.  The talented R&B and Rap artist surrounding him led the way to McMath finding Rolls Voice Records and signing artists.  The roster included:  MC Breed, DFC, Gangsta Pat, and the S'Kool Girlz.

This early label grew into POWER ENTERTAINMENT GROUP and McMath entered into a distribution deal with Atlanta based Ichiban Records.  Through Ichiban, Power launched McBreed's first hit, "Ain't No Future in Yo' Frontin", making Breed a star and selling 1,000,000 copies of what is now a rap classic.  Power's roster expanded with the addition of Spice-1 on Triad Records.  The artist was subsequently signed to Jive Records, and released three Gold recordings in succession.  Power's reputation continued to grow in status now as an independent watched by the majors.  The company began a label deal with Assault/Atlantic Records and issued the debut recording by DFC.  The album met with impressive success, selling over 400,000 copies and climbing to #7 on the Billboard R&B Album Chart.  The Label boasted a diverse roster of Rap and R&B artist including veteran rapper MC Breed, and R&B Diva Cherrelle.  In the company's history, POWER RECORDS artists have graced the Billboard charts and have collectively sold millions of records.

In 1997, the hit single "Da Dip" by Freak Nasty sold more than a million copies, was nominated for Best dance Video by MTV, and nominated Billboard's Top Singles chart for 56 weeks.  This huge chart and sales success helped placed POWER RECORDS among the top independent labels. 

As an independent, POWER RECORDS continued to release successful recordings.  In addition to the smash hit "Da Dip" by Freak nasty, McMath had success with new music by multi-million seller 12 Gauge (Dunkie Butt), albums by Hard Boyz and launched new careers for Jake the Flake and Ghetto Mafia.

POWER PICTURES, INC ventured into the movie field and released such movies as:  "Dollar" starring rapper MC Breed, newcomer Shannon Greer and comedian/radio personality, Ryan Cameron and comedian, BruceBruce, "Deep in the Game", and Rap-The Movie".  "Dollar" shipped over 10,000 in video with no DVD release to rental and retail outlets.  McMath continues to keep a hand in several different projects and has been involved with such films as: "Fled", "Booty Call",  "Walter", a weekly series that aired on the Fox Network and soon to be release "Holla:I'm Just Frankie co star of the #1 Reality show on BET Keyisha Cole" the way it is".

McMath has quietly earned his stripes, often as a behind the scenes mastermind in support of the talent he recognizes.  He reveals his story in his book, "The Music Game" Playing to Win.  In a greedy, money-driven, double-crossing business, McMath exposes the rites of passage necessary to survive in the entertainment industry.  He shares both his mistakes and his victories ~ it's a wealth of information for any newcomer to the industry.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Zack and Kenneth have been producing, recording, and mixing rock bands together since 1998.  When Zack and Kenneth were in high school, they began recording bands in Zack's parents basement including their own band they were in at the time.  Zack played guitar, and Kenneth played drums.  In 1999, both Zack and Kenneth began interning at Tree Sound studios in Atlanta.  In 2000,  Zack left the studio to attend the University of Georgia for a viola performance major and Kenneth left to attend the recording program at Middle Tennessee State University.  When Zack decided that playing viola as a profession wasn't for him, he left the University of Georgia and came back to Tree Sound to take on a career as a producer/engineer.  Zack worked with artists such as Collective Soul, Usher, OutKast, Ludacris, Whitney Houston, and Alterbridge.  Kenneth graduated MTSU in 2004 and came back to TreeSound and joined forces with Zack to start their own production company, ZK Productions.

Panelist bio to come.

Zack and Kenneth have been producing, recording, and mixing rock bands together since 1998.  When Zack and Kenneth were in high school, they began recording bands in Zack's parents basement including their own band they were in at the time.  Zack played guitar, and Kenneth played drums.  In 1999, both Zack and Kenneth began interning at Tree Sound studios in Atlanta.  In 2000,  Zack left the studio to attend the University of Georgia for a viola performance major and Kenneth left to attend the recording program at Middle Tennessee State University.  When Zack decided that playing viola as a profession wasn't for him, he left the University of Georgia and came back to Tree Sound to take on a career as a producer/engineer.  Zack worked with artists such as Collective Soul, Usher, OutKast, Ludacris, Whitney Houston, and Alterbridge.  Kenneth graduated MTSU in 2004 and came back to TreeSound and joined forces with Zack to start their own production company, ZK Productions.

Lou Plaia spent 12 years at Atlantic Records where he started in Finance, segued into Marketing Administration and then became VP Marketing and Strategic Planning.  Then when Jason Flom re-launched Lava Records, an imprint of Atlantic, he helped him build it as his VP of Marketing and Artist Development for 4 years.  He was involved with the marketing for such artists as Kid Rock, Simple Plan, O.A.R., Uncle Kracker, Trans-Siberian Orchestra and many others.  He was also responsible for negotiating strategic corporate partnerships such as Nascar’s Chevy Rock n Roll 400, Schick’s Intuition Tour, Disney’s Grad Night and dozens of other sponsorship deals.

“During my last few years at the label, I saw the writing on the wall.  The traditional model of marketing music had to change.  The # of unit sales you could expect from even the biggest artists was dropping significantly and couldn’t support the marketing investments we were making.  The industry needed to evolve: 

• we needed to take advantage of the internet and needed to control the online presence instead of having a social network control it for us. 

• we needed to develop and “brand” an artist tear round and not count on doing traditional release marketing which meant promoting a few weeks before the album drops and a few months after.

• and maybe most importantly, we needed to develop new revenue streams in the form of licensing beyond the traditional licensing methods.  We needed to know the data so we could broker that artist’s influence to brands like Coke and Converse.” 

He decided to start a new style of music marketing company which required an odd blend of music expertise and technology.  There were a lot of companies that were building small online tools and music discovery sites.  He wanted to build a marketing platform that took advantage of the syndication of the viral capabilities of the web and the measurement and data capabilities inherent in technology. 

He partnered with a few friends who had built two successful web based technology companies centered on marketing.  Together, they founded ReverbNation. 

On October 31, 2006 ReverbNation was launched.  Our mission is to help musicians grow their top lines in a music world that has been turned on its head. Today we have over 230k registered artists.  Using our technology, those artists manage over 7 million fans.  Collectively, the artists touch over 29million unique users/month which comes from 250million impressions/month.  The content hosted on ReverbNation now lives on 1.5MM URL’s.

We do not view ourselves as a Fan site or a widget company. We view ourselves as a marketing platform or a CRM application. We provide many of the traditional music marketing services including low cost digital distribution, email management, street teaming, our real value is our ability to take the collective influence of these 230k artist and broker their help to brands that are looking to access the very fan bases of the artists.

We share all of our revenue with the artists.  As an example, recently we did a deal with Rich & Skinny Jeans where the artists are paid for allowing Rich & Skinny to ride their message on the artist to fan interactions such as emails and widgets.  Artist have the right to opt-in or not and if they opt-in, they share the revenue with us.  If they decide to not be part of this, they will have no branding on their marketing tools and thus share none of the revenue from that particular sponsorship.

The key to providing credible online solutions to brands is the ability to show the artists overlap with the targeted brand demographic as it relates to the artist fan base.  The ReverbNation platform provides the data needed to support the brand offerings.

The outcome is a new, revolutionary music ecosystem with the musicians no longer at the bottom of the food chain. Music 2.0 is here, and ReverbNation is leveling the playing field.

Panelist bio to come.

Glen Pridgen is a producer, songwriter and musician. In 2004 he founded theartist management and production company, Angry Face Music. AFM's current roster includes The Beggars' Guild, Greg Hester, Sun Sets East and The SiXXis. Glen has directed and produced several full length concert DVD's as well as a nationally released Yoga DVD ("Yoga Dose"). In January of 2008 Glen co-founded Best Dang Songs, a music publishing and song placement company with partners Greg Lee and Nicole Jurovics. Their catalogue includes songs from Rock And Roll Hall of Famer Randall Bramblett (Traffic, Steve Winwood), Bobby Pridgen, Brian Collins, Cory Sellers, Crawford Adam, Tim O'Donovan and many more. Glen also serves as a consultant with "Two Wheel Driver", a project fusing motorcycles, golf, and music to raise money for local cancer causes.

Prior to 2004 Glen served as CIO of a national healthcare management company and brings 20 years of business experience to his passion for music.

CLIENTS The Beggars' Guild (Rock and Roll Band) Sun Sets East (Country Rock Band) The SiXXis (Avant-garde Pop Band) Shannon Pengelly (Producer, Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals) Eric Frampton (Producer, Keyboards, Vocals)

Panelist bio to come.

Chris Rickwood is an award winning composer known for creating
dramatic musical scores for video games, film, and television.
Rickwood's work can be heard worldwide on a variety of mediums for clients such as Activision, THQ, Microsoft, Cartoon Network,
Capcom, and Nintendo. He began his career by composing intense
orchestral cues for several game titles including Evil Dead: Hail to the King, BloodRayne, and Maximo: Ghosts to Glory. Since then,
Rickwood has composed over 20 scores for Cartoon Network New
Media, contributed music and sound for several PC games including Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Civil War: Bull Run, and The Apprentice: Los Angeles, and experimented with other gaming mediums such as mobile phones and video poker machines.
In 2006, Rickwood was invited to the team of composers hired to
produce the new Monday Night Football theme for ESPN. More of his music was released on Associated Production Music's Endgame
music library and has been placed in television broadcasts for ABC
Family, G4TV, and Fox. Recently, Rickwood was asked to contribute music to the CD release, Best of the Best: A Tribute To Game Music, alongside some of the premier talent in the video game industry.

Currently, Rickwood is working on several projects including Hi-Rez Studio's spy-fi MMO, Global Agenda, a next generation RPG for
Microsoft, and other titles coming to XBox 360, PS3, and the Wii.
Rickwood serves on the Advisory Board for the Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.). Local to Atlanta, he serves on the Advisory Board of the International Game Developers Association Atlanta Chapter and the Board of Directors for the Georgia Game Developers Association. Always open to sharing his knowledge, Rickwood participates on the Advisory Board for Atlantic International University's (AIU) Game Design program and the
Advisory Committee for the Art Institute of Atlanta's Game Art and Design Program.

Panelist bio to come.

Responsible for identifying and breaking these unsigned acts and hit songs while at Orlando Alternative Rock station WJRR:

• Collective Soul, “Shine”
• Seven Mary Three (“Cumbersome”)
• Tabitha’s Secret “3 AM” = Matchbox 20

After breaking a string of unsigned bands at WJRR, Atlantic Records hired Stevo as an A&R guy to find and develop bands for them full time. Stevo’s signings include platinum rockers Shinedown and the currently exploding Paramore.

Panelist bio to come.

Michelle Roche is an 18-year veteran of the music industry, focusing on public relations and marketing. Her experience includes spearheading the publicity departments at five record labels: Capricorn Records, Restless Records, Velocette Records, Ichiban Records and Sky Records. She has worked with artists from almost every genre of music as well as movie soundtracks, books, and children's audio books. As an independent publicist, her clients have included Warner Bros., Cartoon Network, Geffen Records, and more. Her current roster includes Chuck Leavell, George Winston, The Lee Boys, Blue Mountain, Ken Will Morton, and more. She is currently based in Athens, Georgia, where she operates Michelle Roche Media Relations.

Panelist bio to come.

-22+ year in the music industry -Companies worked for Warner Bros/Reprise Records, Atlantic Records, Elektra Records, Island Records
-Currently Southeast/National Field Director for Capitol Records
-Founder of Non-Profit "Music Education Group, Inc."
-Serves on the DeKalb Workforce Development Youth Council & board member on Clifford "T.I." Harris KING Foundation
-Co-Founder of Boldwear Clothing, LLC
-Founding member and Deacon of Power In Christ Ministries
-Married 16 years to Dawn Ross

Cappriccieo M. Scates is Associate Director of Writer/Publisher Relations for SESAC. Prior to joining SESAC, he was Director of Operations for PM Music Group where he represented songwriters whose credits included: Michael Jackson and Beyonce. He is also former Director of National Radio Promotions for Ruffhouse Records and has been responsible for promoting the careers of artists such as: Fugees, and Boyz II Men.

Frank Tremayne Oliphant A.K.A. Sekay (Pronounced C-K) was born Jan 4th 19?? in St. Petersburg, FL. At the age of 5 he started singing. While being brought up in the church choir, he fell in love with music. Though it has always been a passion for him, like most people, he still had to overcome his fear of performing in front of an audience. “My aunt had to pay me $20.00 to sing in church because I was so nervous,” states SEKAY. Following high school, he joined the Marine Corps to escape the harsh realities of the poverty that plagued his neighborhood. While serving in the Corps in 1995, he was the passenger of a near fatal car accident that almost claimed his life. After several months of rehabilitation, he was released with an honorable medical discharge. “I just knew GOD had a bigger plan for me, cause he kept me here, maybe to spread my wings and excel through my music,” Implies SEKAY.

After many ups and downs, he decided to trade in the heartaches and headaches of a struggling artist, and focused his energy and GOD given abilities on his pen and his creativity. But not the way many would have imagined if they had there wish of him being an ARTIST, but as a SONGWRITER. Who knew that more than two decades later he would find himself knee deep in the music business and on the road week end and week out working with some of the industries brightest stars.

At the end of 2003, Sekay signed his first publishing deal with Balewa Muhammad/Monsoon Music. (Now a member of the sensational writing team, THE CLUTCH).

They moved up to the Poconos, in PA and turned the basement of the house into a full recording studio and SEKAY would also engineer all the projects. For the next two years the plan was set in motion. Project after project, and placement after placement, he was given the chance to show his songwriting abilities for many of the industries artist and producers ranging from: J. Holiday, Jaheim, Kay Gee, Co Stars, The Temptations, Urban Mystic, Charlie Wilson, Noel Gourdin (The River), Trackaddixx, Stargate, Justice League, Platinum Bros,NO ID, Co Stars, and many more. "He’s ready to get some shine,” says his Manager Derrick Price (Deisel Ent.)

After a few years of guidance and development, he decided to move to Atlanta to further his career as an established SONGWRITER and expand into the PRODUCTION aspects of the business by forming his own company COLLAB MINDZ. COLLAB MINDZ was established to put together a collaboration of SONGWRITERS and become another powerhouse WRITING TEAM that could specialize in Artist Development, Vocal Production, and Song Placement. “I'M ALWAYS UP FOR COLLABING WITH OTHER HOT SONGWRITERS,” states Sekay.

Armed with the music industry’s hottest managing and production duo (Derrick Price & Damion Horne) they are positioning Sekay to become the next NAME all the labels have buzzing in their ears for records. Still not convinced? Well SEKAY has a story to tell…

Kelvin Seldon is a music executive with nearly 15 years of experience in the industry, both in the independent and major label music spheres. As an artist and skilled studio engineer, Kelvin first hit the scene when he was featured on the Bubba Sparxxx “Dark Days and Bright Nights” album.  Experiencing the issues that artists face first hand, Kelvin has dedicated his life to the development of the independent music industry. 
Utilizing his degree in Information Technology, along with his knowledge of the business, Kelvin co-created SoundLoad Music.com.  As the Head of Research and Development, Kelvin is responsible for developing new features for the company’s distribution platform.     

SoundLoad Music is an innovative website and service allowing artists and record labels to create their own digital retail platform.  The company offers download cards, digital download players with commerce set-ups, digital single and full album deliveries, as well as ring tones and text campaigns.  With a unique redemption process that reports sales as well as collects valuable back-end data from consumers.  SoundLoad Music is quickly becoming the brand leader in digital distribution and is growing to be the new "GO-TO" company to gain maximum impact and value in a volatile market. 

Former COO of LaFace Records, MARK SHIMMEL has been involved in the careers of many major recording artists including Avril Lavigne, Outkast, and Usher. In 2004, Mark started Mark Shimmel Music, a Music & Marketing consulting firm, whose clients include Turner Networks, Kennedy Center Honors, and Corona Beer.

The dictionary defines Phenom "A person of phenomenal ability." Therefore, it makes absolute sense that the name of Adonis Shropshire aka "A.D. The Phenom" is on his way to becoming the hottest songwriter in the music business. With over 50 million records sold under his belt, this extraordinary songwriter is here to stay. The twenty-nine year old three time Grammy award-winning songwriter, producer, and arranger was born and raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

As a teenager, Adonis moved to Atlanta Georgia to start his musical aspirations. Adonis got his start singing and writing for a local r&b group in Atlanta. When the group disbanded in 2000, Adonis decided to switch gears and focus on his songwriting. He started writing songs for other recording artist. This propelled his manager former Rowdy Records executive Kirk Woods (The Woodland Entertainment Group) to set up a meeting with famed producer and CEO of Bad Boy Worldwide Diddy. Since Adonis had no recorded songs, Diddy put the young writer to the test. Diddy summoned Adonis to write a song on the spot. After his completion, Diddy loved the song so much, he placed the song on his then current project, pop icon Jennifer Lopez's "J.LO". This was Adonis' first songwriting credit. This prompted Diddy to sign Adonis to his "Hit Men Squad."  "Once Diddy saw my writing abilities, he hurried and signed me to his production and songwriting team," states Adonis.

Soon after, Adonis started to generate a buzz within the music industry. Outside of the "Hit Men Squad," Adonis began to collaborate with up coming producer Bryan Michael Cox. This ushered in other opportunities from major recording acts. Adonis was commissioned to write for a host of platinum artist, Usher's "My Boo" Featuring Alicia Keys, Beyonce's "Summertime" featuring Diddy and Wu-Tang Clan's Ghostface Killah, Ciara's "And I", Diddy's " I Need a Girl  Part 1 and 2,"  " Chris Brown's "Say GoodBye," and Mariah Carey's monster comeback album "The Emancipation of Mimi" which earned Adonis a Grammy Award for "Album of the year"

There's no doubt that Adonis is on the horizon of becoming the next hot songwriter. Look for Adonis to surprise the music business in 2008. Adonis just completed work on several major acts Chris Brown's monster sophomore album, pop icon Celine Dion, J Holiday, Mariah Carey, Kelly Rowland, Cassie, and Mary J. Blige. In addition, Adonis is currently in the studio with his new female r&b trio Melrose. "Melrose are incredibly gifted and charismatic, and have tremendous potential to break nationwide and become stars on the level of other female major recording artist. I am taking my time with the Melrose project. I want make sure every little detail is perfect," states Adonis. By the sound of his latest projects, Adonis has elevated to a new musical plateau. 

Cliff is the lead singer of Alabama based pop/rock independent success story Colour Academy, Founder of Rectifier Music Group, and producer manager for Weeman Entertainment.

As an artist, Cliff has toured over 250 shows with Colour Academy over the last 18 months and just released the band's sophomore effort "Move With the Tide" produced by Atlanta multi-genre guru Billy Hume (Rehab, Nas, Lil John).

As the owner of RMG, Cliff has orchestrated multiple large scale events including a charity event in 2007 that raised over $100,000 for his hometown high school which was destroyed by a tornado earlier in the year. The company is currently developing a new music focused online social networking initiative and expanding it's production and promotion branch.

As a producer manager for Weeman Entertainment Cliff has assisted Founder and CEO Michael Weeman in shaping one of music's premier boutique producer management companies with a roster that features renowned producers in genres across the board including Billy Hume (Rich Boy, Ying Yang Twins, Shop Boyz), Matt Malpass (Copeland, Lydia, Rookie of the Year), Matt Goldman (Underoath, Cartel, Copeland), Russ-T Cobb (Avril Lavign, Butch Walker, The Academy Is...), and Dale Penner (Nickelback, Jonas, Holly McNarland).

DIVAdend Entertainment is a solid, creative professional limited liability corporation established in 1996 by its sole owner, ChiQuita Simms.  Raising funds and producing stellar events for organizations such as the National Kidney Foundation and the YWCA created a demand for her expertise by many, inspiring concentration on entrepreneurship full-time in spring 2001.  Simms has been credited with raising multi millions of dollars for the implementation and continuation of much needed social service programs.
  
Dubbed as a trendsetter in entertainment and infamous for branding signature events, Simms is noted for the successful weekly production of The Alternative Happy Hour, Poetry, Coffee and Jazz,that birthed the existing poetry movement in New Orleans;The Fashion Fetish Event Series, The Professional Mixer Fundraising Series, Professional Public Relations 101 and That's What's Up, an annual black history contest for Louisiana high school students. 

DIVAdend Entertainment's coordination of summer youth programs for NBA Champion, Jaren Jackson opened doors for event production within the sports arena. DIVAdend Entertainment has represented former Buffalo Bill Raion Hill for the Rise with Raion Foundation and NBA Indiana Pacer Jonathon Bender for Akright Records.

Simms is proud of her role in the election and re-election of noted politicians in Las Vegas and New Orleans, proving DIVAdend Entertainment to be a full-service company avoiding limits and boundaries. Successes include Las Vegas Speaker Pro Temp Wendell Williams, New Orleans Civil Court Judge Kern Reese, and New Orleans Mayor of Mayors Marc Morial.
  
Respected in the entertainment world, DIVAdend Entertainment has promoted hundreds of concerts and shows for top hip hop and rhythm and blues artists & Simms has and/or currently served as manager, stylist, image consultant and publicist to names such as MAC, Linda Tapp for Soulja Slim,BG and The Chopper City Boyz, and C-Murder, Actor/Comedian Pierre, DJ Mel B Easy & new face of R and B  Chris DeShield, One Chance, Granddaddy Souf, Lil Troy, Comedian Damon Williams, and O So Krispie have all garnered media attention due to Simms expertise. 

Co Pastor& Debra B. Morton of Greater St. Stephen Full Gospel Baptist Church/Women of Excellence Ministry are among the internationally renowned religious leaders who utilize the services of DIVAdend Entertainment to market a host of spiritual events that have been viewed and attended by millions, on location and via television.

Simms is also the managing owner of ChiQ Weddings by ChiQuita Simms, an affiliate events company under the DIVAdend Entertainment umbrella.
  
Now in it's seventh year, DIVAdend Entertainment boasts providing stellar public relations services for the Zulu Mardi Gras Krewe, Jeremy Miller for Down and Source Magazines, Black Entertainment Television,ODS Magazine, AE Entertainment Group for the Jena 6 Empowerment Concert, The Dirty South Stop The Violence Movement & The Chestnut Brothers, the PBS Broadcast of the Las Vegas Vocal Extravaganza In Black Urban, Apparel Pioneer Karl Kani, Azzure, Indigo Red, Imperial Junkie, Schmack, Gino Green Global, and Miskeen Originals, Asada Clothing Company, and Actor/Comedian/Visual Artist/Fashion Designer/Nationally Syndicated Radio Personlity/Renissanceman J Anthony Brown.
 
A pillar in the New Orleans community, Simms serves on various Boards and Committees for progress as well as a civil rights activist representing the New Orleans hip hop community. Simms is most proud of organizing artists to call for action againsst music piracy among other important issues effecting local New Orleans entertainers.  ChiQuita Simms has been honored as a Top Single Professional of New Orleans, received the Scoop Jones Trailblazer Award, not once but twice, and has been honored as one of New Orleans City Business Women of The Year
 
The single mother of one son, DeSean, who at seventeen is already a professional deejay, party promoter, graphics and fashion designer and most recently, has launched Jump Fresh an online magazine, Simms finds time to add motivational speaking and professional writing to her list of things to do. Earning a by-line in New Orleans Data News Weekly launched other writing opportunities for the multi-talented media mogul, but currently Simms will only regularly ink her opinion in DOWN Magazine.

In the recent wake of Hurricane Katrina, Simms a New Orleans evacuee currently living in Atlanta, has served CNN as an guest commentator/debator on various issues (endorsement and outlook on 2006 Mayors race, Mardi Gras Boycott, Price Gouging on Rental Property in New Orleans) that effect evacuees displaced in 47 states. 

In Atlanta, Simms has become one of the most results-oriented publicists in entertainment.  Within a year she made a name for herself by producing weekly NOLA (New Orleans Louisiana) Nites while still living in a FEMA hotel room.  Rap artist and former client BG donated a club performance that was sponsored by Athlete's Foot, Fame & Supreme stores owner Isom Lowman and the rest as they say is history! 

Establishing herself as the premiere publicist, Simms prides herself on being the first to introduce what''s next and new to the press, the public and her industry peers.  

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Hailing from the notorious streets of Flint, Michigan, the cocky Leo admits the education his mother bestowed upon him and his siblings not only prepared him for life in general, but intellectually surpassed any classroom lessons his teachers feigned to impart.

He not only aced I.Q. tests, melted his share of Midwest hearts, but was a star on the basketball courts-for all intensive purposes, the A-typical hoop dream seemed to be the fate for the charismatic baller who deemed himself invincible.  Yet, instead of completing the prescribed rehab for torn ligaments in his knee during the summer of his sophomore year, the stubborn youth ditched his crutches, headed the other side of town and ended up in an altercation where he sustained severe head injuries. Even with 200+ stitches, the only thing on his mind was revenge.

In a move that would perhaps seal his fate and put him on his destiny’s course; his mother made a firm decision to send him south to live with his older brother in South Carolina. The rambunctious teen was looking for something to get in to when he met a local DJ and began working on beats and eventually recorded a demo that landed in the hands of the brass at one of music’s “Big Four”. Within weeks of finishing the novice project, he found himself in New York signing a songwriting deal, relocating Atlanta, moving into his own crib and writing 15 songs a month, anonymously for the next 10 years. He spent the remainder of his teens and early 20’s learning the ropes of professional songwriting, penning historical hits, honing his production skills, working at Atlanta’s top radio station and keeping his ear to the streets.

Although his upbringing in Flint exposed him to some hardcore experiences, his stint as a ghostwriter taught him some corporate game as well. He enjoyed having the fly pad in the dirty south and the monthly deposits, but realized the flipside to the coin when one of his songs became a mega commercial success and his credit on the project was simply stated as; staff writer and the regular deposits suddenly seemed like pennies. While he was well aware of the anonymity aspect of his agreement, it was still a hard pill to swallow…and as much as he may have resented the situation, he couldn’t stop the lyrics from flowing from his head and heart.

Once his contract was satisfied, he continued to write and produce music, but began to focus on his own arsenal of heat. Now he utilizes his know-how and contacts to broker production deals and features and consults local acts through his indie label, Major Independent. In 2006, he Executive Produced and scored the More Than An Athlete spoken word CD for NBA Washington Wizard forward, Etan Thomas and was the Musical Director for Robert Townsend’s Spoken, for  the Black Family Channel in 2005.

In the vein he calls R&G [rhythm & gangsta], Kenyatta Poole aka Mick Starr is coming to collect on a style that he claims to have originated over 15 years ago during his stint as a ghostwriter. When execs feared that R&B lovers and rap fans wouldn’t embrace his songs that combined the genres, the innovative maestro was ahead of his time.

Now with the mainstream success of would-be R&G artists like the multi-platinum R. Kelly and Akon & newcomer T-Pain, Mick Starr is compelled to demonstrate his contemporary vision and mastery of the hybrid style.

Much like successful songwriters-turned recording artists such as Babyface and Neyo and producers turned performers like; Pharrell and Kanye West, Mick Starr is not only preparing to come out from behind the pen and the board to drop his first official release; Starr Struck, but will soon grace the silver screen…the undeniable ladies’ man was hand selected by lauded film producers to star in the upcoming biopic about the life and death of famed author Donald Goines.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.

Panelist bio to come.