CMJ Music Marathon had a record-breaking
10,000 registrants to its 22nd annual music conference held in New York City from October 30-November 2. In addition, over 60,000 consumers attended the Marathon's
nightly showcases, which offered hundreds of performances at over 65 venues
in Manhattan and Brooklyn.
For over two decades the music festival/seminar/trade show has showcased
performances by artists drawn from a wide variety of genres. The 2002 line-up featured some of the industry's brightest
up and comers as well as several of the music world's most distinguished and
renowned acts including Foo Fighters, Sigur Ros, Jurassic 5, Box Car Racer,
Bright Eyes, Thursday, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and David Cross. Additional
highlights from the nighttime potion of the Marathon included the Opening
Night Kick-Off Party with performances by Robert Randolph &The Family Band,
The Soundtrack of Our Lives, Radio 4, and Northern State as well as the
exclusive Closing Night Party, which featured the Chemical Brothers.
Live music, however, was only part of the story at this year's Music
Marathon. During the day, attendees found an extensive exhibition area,
offering music and multi-media-related products and services including
presentations from Philips, AOL Music, Much Music, Verve Records and Virgin
Megastore. More than 50 panels discussed the hotly contested issues facing
artists and the music business including Webcasting and CARP, Less Than Zero
– The Value of Content in a Digital World, Content Protection in the Digital
Era and The Seven Year Itch – An examination of artist labor issues now in
consideration before state legislatures.
The 2002 daytime programming
line-up also included Q&A sessions with recording artists Tori Amos and
Johnny Marr, a meet and greet with Jurassic 5 and a live performance stage,
which featured performances from artists such as Triumph the Insult Comic
Dog, Polyphonic Spree and Ugly Casanova.
Also, new to CMJ's daytime schedule was the addition of the Policy Track
panel series, which examined the industry's current technology issues and
legislative policies and their effect on today's business and marketplace.
On hand for the debates were a diverse group of executives from all corners
of the industry including, Cary Sherman, president of the Recording Industry
Association of America, Amy Harmon, technology reporter for the New York
Times, Evan Harrison, AOL Music's executive director Music Industry
Relations, David Goldberg, VP and general manager of Yahoo!, Danny Goldberg,
chairman and CEO, Artemis Records, L. Londell McMillan, general counsel of
Artist Empowerment Coalition/Entertainment Lawyer, Fred Cannon, vice
president, Government Relations, BMI and Bill Thomas, chief of staff for
ASCAP.
