June is BLACK MUSIC MONTH! I am thrilled to announce something I’ve been developing for months now:

The Mechanical Licensing Collective and Nashville Music Equality presents For The Culture: Empowering Black Music Creators to Achieve Beyond Reach

🗓 Tuesday, June 21st
⏰ 10am to 6pm
📍 The Mechanical Licensing Collective (Nashville)

Join us for this one-day summit celebrating the evolution of Black Music and its unique and ever-growing impact on the music industry. The event will feature panels designed specifically for Black music creators that both explore creative business strategies and examine the overall royalty landscape, networking opportunities for attendees and a host of live music performances.

◾️AGENDA◾️

10:00am – Check-In

10:30am-11:00am – Opening Discussion: “How Did We Get Here? A Coffee Conversation on the Evolution of Black Music” – The day will kick-off with a conversation to set the tone for the events ahead. Grab a cup of coffee and sit in as three music industry executives discuss the influence of African Americans on popular music. What’s in a genre? Looking to the evolution from Ragtime > Blues > Jazz > R&B > Rock & Roll > Hip-Hop; the commercialization of Black music and the exploitation of Black artists; and more.

Panelists:
• Dae Bogan (Moderator) – Head of Third-Party Partnerships, The Mechanical Licensing Collective and Billboard Digital Power Player
• Brennen Boose – Senior Manager of Marketing and Communications National Museum of African American Music
• Shannon Sanders – Executive Director of Creative, BMI Nashville and 3X GRAMMY Award-Winning Producer

11:15am-12:15pm – “Breaking Through the Noise: Creative Business Strategies for Black Music Creators”

Panelists:
• Shannon Sanders (Moderator) – Executive Director of Creative, BMI Nashville and 3X GRAMMY Award-Winning Producer
• Derek Minor, Grammy Award-winning artist and producer. Co-Founder of We Own Now as well as hip-hop record label Reflection Music Group (RMG)
• Mimi McCarley, Founder of Collab Music Network & Co-Founder of Nashville is Not Just Country Music and We Own Now

12:30pm-1:30pm – “Black Dollars: Unlocking U.S. Digital Music Royalties for Black Music Creators” – Be prepared to take notes and ask questions as this informative panel of music business experts dive into the fundamentals (copyright ownership and publishing), royalty streams (interactive, non-interactive, downloads), post-MMA era rights and entitlements, songwriter challenges, Digital Music Royalties Landscape, and more.

Panelists:
• Dae Bogan (Moderator) – Head of Third-Party Partnerships, The Mechanical Licensing Collective and Billboard Digital Power Player 2019
• Alandis Brassel – Entertainment Attorney, Manager, Assistant Professor of Music Business – University of Memphis
• Cheryl Potts – CEO, Cleerkut Royalty
• George Monger – CEO, Connect Music

1:30pm – 2:30pm – Networking Lunch sponsored by BMI Nashville

2:30pm-4:30pm – The Black Opry Experience – A conversation with the founder of Black Opry, artist conversations, and acoustic performances. Hosted by Gina Miller (SVP & General Manager, MNRK Music) and Kortney Toney (Marketing, Inclusion & Outreach Manager, Naxos of America)

4:30pm-6pm – Closing Reception sponsored by The MLC

Members of The MLC can learn more and reserve your spot at http://www.themlc.com/fortheculture