MAYOR’S OFFICE OF MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT (MOME) AND A2IM JOIN TO CELEBRATE THE LAUNCH OF INDIE WEEK
JUNE 6th, 2017 TO BE PROCLAIMED “AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF INDEPENDENT MUSIC DAY” IN NYC
Today, representatives from the Mayor’s office and the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) will gather at the iconic Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural and Educational Center to celebrate the launch of A2IM’s Indie Week. The event will also feature a proclamation ceremony honoring A2IM by declaring the day as “American Association of Independent Music Day” in New York City.
At the ceremony, A2IM CEO Richard James Burgess will introduce Julie Menin, Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME), who will present the proclamation. For years, A2IM has been a vocal advocate for the independent music community, helping to level the playing field between independent labels and music industry juggernauts. The nonprofit has worked tirelessly to empower labels and artists in the independent music world, assisting them with getting airplay and media coverage, as well as fair payment when their music is streamed or played. It is for these steadfast efforts that A2IM is being recognized.
The proclamation comes at the launch of A2IM’s Indie Week, happening June 5-8, and New York Music Month. Indie Week is designed to provide education, inspiration, and networking opportunities to artists and labels within the independent music community. The four-day extravaganza of panels and workshops will feature a diversity of music industry hard-hitters and influencers, from Pandora CEO and Founder Tim Westergren and Music Confidential creator Susan Butler to SoundExchange President and CEO Michael Huppe.
A2IM is proud that the American Association of Independent Music Day proclamation, as well as Indie Week itself, will be hosted at the Clemente, right in the heart of the arts community in New York City’s historic Lower East Side. The Clemente’s celebration of culture and diversity is very much aligned with the variety and creativity within the independent music world. A2IM is pleased to partner with the Clemente and share in its vision.
The Mayor’s office is particularly excited that this event falls at the start of New York Music Month (presented in partnership by the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment and NY is Music). New York Music Month is the first-ever citywide celebration of New York’s diverse and thriving music sector.
For more information about Indie Week registration and to view the extensive lineup of speakers and exciting panel topics, please visit https://a2im.org/event/indie-week-2017.
To find out more about New York Music Month, please visit https://www.nymusicmonth.nyc.
About Commissioner Julie Menin:
Julie Menin is the Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, an agency encompassing the key economic and creative sectors of film, TV, theater, music, advertising, publishing, digital content and real estate as it relates to these industries. In total, these portfolios account for over 305,000 jobs in New York City and $104 billion in economic output. Commissioner Menin also oversees NYC Media, the largest municipal broadcasting entity in the country including five TV Stations and a radio station with a reach of 18 million households and a 50-mile radius. In addition to promoting economic development in all five boroughs through expanding the creative sector, Commissioner Menin has launched a number of groundbreaking initiatives to promote both diversity and equality in the entertainment fields.
About the Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center:
The Clemente Soto Velez Cultural and Educational Center carries the ideas of cultural preservation, the unity of humanity, and the imperative of progress forward in an ever-changing celebration of culture that embraces every part of our organization. The strength of the Clemente’s artistic engagement with our visitors comes from the unbounded expression of its artists, and from the manner in which the Clemente’s building draws the visitor into deeper engagement with the arts.
About A2IM:
A2IM is a 501(c)(6) not-for-profit trade organization headquartered in New York City that exists to support and strengthen the independent recorded music sector. Membership currently includes a broad coalition of more than 440 Independently-owned American music labels. A2IM represents these independently owned small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs) interests in the marketplace, in the media, on Capitol Hill, and as part of the global music community. In doing so, it supports a key segment of America’s creative class that represents America’s diverse musical cultural heritage. Billboard Magazine, using Nielsen SoundScan data, identified the Independent music label sector as 35.1 percent of the music industry’s U.S. recorded music sales market in 2016 based on copyright ownership, making Independent labels collectively the largest music industry sector.
The organization’s board of directors consists of the following: ATO Vice President Stephanie Alexa, Razor & Tie COO Craig Balsam, Redeye Co-Owner Glenn Dicker, INgrooves EVP & General Manager Amy Dietz, Epitaph/Anti General Manager Dave Hansen, Big Machine COO Andrew Kautz, Beggars Group Founder/CEO Martin Mills, Hopeless Records Owner Louis Posen, Dualtone CEO/Co-Founder Scott Robinson, Tommy Boy Owner & CEO Thomas Silverman, and Secretly Label Group Co-Owner Darius Van Arman. A2IM’s Advisory Committee includes: Randy Chin, Alisa Coleman Amit Nerurkar
For Media Inquiries:
Dawn Kamerling
The Press House
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