Ietef “DJ Cavem Moetavation” Vita
TED talk presenter DJ Cavem Moetavation is more than a deejay, this Denver, Colorado native, and has been a long time community activist due to an early awareness of inequity in his neighborhood. At age 27, Ietef Hotep Vita aka DJ C.A.V.E.M. stands for (Communicating Awareness Victoriously Educating the Masses) Moetavation, an internationally known HipHop artist, writer/producer, deejay, HipHop Yogi, Afro-Latin percussionist, father, midwife, and environmental youth advocate. He is an Eco-Cultivator/Educator, sharing his knowledge with various age groups in organic gardening, veganism, wholistic health, sustainability, conscious consumption, and HipHop culture. Straight out the garden, representing the Historic Five Points, DJ Cavem is an O.G.: Organic Gardener, “teachin’ HIP HOP history and how to grow greens” and not the ones you roll. He is HIP HOP: Higher Inner Peace, Helping Other People, an award winning activist, founder of “GOING GREEN LIVING BLING” a HIPHOP & FOOD JUSTICE Curriculum a Green For All Fellow, B-Boy and Midwife. This Vegan chef is producing more than just beets, harvesting three albums; “Deep Rokc”, “The Teacher’s Lounge” and his last release is “THE PRODUCE SECTION - THE HARVEST” Dropped in 2012 working with FARMERS and ARTIST. SEE HIM IN THE OCTOBER ISSUE OF OPRAH MAGAZINE and look out for him new album coming out “ECO TWERK”, coming soon!. He has played with artists such as Talib Kweli, Les Nubians, Digable Planets, KRS One, K’naan and Gil Scott-Heron just to name a few, and has performed ECO Music internationally in Uganda, Burkina Faso, Paris, London, Mexico, and Amsterdam.”
Ariana Delawari
Ariana is a multimedia artist. She is a musician, filmmaker, photographer, actor and writer. Delawari graduated from USC School of Cinematic Arts. A few months after graduation, she found herself on a plane to Afghanistan for the first time and began a 10-year documentation of her father’s post 9/11 homeland. “We Came Home” is her award winning feature length directorial debut. It is the culmination of this documentation, her family story, and the making of her album “Lion of Panjshir”. The film won Best International Documentary Feature Film at the Sao Paulo International Film Festival, Best Documentary Feature at the Mexico International Film Festival, and was nominated for Best Documentary Feature Film at the Al Jazeera International Documentary Film Festival. “Lion of Panjshir” was recorded in both Kabul and Los Angeles, and was partially produced and mixed by filmmaker David Lynch. Lynch released the album on his record label and it has received international acclaim in such publications as Rolling Stone, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, NPR Weekend Edition, The Daily Beast, LA Weekly, BMI World, Al Jazeera, SOMA, IFP, The Independent, and Marie Claire Italia.
Delawari has won awards for her photography of Afghanistan in both the International Photography Awards and the Korean Times New York. Some of Delawari’s writing and lyrics were recently published in One Story Thirty Stories: An Anthology of Contemporary Afghan American Literature, which just won the silver medal in the Independent Publishing Awards for Best Anthology of 2012. In addition to “We Came Home”, Delawari has directed a video for her own song “Be Gone Taliban”.
Delawari is also an active humanitarian. She was the first female of Afghan descent to perform live rock music in Kabul in over 30 years. She was also among a group of international musicians who played the first music festival in Mogadishu in 25 years. She is also an ambassador for “The Voice Project”, an organization that uses music to create positive change, alleviate suffering, and promote human rights around the globe. She has traveled to Uganda with The Voice Project to assist in documenting and recording the stories and songs of Refugee women calling home their abducted youth from the Lord’s Resistance Army. Delawari also teaches poetry and music workshops at Children of the Night, a Los Angeles based shelter for teens who are victims of prostitution.
Delawari just finished her second full-length album, which she will be releasing soon. She is currently developing new film projects. Delawari was also a speaker at the inaugural TEDx Kabul in October 2012, and a speaker at Paiwand : Afghanistan’s first Social Media Summit in September 2013. Delawari was asked to be a speaker at Paiwand due to the success of her art campaign “Inspire Peace” which has created a youth peace movement in Kabul. Delawari is presenting at the Future of Music summit upon the heels of her film “We Came Home” screening at the United Nations Film Festival in San Francisco.
Michael Drexler
Michael Drexler is Executive Director of Business Development within Broadcast Music Inc.’s New Media and Strategic Development team. In this role, Mr. Drexler oversees BMI’s New Media business development while managing efforts to open up new revenue streams for writers and publishers in the digital world, ranging from broadband to mobile. He also leads negotiations with top tier digital media clients and serves on key committees handling business process review and new products.
In his previous roles as Senior Director of Corporate Development and Strategy at Sony Music and Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Mr. Drexler co-led various transactions such as the acquisition of metadata powerhouse Gracenote, an investment in digital media distribution company IODA, and a Joint Venture with Dada Entertainment. Moreover, he led and supported business-to-consumer product launches such as targeted mobile entertainment offerings and the release of Ariama.com, a classical music portal. Mr. Drexler also managed the evaluation of new business opportunities, investments and JVs and negotiated content and equity agreements in new digital environments.
In addition to his successful career in business and new media, Mr. Drexler is also an accomplished keyboardist, music producer and audio engineer with two GRAMMY nominations for audio engineering and production in both 2001 and 2002. First in 2001 for Arthur Rubinstein: “The Rubinstein Collection” CD Box Set; and in 2002 for Harry Belafonte: “The Long Road To Freedom - An Anthology of Black Music.” He is also a Voting Member of The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences as well as a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Mr. Drexler received his MBA from Baruch College, Zicklin School of Business in New York, holds an M.A. in Music Production (Diplom-Tonmeister) from the Hochschule für Musik Detmold (Germany). To add to his credentials, he graduated from Berklee College of Music in Boston with a Professional Diploma in Piano Performance.
Rebecca Gates
Rebecca Gates is a U.S. based musician, curator, artist and activist.
Melvin Gibbs
Melvin Gibbs has been called “the best bassist in the world” by Time Out New York magazine. A well-respected veteran of the New York music scene, he has contributed his singular talents to major artists in many diverse genres of music.
As a member of the bands” Power Tools “(w Bill Frisell and Ronald Shannon Jackson and band Harriet Tubman (Brandon Ross and J.T. Lewis), he has been recognized as a jazz “Talent Deserving Wider Recognition” in this years’ Downbeat Critics poll. He has recorded with MPB (Brazilian popular music) superstars Marisa Monte and Caetano Veloso, as well as Nigerian star Femi Kuti (son of Fela) and Latin music legend Eddie Palmieri.
As a member of the Rollins Band he earned a Grammy nomination as a hard rock songwriter. Songs he has co-written have been placed in movies starring Keanu Reeves and in the television show “Sex In The City”, and his compositions have appeared in indie movies and on cable TV worlwide.
He is currently focused on “Black Sun”, a collaborative project that combines the talents of the band Harriet Tubman with those of singer Cassandra Wilson.
Storm Gloor
Storm Gloor is a Music and Entertainment Industry Studies professor in the College of Arts and Media at the University of Colorado Denver. In 2010 he was the recipient of the College’s Excellence in Teaching award. He teaches courses in music marketing, the future of the music business, and other topics while also overseeing the award-winning student-run record label, CAM Records. Professor Gloor holds an MBA degree with a concentration on Marketing. He is currently vice president of the Music and Entertainment Industry Educators Association (MEIEA).
Peter Gordon
Peter Gordon is the founder of Thirsty Ear Recordings, a 36 year-old indie record label that has released over 300 records. Gordon is a founding board member of the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM) has served as its Acting President. He was the lead negotiator in the landmark FCC radio accord and was a founding VP of the World Independent Network - WIN, representing 20 international music trade organizations. Gordon recently co-founded the Jazz Forward Coalition (JFC), creating a leadership group to advance issues of advocacy and infrastructure for sustainability and cultural growth for the Jazz community. JFC presents in partnership with JazzTimes, Jazz Connect at APAP in NYC. Gordon is a musician and a Grammy nominated producer.
Dani Grant
Dani Grant is one of those tenaciously hard-working, creative entrepreneurs who has transformed a deep passion for music into her life’s work. Dani owns and manages the Mishawaka Amphitheatre, a legendary and historic music venue located in Northern Colorado, just west of Fort Collins up the Poudre Canyon. A hands-down artist favorite, the venue has hosted incredible international, national and local acts, and its unique vibe and natural beauty attracts concert-goers from around the world.
Dani understands that music and the arts are powerful economic drivers, and collaboration is the key to success. So she founded SpokesBUZZ Fort Collins, a grassroots nonprofit that develops emerging artists and promotes the thriving local music scene to grow the Northern Colorado economy.
Jeb Gutelius
First, a music lover; my first tape was a found copy of Dream of the Blue Turtles. Since then, I’ve spent my time building, managing and advising nonprofits and socially progressive businesses. I love collaborating with stakeholders to create/implement philanthropy, engage fans, and drive social change.
Benjamin Harbert
Ben Harbert joined the music faculty at Georgetown University after receiving his Ph.D. in ethnomusicology from the University of California, Los Angeles. His Ph.D. research was on music in three Louisiana prisons. His current research interests also include documentary film, international extreme metal, and music of the Near East. His theoretical approach connects investigations of musical experiences to analyses of musical phenomena. Harbert has been a teaching fellow at University of California, Los Angeles and a lecturer at Pomona College as well as a resident artist at the Performing Arts Center of Los Angeles County. Before returning to academia, he directed the guitar, percussion and music theory programs at Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music. Harbert is a concert-level performer on guitar, Near Eastern ‘ud, and Indian tabla. He has led a number of performance groups including the Los Angeles Electric 8 and extended rock ensemble arrangements of Erik Satie’s musique d’ameublement.
Maura Johnston
Maura Johnston is the editor of Maura Magazine and the Journalism Fellow at Boston College’s Institute For The Liberal Arts. She has written for The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and Spin, and edited at The Village Voice and Idolator.
Sanjay Jolly
Sanjay Jolly is the Policy Director at the Prometheus Radio Project in Philadelphia. Prometheus is one of the leading activist voices for grassroots community radio in the United States. They have built and supported dozens of radio stations and led the coalition that advocated for the Local Community Radio Act of 2010. Before his time at Prometheus, Sanjay was part of the movement to legalize community radio in Guatemala.
Crista Kende
Crista Kende is the performing arts specialist at Indiegogo, the world’s largest global crowdfunding platform. Indiegogo empowers anyone, anywhere to raise funds for any sort of project - creative, cause or entrepreneurial. Prior to joining the Indiegogo team, Crista worked on the marketing team for core classical artists at Universal Classics Group and then in internal operations at Google. With a Masters in Viola Performance from The Juilliard School, Crista approaches her role at Indiegogo from the standpoint of a performing artist with more than fifteen years of professional experience and an acute understanding of the challenges of being an artist in today’s world. It is her goal to empower fellow musicians and artistic colleagues to look beyond traditional funding models and use Indiegogo to connect with fans, build an audience base and raise essential funds for creative projects. Crista received her BA in History from Princeton University with a focus on cultural history and music performance.
Gena Konstantinakos
Gena Konstantinakos is an award-winning director and producer of TV and film whose work has appeared on ABC News (Peabody Award-winning Hopkins, Boston Med), MTV (Emmy Award-winning MADE), MSNBC (CINE Award-winning Lockup: Getting Out), PBS (NOW with Bill Moyers), Discovery/New York Times (Politics and the Media), in independent films, and elsewhere.
Her most recent film, THE INTERNET MUST GO, follows hapless market researcher John Wooley on a misguided mission to help the companies that provide Internet access sell their vision of a “faster,” “cleaner” Internet, and highlights the importance of the open Internet and broadband access. The project is funded by Ford Foundation, Media Democracy Fund, Open Society Foundations, and Wyncote Foundation, and is fiscally sponsored by Women Make Movies. It was leaked online on September 9th, 2013.
Greg Kot
Greg Kot is the Chicago Tribune’s music critic and cohost of the nationally syndicated public-radio show “Sound Opinions.”
Aaron Leitko
Aaron Leitko has written for Pitchfork, the Washington Post, and Washington City Paper. He works at Dischord Records and lives in Washington, D.C.
Erin McKeown
Erin McKeown is an internationally known musician, writer, and producer. With 9 full length albums, 2 EPs, and numerous soundtracks to her credit, she has spent the last 15 years crafting a reputation as an original musical voice and compelling live performer. Recently, she’s added radio to her resume- blogging and hosting for WNYC New York Public Radio. A member of the board of the Future of Music Coalition, she also works closely with Air Traffic Control on immigration issues.
Bryce Merrill
Bryce Merrill is WESTAF’s senior associate director. He helps guide WESTAF’s research efforts and other research and policy projects. Previously a research fellow at WESTAF, Merrill co-authored a study of Denver’s burgeoning music scene. The study, Listen Local, has been used to improve city-level support of music in Denver and has also led to the creation of a Denver Music Task Force. Merrill earned a doctorate in sociology from the University of Colorado Boulder. He specializes in research about art and music, culture, and technology and has published research in academic and popular media outlets on topics ranging from music and the brain to everyday uses of technology. Merrill is co-editor of a volume on music and society and an international volume on social theory (University of Pisa Press). He is an author on the interdisciplinary textbook Understanding Society through Popular Music (Routledge). Merrill is an associate faculty for the Intercultural Communications Department at Royal Roads University and a research fellow at the Center for Social Inquiry at Texas State University.
Tim Quirk
Tim Quirk is head of global content programming at Google, where he leads the team responsible for music, books, apps and video merchandising. Prior to Google, he was VP of Music Programming for Rhapsody. Tim spent much of the ’80s and ’90s as the singer and lyricist for the punk-pop band Too Much Joy, before politely easing his way into music journalism and the digital music business. He’s been a regular contributor to popular publications ranging from Raygun to The San Francisco Chronicle, and his critical essays have been published in anthologies such as This is Pop and Best Music Writing 2010.
Paul Rapp
Paul Rapp is an intellectual property lawyer, writer, and musician who lives and works in the Berkshire Mountains of Western Massachusetts. He represents and advises musicians, composers, recording and publishing companies, filmmakers, writers, visual artists, and all sorts of businesses in the creative sphere. Rapp has taught art & entertainment and copyright law at Albany Law School, the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, and the Western New England School of Law, and is a frequent lecturer at the School for the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Rapp writes music reviews and the copyright-and-tech column “Rapp on This” for the Albany, NY alt-weekly Metroland, and blogs these articles at rapponthis.blogspot.com. Also known as F. Lee Harvey Blotto, drummer for the rock band Blotto and President of Blotto Records, he has the distinction of being the first person to rock a Speedo on MTV, in the video for Blotto’s classic song “I Wanna Be a Lifeguard” which aired on MTV’s inaugural day.
Tamara Saviano
Tamara Saviano is a Grammy and Americana Award winning producer and music business consultant. Saviano owns and operates a consulting, artist management and public relations company serving the Americana and Folk communities. Current clients include Kris Kristofferson, Guy Clark, Radney Foster, Ashley Monroe and John Corbett.
As a producer, Saviano’s contributions include Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs of Stephen Foster, honored with a 2004 GRAMMY for Best Traditional Folk Album, The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson, Shawn Camp and Billy Burnette’s The Bluegrass Elvises, and the Grammy-nominated This One’s For Him: A Tribute to Guy Clark, which won Album of the Year at the Americana Honors & Awards in 2012.
Saviano is a former President and six year board member of the Americana Music Association; sits on the board of the Future of Music Coalition and is a member of Leadership Music, Class of 2007.
