NEW YORK (www.cmj.com/marathon) - CMJ MUSIC MARATHON 2004 features over 50 panels covering topics from the evolution of record contracts and the future of festival tours, to dance music, download sites, music journalism, radio promotion, and international issues. CMJ's
Music Marathon's annual College Day presents panels exploring college radio and the careers that it can launch. As previously announced, famed writer, comedian and radio personality Al Franken delivers the Keynote Address.
Panel highlights include:
Thursday, Oct. 14th:
Brian Wilson Smiles On CMJ, featuring
Brian Wilson himself, celebrates the completion and release of his "lost masterpiece," Smile. An all-star panel of collaborators and admirers will discuss his work, including Jim Fusilli (Wall Street Journal/NPR), Geoffrey O'Brien (Writer, New York Review of Books), Van Dyke Parks (Smile lyricist) and Darian Sahanaja (The Wondermints).
Artists & Politics Forum brings together rock legend John Cale, spoken-word poet Saul Williams, performer/activist Jen Chapin, and acclaimed indie rocker Ted Leo to discuss the role of artists in the political process. With 2004 being an election year, more artists have gone public and taken political stands now than any time in recent memory. Will it sway voters? Piss them off? This group of outspoken, committed artists have their say, while equally outspoken record industry legend
Danny Goldberg moderates.
The Kanye Factor: Bridging Street and Underground explores how the success of
Kanye West has served to bridge that eternal gap between mainstream hip-hop tastes and the "backpacker" set. They'll try to pinpoint the secret to Kanye's balancing act, and how it can be replicated for other underground acts aspiring for bigger audiences. Andre Torres (Editor-In-Chief, Scratch Magazine) moderates the panel, which includes
Christopher R. Weingarten (Associate Editor, CMJ New
Music Monthly), Ethan Holben (VP of Retail Operations, Fat Beats Records), producers 9th Wonder and Hank Shocklee,, as well as Beni B (ABB Records, LLC).
Friday, October 15th:
Organizer Marc Geiger (William Morris Agency) tries to determine what happened to one of the greatest tours that met its demise this summer in the panel Lollapalooza 2004 and Beyond: What's Happening Here? Concert promoters and others discuss what went wrong, which organizations are doing it right, and what it all means to the future of touring. Among those discussing this topic are moderator Ethan Brown (New York Magazine), Geoff
Gordon (promoter with Clear Channel's Electric Factory Concerts), Jordan Kurland (promoter of the Noise Pop festival), and Richard Goodstone (an organizer of Bonnaroo).
CMJ College Day: CMJ's annual College Day features panels such as Under the Influence: Navigating the Techniques of
Radio Promotion, where college radio music directors, radio promoters and label reps discuss ways in which radio promotion influences station play lists, and The Upside of Downsize: Overcoming Attrition in the
Music Biz, where secrets and strategies are revealed by college-radio graduates.
CVC @ CMJ: New to CMJ this year, CVC Report's annual
Music Video Conference is now a part of CMJ
Music Marathon. CMJ badges gives access to all CVC Conference workshops, presentations, and panels, such as The Anatomy Of A
Music Video, which artists, directors, managers and label personnel discuss what it takes to get a video completed from initial treatment to final cut, and Out-of-the-Box Video Marketing: Beyond
Music Television, which discusses distribution and marketing of videos aside from traditional TV exposure, such as websites, in-store play, and clubs.
IMMF: The International
Music Manager's Forum gathers managers and artist personnel together to discuss the science of artist management and career strategies. The panel Management Survival Guide spurs these experts to discuss the economic realities of being a manager, from how to stay afloat while trying to break an artist, to new legislation that effects how we do business.
Saturday October 16th:
DIY@CMJ's keynote address features Greg Attonito of the Bouncing Souls. Starting out in 1987 in New Jersey, the Bouncing Souls created quite a scene with their loud, fast three-chord punk. When they couldn't find a label to sign them, they pooled their resources and formed Chunksaah Records. A true example of the DIY aesthetic, the Bouncing Souls built their empire through endless touring and eventually signed with Epitaph in the late 1990s. Attonito discusses his band's history with Jersey Beat editor Jim Testa and how the Bouncing Souls continue to do things themselves successfully.
Other featured panelists include: Walter Yetnikoff (Commotion Records), Tom Calderone (Exec. VP of
Music & Talent Programming, MTV Networks, Inc.), Charlie Hunter (Artist), Derek E.
Gordon (Exec. Dir., Jazz at Lincoln Center), Tom Silverman (CEO, Tommy Boy),
Daniel Cartier (Artist), Steve Gottlieb (Pres., TVT Records), Will Hermes (Spin, Tracks), Ryan Schreiber (Publisher/Editor-in-Chief, Pitchforkmedia.com), Don Van Cleave (CIMS), Jenny Toomey (Future of
Music Coalition), Sia Michel (Spin Magazine), Tommie
Sunshine (Artist), Matthew Perpetua (Fluxblog), Vin Scelsa (DJ, Sirius/WFUV), Dan Droller (Music For America), Slim Moon (Kill Rock Stars), Jack Rabid (The Big Takeover), and Matt Pinfield (Columbia Records).
CMJ
Music Marathon 2004 is held from Wednesday, October 13th to Saturday October 16th at the Jacob Javits Center and the Westin New York. CMJ
Music Marathon 2004 plays host to an extraordinary array of bands, fans and music business professionals, offering hundreds of shows at more than 50 venues. Recognized as one of the world's largest and longest-running music events, CMJ continues to serve as a springboard for the best new music talent from a variety of genres. This year, performers include Sonic Youth, . . . And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead, Sparta, Camper Van Beethoven, Clinic, The Faint, The Concretes, Hope of the States, TV on the Radio, RJD2, The Decemberists, Mike Watt,
Cut Copy and many more. Additionally, CMJ
Music Marathon 2004 celebrates the collaboration between the film and music communities with its annual FilmFest, featuring screenings of cutting-edge films from emerging and established filmmakers.
https://www.cmj.com/marathon 
