PRESS RELEASE
L.A. REID, CHAIRMAN OF EPIC RECORDS, TO KEYNOTE AT MIDEM 2017
WITH 25 YEARS AT THE HEART OF THE BUSINESS, MUSIC INDUSTRY PIONEER SHARES HIS VISION OF THE FUTURE
Paris, November 16, 2016 – L.A. Reid, Chairman and CEO of Epic Records, is the first confirmed keynote speaker for the 51st edition of Midem.
Midem, the leading industry event for the international music ecosystem, takes place in Cannes, France, from 6-9 June 2017. The over–arching theme for next year’s conference programme is, “A New Golden Age for the Music Industry? Get Ready to Embrace It!”
Reid has been shaping the music scene for more than 25 years. As well as being Chairman and CEO of Epic Records, he is a Grammy Award-winning musician, songwriter, and producer in his own right, and is now a New York Times bestselling author for his memoir, “Sing to Me: My Story of Making Music, Finding Magic, and Searching for Who's Next”. He is the man behind the success of some of today’s biggest stars, including Justin Bieber, Meghan Trainor, Future, Fifth Harmony, Outkast, Pink, Rihanna and Mariah Carey, to name a few.
His keynote at Midem will allow Reid to share some incredible stories about his career and his experience working with many top international artists. As the head of LaFace Records, Reid broke ground for African American pop artists and helped establish the now-famous music scene in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2000, Reid moved to New York to helm Arista Records, where he discovered Avril Lavigne and worked with such established superstars as Carlos Santana, Aretha Franklin, and Whitney Houston. In 2004, he moved to the Island Def Jam Music Group as Chairman and CEO, where he discovered and developed Rihanna, Justin Bieber, The Killers, Kanye West, and many more. In 2011, he joined Epic Records as Chairman and CEO, and acted as a judge on “The X Factor” through 2013. Today, Epic is topping the charts with acts like DJ Khaled, Future, Travis Scott, Meghan Trainor, Fifth Harmony, Zara Larsson, Jidenna, and the KONGOS.
“I’m thrilled to be back at Midem after being a member of the Midem Artist Accelerator artistic committee in 2015, and I’m excited at the prospect of sharing the experience of more than 25 years in the music business with the Midem audience. It’s also a chance to look to the future, as Midem highlights this year the immense opportunities brought by the development of streaming in today’s global music marketplace, thus creating a New Golden Era for the music industry to thrive,” said Reid.
“It’s a great pleasure to welcome L.A. Reid as the first keynote speaker announced for Midem 2017, as the event is the essential platform for international labels and thought leaders. His insight as one of the most talented producers, songwriters and label executives will be invaluable for the music professionals attending Midem,” said Jérôme Delhaye, Director of Entertainment, Reed MIDEM.
About Midem – Midem is an annual international b2b event dedicated to the new music ecosystem, with a tradeshow, conferences, competitions, networking events and live performances. It’s the place where music makers, cutting-edge technologies, brands & talents come together to enrich the passionate relationship between people & music, transform audience engagement and form new business connections. www.midem.com
About Reed MIDEM – Founded in 1963, Reed MIDEM is an organiser of professional, international markets that are essential business platforms for key players in the sectors concerned. These sectors are MIPTV, MIPDOC, MIPCOM, MIP CANCUN and MIPJUNIOR for the television and digital content industries, MIDEM for music professionals, MIPIM, MIPIM Asia, MIPIM UK, and MIPIM Japan for the real estate industry and MAPIC, Retail Real Estate Market brought by MAPIC in Shanghai and MAPIC Italy for the retail real estate sector.www.reedmidem.com
About Reed Exhibitions - Reed MIDEM is a division of Reed Exhibitions, the world’s leading event organiser, with over 500 events in 43 countries. In 2015 Reed brought together over seven million active professionals from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today Reed events are held throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 41 fully-staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events. It is part of the RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions and analytics for professional and business customers across industries. www.reedexpo.com
REED MIDEM PRESS CONTACTS Jane GARTON, Entertainment Press Director: +33 1 79 71 94 39 > [email protected] Philippe LE GALL, Press Manager: +33 1 79 71 96 48 > [email protected] Yassia FEKIR, PR: +33 1 79 71 95 82 > [email protected]