Advance Agenda Details Released for Day 1 of CRS 2023: “The Digital Music Summit at CRS”

(Nashville, Tenn. – January 31, 2023) – CRS has announced advance details surrounding "The Digital Music Summit at CRS," which will kick off the three-day event, to be held March 13-15, 2023, at Omni Nashville Hotel. 

Joey Tack (WIVK/Knoxville) Chairman of the CRS 2023 Agenda Committee spoke, saying, “This year’s Digital Music Summit is a can’t-miss day rich with actionable intel and information for pros in all areas of the digital music industry.”

Planned for this year's Opening Day are five educational sessions. The content prepared goes beyond just streaming and will include informative discussions surrounding web3, NFTs, and emerging next-gen platforms.

The five educational sessions and featured panelists include:  

Web3, NFTs, and Virtual Worlds: Beyond The Hype: This session will explore Web3, NFT’s, virtual worlds like “the metaverse,” while using case studies to show how artists use these platforms to create new revenue streams and how they build them into their brand portfolios. Panelists include Zach Bair (VNUE), Chris McMurtry (Pex), and Sean Peace (SongVest). Noah Itman, Digital Music News' Chief Revenue Officer, will lead this panel. 

Sweet Streams (Are Made of These): Executives from leading Digital Service Providers (DSPs) will show artists and managers what they can control on streaming platforms, how to set new releases up for success, and answer the ultimate question... how do you get on a playlist? Panelists include Johnny Chiang (Pandora) and Rachel Whitney (Spotify). Tim Foisset (Warner Music Nashville) will moderate the panel. 

Reach Out: Meeting Listeners Where They Are: With fans today consuming music on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Streaming Services, and Radio, this panel will look at non-traditional methods for meeting fans on these platforms while highlighting tips for increasing engagement and other platform trends. Speakers will include Jade Driver (Crowd Surf) and Kristen Reed (UMG Nashville).

How They Built It: "Fancy Like" and Its Path To #1:  A case study of how Walker Hayes' smash-hit, "Fancy Like," snowballed into a #1 single, and how artists can leverage all aspects of media, to achieve a hit and an engaged audience. Panelists: Katie McCartney (Monument Records), Robert Carlton (SMACKSongs), Marissa Turk (SMACKSongs), and Emily Cohen Belote (Amazon Music).

Flex-Ability - Marketing Without a Map: Panelists will dissect three album releases scheduled for March-April 2020 and observe how they were able to pivot during unforeseen circumstances. Panelists are Lucia Kaminsky (Head of Digital for Sandbox), Clark Mims Tedesco (VP of Artist Development for Warner Music Nashville), and Doug Phillips (Head of Digital for Q-Prime), along with Cameo Carlson (Mtheory) as moderator.

In addition to the educational sessions, the one-day, all-day Digital Music Summit will also include The Warner Music Nashville kick-off luncheon, an interactive conversation with Garth Brooks, Amazon Music Presents: Country Heat at CRS 2023, and the third annual 'Paddle Royale' ping-pong tournament, where Country artists will face off against high-profile industry leaders for a fun, quasi-competitive and spirited game. 

In 2021, CRS expanded its three-day education curriculum to include an exclusive one-day track focusing on streaming and digital education initiatives. That program continued in 2022 and was so successful the CRS agenda team has challenged itself to continue to broaden the digital experience for CRS attendees. 

More agenda details surrounding the remainder of CRS 2023 will be released soon.