On June 13, the Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) held its inaugural Indie Music Publishing Summit at The Princeton Club of New York. Hi-res photos from the event can be found below.

• GRAMMY Award-winning record producer, songwriter, musician, and record label owner Benny Blanco headlined the event, sitting for a keynote interview with Andrew Bergman of Downtown Music Publishing. Blanco ranged over many topics, from how he broke into the industry as a teen (relentless phone calls) to the satisfaction he now feels discovering and promoting new songwriters himself. He revealed some of the stories behind massive tracks like Rihanna’s “Diamonds,” for which Sia wrote lyrics in 13 minutes while waiting for an Uber, and how he is constantly working and reworking ideas, sometimes over several years; usually he has over 30-40 tracks in progress.

Benny Blanco (left) and Andrew Bergman of Downtown Music Publishing. To download hi-res version, click here.

• AIMP’s three regional chapter heads — Michael Eames of PEN Music Group (Los Angeles), Alisa Coleman of ABKCO Music (New York), and John Ozier of ole (Nashville) — kicked off the Summit with an overview of each chapter’s activities, noting that the organization will be kicking off its 40th anniversary celebration in the fall.

From left: AIMP regional chapter heads Michael Eames of PEN Music Group (Los Angeles), Alisa Coleman of ABKCO Music (New York), and John Ozier of ole (Nashville). To download hi-res photo, click here.

• Susan Butler of Music Confidential presided over The Indie Perspective, a lively panel discussion featuring Maria Egan of Pulse Music Publishing, Laurent Hubert of Kobalt Music, Golnar Khosrowshahi of Reservoir, Richard Stumpf of Atlas Music Publishing, Carla Wallace of Big Yellow Dog Music, and Jake Wisely of The Bicycle Music Company. The group addressed some of the biggest issues facing independent music publishers today and outlined a host of opportunities for growth.

From left: Laurent Hubert of Kobalt Music, Golnar Khosrowshahi of Reservoir, Jake Wisely of The Bicycle Music Company, and Maria Egan of Pulse Music Publishing. To download hi-res photo, click here.

• AIMP Vice President Teri Nelson-Carpenter provided an introduction to CIS-Net for Rights Holders, walking attendees through the program’s basic functionality and explaining how it can help ensure timely and accurate royalty payments.

AIMP Vice President Teri Nelson-Carpenter. To download hi-res photo, click here.

• AIMP’s Alisa Coleman led the Trade Groups and Their Advocacy panel, in which Danielle Aguirre of the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA), Richard James Burgess of the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), Jane Dyball of the Music Publishers Association (MPA) (UK), Jennifer Mitchell of the Canadian Music Publishers Association (CMPA), and Ralph Peer II of the International Confederation of Music Publishers (ICMP) provided updated on their organizations and discussed the biggest challenges facing indies both in the U.S. and abroad.

From left: Danielle Aguirre (NMPA), Richard James Burgess (A2IM), Jane Dyball (MPA) (UK), Jennifer Mitchell (CMPA), Ralph Peer II (ICMP), and Alisa Coleman (AIMP). To download hi-res photo, click here.

• Adam Parness of Pandora and Julia Buchheim of Rough Trade Publishing walked attendees through some of the promotion and marketing tools Pandora makes available to independent music publishers.

Julia Buchheim of Rough Trade Publishing (left) and Adam Parness of Pandora. To download hi-res photo, click here.

• Prominent attorneys Brian D. Caplan of Reitler Kailas & Rosenblatt LLC and Jonathan D. Davis of Jonathan D. Davis, P.C. Attorneys at Law along with noted musicologist Judith Finell of Judith Finell Musicservices Inc. discussed The Considerations, Logistics, and Costs of Bringing and Defending Copyright Infringement Claims In the Music Industry.

From left: Judith Finell of Judith Finell Musicservices Inc., Brian D. Caplan of Reitler Kailas & Rosenblatt LLC, and Jonathan D. Davis of Jonathan D. Davis, P.C. Attorneys at Law. To download hi-res photo, click here.