Details on the annual kindie confabulation known as Kindiefest are coming together and for those of us "in the biz," as none of us "in the biz" actually say, it looks like another great weekend of gabbing, listening, and eating. (The pizza is not a joke.)
The full set of panels and panelists have been announced, and I think for the musicians making a living (or hoping to) who attend, you're bound to find a panel or four worth your time. While some panels appeal to the creative entrepreneur in me ("Managing Self-Management Kindie Style"), as a non-kindie musician, I'm most looking forward to the broader items -- the "KindieTalks," for example, featuring Laurie Berkner, Dean Jones, and WXPN's Robert Drake doing TED-talks-style presentations.
Plus, I have three words for you: Ella Jenkins keynote. I am seriously geeked for that.
So, yes, I am attending once again. I'll be curating/presenting a video session currently titled $9.99: Kindie Music Videos in the Age of YouTube. It'll feature, well, kindie music videos of both recent and, er, vintage vintage. I'm really looking forward to putting that together and showing it at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, where the conference is moving to this year -- the better to hold its 2 expanded days of panels and workshops.
I'm also looking forward to the Saturday night artists' showcase, which features a lot of artists I've never seen perform live. I'm particularly eager to see Stephen Cohen, Ratboy Jr., and Dan Zanes performing with Elizabeth Mitchell, and I'm always curious to see whose performance ends up surprising me. And while they haven't yet announced the Sunday public concert lineup, based on which artists have been announced as attending the conference whose names haven't appeared on a panel or Saturday night, I think that's going to be out of sight.
Most of all, I'm looking forward to seeing everyone in the kindie field. There are friends, of course, like Jeff and Mindy, and all the Kindiefest braintrust, whom I look forward to talking with. And while as a reviewer, I tend to consider my relationships with musicians as different from "friends," it's hard not to get jazzed by being in the presence of so many creative (and, usually, funny) people. And music.
So if you are involved in making, presenting, or selling music for kids, I encourage you to register. And say hello. And come to my presentation.
