Crib Notes

Last weekend, the Atlantis Music Conference marked its 10th anniversary with a weekend of panel discussions, concerts and networking parties, most of which were centered at the CW Atlanta complex. Since it was the final weekend of the summer — autumn officially began Sunday, Sept. 23 — there were great events happening all over the city, and I only got a chance to spend Friday afternoon at Atlantis.

First, I took in “Get in the Van” Touring 101 at Vinyl, which featured my good friend Fiona Bloom, who promotes events and publicizes artists through her New York-based company the Bloom Effect. (Her Atlanta clients include Anthony David and Melissa Young.) Others on the panel included Greg Green, talent buyer at the Masquerade; and Greg Diekroeger, former chairman of the National Association of Campus Activities. It was pretty dense stuff, and you could see aspiring musicians diligently taking notes as the panelists talked.

I went over to “Beatin Up Da Block” Producers Panel and Beat Battle, which was held inside Center Stage Atlanta. Most of the seats in the theater were filled, and with good reason: Sitting at the dais were DJ Toomp, Focus, Isaac “Ike Dirty” Hayes III, Don Cannon, Khao Cates and Jaz-O. Save for Jaz-O, who hails from New York (and is famous for mentoring Jay-Z), these are some of the more successful producers in Atlanta.

The audience, most of them fledging MCs and producers, was almost obnoxiously reverent, and applauded loudly after each panelist spoke. Focus, an in-house producer at Aftermath Entertainment, said that his first meeting with Dr. Dre was like a scene out of The Godfather. Aphilliates member Don Cannon noted that “Go Crazy,” the song that established him as a producer, was originally a mixtape track for T.I. until Young Jeezy coerced Cannon to give him the beat. DJ Toomp, who’s blowing up for Kanye West’s “Can’t Tell Me Nothing,” talked about making his first record for Raheem the Dream in the 10th grade, and subsequently becoming a “superstar” at his high school.

I didn’t stick around for the beat battle. Instead I hung out in the lobby, which was full of indie music companies promoting some newfangled gadget and/or unknown artist. I spoke with Kelvin “Kosha” Seldon and Trey Wilson, whose Soundload company manufactures small plastic cards that musicians can use to sell digital downloads. When the buyer redeems the card online, the download is registered through SoundScan. Then Mark Musburger gave me a demo of Synchronicity Live, a website that allows artists to broadcast their concerts online in real time.

When I wrote about Atlantis Music Conference in CL’s July 24 issue (which you can read here), someone wrote in the comments section, “[Mark] Willis and his buddys [sic] make a killing off the hopes and dreams of naive musicians who think that they are actually going to get a big break at this fiasco.” It was reflective of the reaction I often get when when I talk about Atlantis.

I can’t understand why Atlantis engenders so much hostility among some people. Yes, it is a business, but so is the music industry. Atlantis functions the same as CMJ, SXSW and other conferences: It charges a fee to register, and it provides a good product in the form of educational seminars and concert showcases. What’s wrong with that? Still, Atlantis can be exhausting. It seems that everyone who attends is aggressively careerist, and all too eager to tell you how they’re going to change the world, become a superstar and/or make lots of money.

After a while, I drove over to the Remix Hotel, which was held at the SAE Institute. Held in several cities throughout the year, Remix Hotel is a free conference (with registration) that offers product demonstrations, a handful of live showcases, and workshops with DJs and producers. Talib Kweli and Clinton Sparks both performed this year. Other participating artists included Rob Wonder, the Runners, DJ Toomp (again) and Hank Shocklee.

My man James O’Connor from Fresh Press Media was working the event. He hooked me up with a goodie bag full of T-shirts and other treats. Thanks, James! As we wandered around the building, we saw Scott Storch finishing up a master class. Remix Hotel attendees who paid $30 got a VIP pass that included access to the classes, an inexpensive price to learn from one of the music industry’s most successful producers. (His credits include Eve’s “Let Me Blow Your Mind,” Justin Timberlake’s “Cry Me a River,” Terror Squad’s “Lean Back” and 50 Cent’s “Candy Shop.”)

After taking pictures and tolerating dazed expressions from various onlookers, Storch and an entourage of dudes walked out into the hallway. As he left, a kid in cornrows ambled up and tried to hand Storch his demo CD. “I’m sorry,” said Storch, “but I’m not allowed to accept those.”

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Tags: Atlantis, Remix-Hotel.