Independent
Music Festival
Conference
THE WEST COAST’S GATHERING FOR INDEPENDENT MUSIC FESTIVAL LEADERS
Jan 24, 2026
Portland, OR
Join festival producers, venue operators, event organizers, and music industry professionals for a full day of learning, networking, and collaboration in the heart of the Pacific Northwest’s vibrant independent music scene.
Who Is this Conference For?
Festival Producers & Organizers
Venue & Event Professionals
What to Expect
Keynote Presentations
Learn from established industry leaders and emerging voices shaping the future of independent music festivals in the West Coast and beyond.
Expert Panel Discussions
Dive deep into the challenges and opportunities facing today’s independent music festival landscape, from booking to sustainability and safety to marketing and artist relations.
Networking Opportunities
Connect with like-minded professionals, potential collaborators, and industry experts in structured networking sessions and informal meetups throughout the day.
Why Attend?
Stay Ahead of Industry Trends: Get insights into the latest developments in festival production, technology, marketing, and audience engagement specifically relevant to the West Coast market.
Build Your Network: Connect with festival organizers, venue operators, sponsors, and service providers from across West Coast and the broader region.
Learn from Success Stories: Hear directly from festival founders and industry veterans who have built successful events in our unique regional market.
Discover New Opportunities: Find potential partnerships, venues, sponsors, and collaborative opportunities within the Western United States independent music community.
Support Independent Music: Be part of a movement that champions grassroots music festivals and supports the diverse, creative community that makes our region special.
Schedule
Saturday, January 24, 2026
10:00am – 11:00am – Registration
Coffee Hour Meet & Greet (complimentary coffee provided)
11:00am – 11:05am- Opening Remarks
11:05am – 12:05pm – State of the Industry
Christina Fuller (Waterfront Blues Festival), Christen Greene (South Sound Block Party) and Ryan Crowther (Fisherman’s Village Music Festival)
12:15pm – 1:15pm – Ticketing
“The Future of Ticketing” (Ryan Kintz – Afton Tickets)
1:25pm – 2:25pm – Marketing
“Driving Traffic that Converts into Ticket Sales” (Royle Johnson – Royle Media)
Lunch Break
3:00pm – 3:55pm – Culture & Community
“Building Organic Growth” featuring – Zale Schoenborn (Pickathon) and Tori George-Drake (The One Motorcycle Show)
4:05pm – 5:00pm – Merch / Street Teams
“Maximizing Impact Through Street Teams & Merchandise” (Cheryl Bland – Harefest)
5:10pm – 6:10pm – Artist Booking
Ryan Stiles (Pickathon), Rian Beach (Jackalope Jamboree) and Paddy Scace (TMWRK)
6:10pm – 6:15pm – Closing Remarks
6:15pm – 7:00pm – pFriem Social Hour
Speakers
Christina Fuller
Waterfront Blues Festival
Christina Fuller is the co-owner of Fuller Events and Festival Director of the Waterfront Blues Festival. The Waterfront Blues Festival—Portland’s largest and longest-running downtown music festival—is internationally recognized and has raised over $10 million for local nonprofits.
Fuller Events produces and consults on many of Oregon’s premier festivals and cultural moments, including Pride Northwest, Rockstar Energy Open, and the Opera in the Park. Christina’s past event experience includes the Portland Rose Festival, Hood to Coast, Feast Portland, and more.
Ryan Stiles
Pickathon
After graduating college with a degree in music in 1997, Ryan entered the music business as a promoter in Denver, Colorado.
Following a stint in the film industry, Ryan returned to music, ultimately building a world-class music festival. Nearly 20 years later, Pickathon continues to set the standard for what a music festival can be.
Paddy Scace
TMWRK
Paddy Scace is an artist manager and music industry executive with over 20 years of experience navigating artists careers and touring opportunities. Based in Los Angeles CA, Paddy, has spent the last 10 plus years of his career at TMWRK Management, where he is an artist manager, executive and partner in the business.
Over the course of his career artists managed by Paddy, have sold millions of tickets in over a hundred countries, have been nominated for 5 Grammy Awards and have had a dozen records certified by the RIAA and other national trade organizations. Additionally Paddy used his and his artist’s platforms to raise millions of dollars for various charities around the world. Concerts produced by Paddy have grossed hundreds of millions of dollars.
Tori George-Drake
The One Motorcycle Show
Tori George-Drake is the Brand Director and Show Curator for The One Motorcycle Show, the widely acclaimed event known for celebrating motorcycle culture as art, sport, and community in Portland OR for 17 years. Her expertise has been instrumental in expanding the show’s vision, including curating exhibits and developing new event opportunities like the show’s expansion to Las Vegas.
Tori has a deep-rooted commitment to fostering organic growth and a diverse community within the motorcycle and event industries. Her extensive experience, which includes managing major event sponsorships and strategic development for The One Motorcycle Show, provides unique insight into building a strong organic expansion of the culture within the community. Above all, she continues to share that The One Show is Everyone’s and inclusive towards all walks of life, not just the two-wheeled enthusiast.
Christen Greene
South Sound Block Party
Christen’s career spans live music, entertainment, and community-building. Some highlights include signing The Lumineers and growing them into a GRAMMY nominated international touring act, releasing six records and six books with poet/activist Andrea Gibson, and founding the South Sound Block Party, a two-day music festival in Olympia, WA.
Along the way they have had the privilege of seeing projects land on the biggest stages—from Madison Square Garden and Saturday Night Live to the Obama White House and Global Citizen Festival—while also rooting deeply in local communities.
Ryan Kintz
Afton Tickets & Afton LiveStream
Ryan Kintz experience as is the founder and CEO of Afton Tickets and previously Afton Shows, has given him a rare, practical understanding of what makes live events succeed – not just on spreadsheets, but in the real world where lines, staff, cash flow, and customer experience decide whether people come back.
He teaches event creators how to design events from the attendee’s point of view and turn admissions and ticketing into the “central nervous system” of the entire operation. His approach is simple: happier attendees spend more money, stay longer, and become your best marketing tool.
Cheryl Bland
Harefest
Cheryl Bland is a dynamic force in the live music industry, bringing over a decade of experience playing a pivotal role in ensuring seamless event execution, artist coordination, and festival operations.
Cheryl’s expertise spans operations, merchandise, marketing, staffing, booking, critical response planning, production support, and special projects.
She leads event merchandise and retail vendors, manages ticketing and box office operations, and coordinates street teams to build audience engagement. Beyond logistics, she plays a key role in laying the groundwork for new projects and serves as a vital liaison between the agency and venues, fostering strong industry relationships.
Ryan Crowther
Fisherman’s Village Music Festival
Ryan Crowther is the Founder of Everett Music Initiative and Fisherman’s Village Music Festival, where he has produced over 600 shows and events in Snohomish County since 2012. Since landing in his first role in Everett in 2008, he brings a fiery passion for community building and destination development, and is well known for his work in public and community relations, nightlife/music and placemaking.
Since 2022, Crowther has been the President & CEO of the Edmonds Chamber of Commerce where he oversees operations, signature community events and over 470 members. He currently chairs the Everett Public Facilities District Board, overseeing Angel of the Winds Arena in Downtown Everett.
Royle Johnson
Royle Media
Royle and his Portland-based team have been doing advertising, marketing and public relations since 2012 for clients including the Oregon State Fair, Portland Winterhawks, Rock the Locks and the Oregon International Auto Show. He’s been dedicated to digital advertising and marketing since 1998, the year Google started selling ads.
Royle will share his team’s full-funnel strategy for creating awareness and converting website and social traffic into ticket sales. Topics reviewed will include targeting, analytics, paid and earned media, as well as email marketing.
Seth Allen
HeySethAllen
Seth Allen is a comedian who performs regularly at Helium Comedy Club and at festivals including Bumbershoot, Treefort, Pickathon, and SF Sketchfest. He was named one of Portland’s “Funniest Five” in the Willamette Week and co-hosts a popular weekly podcast called ASSVILLE that isn’t what it sounds like.
James Jones
Honkytonkbasement
When he’s not dancing, teaching dancing or playing in the garage rock/country band “The Ghost of James Jones”, James Jones is advocating for the local music scene through his work at Honkytonkbasement, a weekly curation of country/roots music and dance events in Portland, Oregon
Rian Beach
Jackalope Jamboree
Rian is the co-founder of the Jackalope Jamboree music festival, a community-inclusive event in Pendleton, Oregon that originated in 2019. He is also the vice president of The Dalles Overground, a creative nonprofit in The Dalles, Oregon, that coordinates concerts, art installations, and community events. Rian has spent over 25 years promoting, hosting, and coordinating creative events in Oregon.
Unlike large-scale industry conferences, the Independent Music Festival Conference focuses specifically on the needs, challenges, and opportunities of the Western United States independent music scene. Whether you’re launching your first festival, managing a community event, or looking to expand your existing festival, this conference is designed to provide practical insights and meaningful connections within our regional community.
Save Your Spot
Tickets are now available!
Contact
For questions and media inquiries, please email [email protected]