Wonderstaff, photo credit Karla Flores: Kerry Fiero and her staff before start of conference
By Myki Angeline
Event Producer Kerry Fiero, along with Fiero Flair hosted yet another powerful women’s music industry conference on Saturday June 2, 2018 at the David Brower Center in Berkeley, California; sponsored by NARIP, EMPIRE, and Fame House.
The focus of the 5th Annual Girl Power! Women Working in the Music Industry Conference was on entrepreneurship and the increased demand for equal pay and diversity inclusion. Nicknamed Girl Power! D.B.A. (doing business as), this year’s focus was on understanding the entrepreneurial nature of the music business, and empowering oneself with the skills, tools, and support to function optimally within this context. Girl Power! D.B.A was created to help women who work, or desire to work in the music industry, do business, or do more or better business, in the capacity that best caters to their expertise. Attendees were treated to a catered lunch presented by EMPIRE and encouraged to network during the breaks.
It was a full day of empowerment and networking as a packed room of women and men were educated by some of the elite in the business. The conference started with founder Kerry Fiero giving her energy-charged welcome remarks to set the mood. Then came a Keynote interview of Jodi Goodman (President, Live Nation Northern California) by Maureen Ford (President, Live Nation Media & Sponsorship) who spoke candidly on their journey into the industry, the art of negotiation, and the importance of building relationships with your artists.
You can watch our live Facebook videos from this event HERE.
The day continued with six invaluable panels, each sharing insight on important topics like collaborating, how to identify your business needs, sisterhood, core competencies, and the mindset of the entrepreneur with every panel followed by a Q & A session with the audience. In attendance were powerhouse hitters: Suzanne Koga, Ebony Haley, Mal Harper, Heather Beverly, Tabetha Plummer, Christiane Cargill Kinney, Stacy Cunningham, Lindsay Alexander, Ryan Nicole, Susan Nesbitt, Ana Guillen, Lyz Luke, Renee Wilson, Lilan Kane, and Ariane Cap. Says Fiero, “People kept asking ‘How did you get such high profile people?’ The answer is I just asked. It’s true what they say, empowered women, empower women. The women did not do me a favor, they took great honor in coming to inspire and provide insight to other women. It’s a love-fest!”
Rounding out this epic conference was a powerful and motivating discussion on how to thrive in business (by being a superior service provider) with the President of NARIP (National Association of Record Industry Professionals) and LA Music Network, Tess Taylor.
I asked Fiero what goes into planning such a complex and successful conference. “When I plan the Girl Power Conference, I always am thinking about the women who will attend…what do they need to hear, what will they want to know about. Yet I always walk away with a message that resonated with my own career. This year it was Suzanne Koga’s lesson about how we should decide what we say yes to in work: the three L’s: Lucrative, Leverage or Love. I will live by that!” says Fiero.
Fiero recently announced on Facebook that she is planning their first annual Girl Power Holiday Mixer and encourages all to follow her social media sites for upcoming details.
Visit the website here: girlpowermusicconference.com
About Kerry Fiero
Kerry Fiero began her career in the music industry as a personal manager, working initially at the nationally recognized management firm, The Rosebud Agency before starting her own company, Strive Management. She represented both signed and unsigned artists in R&B, Hip Hop and Jazz. She co-founded The Strive for More Music Showcase which helped launch young talent into the music industry, including Kehlani and Rozzi. Kerry’s other roles have included working at an Entertainment Law Firm doing tour support/legal for singer Goapele; being the Artist Liaison at SFJAZZ, the California Music Awards, the Art & Soul Festival and more; managing the SF venue Biscuits & Blues and booking live music for an Oakland music venue; and working as an Event Planner/Producer for dozens of clients. Kerry has been an Adjunct Professor for 12 years at San Francisco State University’s Music/ Recording Industry (MRI) Program & Event Planning Program and she teaches in the new Entertainment Business Program at SAE Expression College. She and her husband own the company Fiero Flair, an empowerment company focused on events, media and products that facilitate professional & personal development. Kerry is a connector and always striving to find the win-win collaboration.
About Girl Power! Women Working In The Music Industry
Established in 2013, the Girl Power! Women working in the Music Industry Conference is rapidly becoming the epicenter for empowering women with the education, resources, and networking opportunities that are keys to career success in music. Not just for entrepreneurs and independent contractors in the music & entertainment industries, the conference covers the most salient aspects of doing business for everyone from music artists, to employees, to CEOs.
