OMAR GRANT Senior Director A&R at Epic Records is a graduate of Adelphi University, where he earned his Bachelor Degree in Business Marketing, he always maintained an internship at one of the major record companies; having worked for the Warner Music Group, Arista International, and in Columbia Records’ Media Relations and A&R departments—which led to his eventual meeting of Matthew Knowles (father/ manager of Beyonce Knowles and Destiny’s Child and CEO of Music World Entertainment). His first official job right out of college was as Assistant Tour Manager to Destiny’s Child. After accompanying Destiny’s Child as a collective and eventually becoming Tour Manager for Kelly Rowland, Michelle Williams and Beyonce as individuals—Omar is directly responsible for a host of songwriters and producers contracted under EMI. His first signings include Solange Knowles (sister to Beyonce, who has had a number of placements on the multi-Platinum B-Day album), and a producer-songwriter out of Miami by the name of “Street Runner” (Terror Squad, Lil Wayne).

CLARIBEL CARABALLO is a manager and consultant at Silent Partner, Inc. Caraballo founded the company in 2007 as a conduit to support the careers of emerging and established artists and producers. She has partnered with entertainment industry professionals and companies to guide clients across various facets of the music business,helping to secure publishing, recording, touring, and merchandising deals, among other opportunities. Her work has taken her abroad to Europe and other destinations, including most recently on a series of trips to Jamaica, where she is spearheading the US project and bridging the gap between international and domestic activity of the living, top-selling reggae artist of all-time, Grammy Award-winning artist Shaggy. She has worked on behalf of upcoming producers, including Sean C & LV, the duo responsible for chart-topping tracks on rapper Jay-Z’s American Gangster (2007). From 2005 to 2007, Caraballo served as a senior manager of foreign copyright at EMI Music Publishing, where she oversaw the company’s foreign deals, catalogs, and new signings, both domestic and international. At Zomba Label Group, she worked from 2000 to 2003 as a publishing manager for creative and copyright administration, handling negotiations, disputes, and sample clearance concerns related to the JIVE label and Zomba Music Publishing’s urban and gospel catalogs. She had her first exposure to legal work, when she was selected to serve as part of the litigation team defending the music publisher in Zomba vs. MP3. She continued to build on those efforts at Razor & Tie Direct, LLC, joining the independent entertainment company as a paralegal and administrator for Legal/Business Affairs. There she focused on drafting and negotiating a variety of licensing and clearance agreements. Caraballo’s early start in the music industry included stints at Jelly Bean Music and Profile Records. A classically trained musician, she is a graduate of Syracuse University, where she was enrolled in the university’s College of Visual and Performing Arts program.

DON YOUNG is a versatile and accomplished professional audio engineer/mixer/recordist with many years experience in television, radio, sport, live events and music production.M.S.N.B.C.— Daytime News,‘Sky Vegas Live’ – BSKYB (U.K.), ‘Sky Poker’ – BSKYB (U.K.) (U.K.), ‘Sky Sports News’ – BSKYB (U.K.), ‘The Winning Post’ – Sky Sports (U.K.), Satellite Information Systems (U.K.), The Ricki Lake Show Paramount, Biography A&E Stage A&E, Preview Paramount, National Newscasts ABC/Cap. Cities, Spotlight Café WOR/Comedy Central, Greatest Hits VH1, Scoreboard Central Newsport, London News Networks Local Newscasts, 120 Minutes MTV, The Week in Rock MTV, Fame Academy, Endemol UK, Auction World TV (U.K.), Bid-Up TV (U.K.), Q.V.C. (U.K.)

RYAN PRESS Warner/Chappell Music’s Senior Director, Urban A&R was a manager and record producer at Day One Productions along side Chad “Wes” Hamilton, writing and producing tracks that were placed on records by recording artists including Grand Hustle/Atlantic Records and Warner/Chappell artists T.I. and Young Dro, Asylum Records’ Cam’Ron and Jim Jones, Juelz Santana, Freeway, Mase, Young Gunz, Beanie Siegel and Twista. He then founded Press Conference Management in 2004, an artist, songwriter and producer management firm with a number of successful clients including songwriter Frankie Storm, who penned Rihanna’s worldwide hit “Please Don’t Stop The Music” as well as songs recorded by Britney Spears, Ciara, Enrique Iglesias, Jay Sean and Jordin Sparks; producer Warren Felder, professionally known as “Oak,” who has written songs for Warner Bros. Records’ Ashley Tisdale, Jennifer Lopez, Fantasia, Toni Braxton, Chris Brown and Mario; Warner/Chappell’s own Don Cannon whose songs have appeared on albums by Young Jeezy, 50 Cent, Fabolous, Ludacris and Busta Rhymes; and recording artist Freeway, known for his hit songs “What We Do,” “Roc the Mic” and “Flipside;” among others. While running Press Conference Management, Press also held several additional posts including the position of creative consultant at Notting Hill Music Publishing where he was responsible for signing top-tier producers including The Runners, DJ Khaled, Tommy Gunz and Ron Browz, and securing various placements on records. In addition, he served in a co-management capacity at the J. Erving Group where he assisted in day-to-day management. The J. Erving Group was home to several recording artists including Mario, Marsha Ambrosius, Cassidy and Danity Kane.

WALTER JONES is Director of Urban A&R, SONY/ATV Publishing and an R&B Member Representative for ASCAP As graduate from Clark Atlanta University with a BA in Mass Media Arts/Public Relations, Jones interned with ASCAP’s Rhythm & Soul team in New York before accepting an opportunity to DJ shows for multi-platinum selling recording artist and ASCAP member Montell Jordan. He then became a touring road manager and traveled to several countries, including Greece, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Australia. In addition to his work with Montell Jordan, Jones has worked with a variety of songwriter/artists, including Eric Roberson, Algebra and Deitrick Haddon.

SHANI GONZALEZ National Director A&R at Def Jam Universal was a dedicated student at Temple University with a master plan to become an intricate part of the music industry. After college and an invaluable internship experience, she began working for BMI; a music performing rights society in NYC. From there, she moved on to start PR&Stuff and landed a client list that included Coca-Cola, Dyana Williams, The International Association of African-American Music, Kemet Collective, and more. As an A&R Coordinator at Warner Brother Records and Warner Chappell Publishing, her responsibilities included finding talent, developing artists, and working with them through the album process. She is dedicated to providing opportunities for the many aspiring youth that have chosen music as their business.