Rock God, Entrepreneur and Multi-Hyphenate Gene Simmons Named as Keynote Speaker of the Inaugural “American Music Conference” Produced by Variety and dick clark productions

Event to Be Held November 19th at the Event Deck at L.A. Live

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Variety and dick clark productions, inc. (dcp) announced that Gene Simmons will be the Keynote Speaker at the first-ever “American Music Conference” which will be held at the Event Deck at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles on Friday, November 19th. The conference will be a premiere gathering of the most influential minds in the business, spanning artists, label chiefs, agents, managers and more. The conference will take place the same weekend as the 38th Annual American Music Awards® which will air on Sunday, November 21 from 8:00-11:00pm ET/PT on ABC live from the NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE.

“We are excited to launch the AMC with Variety and are proud to feature the supremely talented Gene Simmons at this inaugural event.”

Music fans have always been insatiable for their favorite acts, but their strengthening digital preferences across a slew of new platforms and devices are making it a challenge for the music industry to connect with fans. The “American Music Conference” will feature an agenda designed to improve business today and prepare it to be successful for the future.

Planned sessions will cover the state of the music label, which digital platforms are best for marketing and selling music to fans, and how to best align with brands for sponsorship opportunities, among other hot topics.

Simmons co-founded KISS 36 years ago, and he has since seen KISS become the juggernaut of the licensing/merchandising world, including clothing line, record label and comic book series. A self-described rock god, media mogul and multi-hyphenate, Simmons can now be seen starring in the long-running A&E reality series GENE SIMMONS FAMILY JEWELS.

“The music industry is now constantly brainstorming new strategies to stay on top and even ahead of their fans’ demands,” said Variety president Neil Stiles. “Variety and dick clark productions’ American Music Conference is designed to offer the tools that will help to keep this business on the cutting edge. We are also honored to open up the day with a keynote conversation with Gene Simmons.”

Orly Adelson, president of dcp, stated, “We are excited to launch the AMC with Variety and are proud to feature the supremely talented Gene Simmons at this inaugural event.”

For further information on American Music Conference sponsorship and speaker opportunities, please contact Linda Buckley-Bruno, director of publishing at Variety.