GMP White Paper

:
Assessment
of the Georgia
Music Industry’s
Competitive
Landscape,Underutilized Assets
and Growth
Potential
A White Paper :: January 2015

© Georgia Music Partners :: January 2015 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3
THE CURRENT STATE OF GEORGIA’S MUSIC INDUSTRY 4
Education 4
Private Sector 4
GEORGIA’S DIRECT COMPETITION FOR MUSIC BUSINESS 6
GEORGIA’S MUSIC CENTERS 9
INDUSTRY SECTORS 11
The Creative Community 11
Media Post-Production Opportunities 12
Live Music and Entertainment 14
Music High Tech 17
GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES 18
Marketing Georgia’s Music Scene 18
Advocating for Financial Investment and Business Incentives 20
Promoting and Funding Music Education 23
CONCLUSION 24
Our Strategy 24

Georgia’s musical legacy is an integral component of its past, present,
and future. As the national music landscape has evolved, Georgians have
remained at the forefront of creativity and innovation across diverse genres
including gospel, blues, R&B, soul, rock and roll, country, hip-hop, indie
and Christian music. In 2011, the Georgia music industry had an economic
impact of $3.7 billion; generated more than $300 million in tax revenue for
state and local governments; and created around 20,000 jobs resulting in
more than $888 million in wages, salaries, and benefits, according to a study
commissioned by the Georgia Music Partners. Georgia has long been a
leading force in growing exceptional music talent with international reach.
However, our fertile ground for songwriters, producers, musicians, etc. is no
longer enough. Cities such as Nashville, Austin and New York have surpassed
our entire state’s music impact. The reason is simple. These cities see the
direct correlation that a creative economy is directly related to building,
developing and marketing a musical brand that draws not only tourists but
international corporations to their cities. According to a December 16, 2014
article published in the Huffington Post, both Austin and Nashville are among
the top 10 growing cities in America. Both ranked as top cities that are driving
the future, according to a 2013 study by the Milken Institute. This white
paper provides a snapshot of Georgia’s current music ecosystem, analyzes
competitive challenges, and identifies opportunities to boost economic
impact while building a dynamic brand for Georgia’s music industry.
GMP is the authority that grows and improves
the music economy in Georgia.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Georgia’s music industry remains an under-
developed and underutilized asset. There is
currently an exodus of talented music industry
professionals and music business and technology
students away from Georgia toward cities with
more favorable support systems and opportunities,
including Austin, Texas; Baton Rouge and New
Orleans, Louisiana; Nashville, Tennessee; and
Seattle, Washington. The state is losing valuable
talent that should be building the music industry
for years to come: Artists, songwriters, producers,
venue owners, booking agents, artist managers,
lawyers, sound engineers, and other supporting
services professionals are leaving. The main reason
for this is that Georgia does not offer a competitive
business landscape that entices industry
professionals to call it home. And this, indeed, is
exactly why GMP is advocating for changes.
We believe that the future of the music industry
in Georgia is rooted in quality education, followed
by providing a solid business platform that helps
develop the right areas of growth in the local scene.
This is why GMP has made the promotion of music
and music business education in Georgia a priority,
and why we advocate for specific government and
private sector initiatives.
Education
Georgia has more than 50 post-secondary
education programs in music-related disciplines
at institutions including Georgia State University,
University of Georgia, Kennesaw State University,
Clayton State University and Georgia Institute
of Technology. These programs have forged
meaningful partnerships within the music industry
to create real-world opportunities for students –
furthering education, internships and jobs. Georgia
Tech’s Center for Music Technology is spearheading
the development and deployment of innovative
music technologies that transform the ways in
which music is created and experienced. However,
retaining this young talent in Georgia after
graduation remains a challenge. The state may
benefit from enhanced music industry education
initiatives that are synchronized with post-
graduation initiatives in the sector.
Private Sector
New technologies are enabling individual musicians
to accomplish things unheard of only a few years
ago. Composers can use software to experiment
and extend talent in new ways. The role of record
labels is diminishing as more artists have the
capacity to perform most, if not all, aspects of
recording from their home studios with their own
equipment. “Do it yourself” tools and services have
lowered the entry bar for distribution and sale,
although the marketing aspect of the business—
getting heard and noticed — remains the ultimate
challenge (and opportunity) in the business.
THE CURRENT STATE OF
GEORGIA’S MUSIC INDUSTRY

New business models have emerged for
distribution, including download stores, streaming,
and subscription services. Far fewer such high
tech enterprises exist in Georgia when compared
to its “competitor states,” as noted above. Other
growth opportunities exist in the areas of live
performances and post-production work. We will
dive deeper into growth opportunities later in this
document.
Music Industry Activity 2009
Sector stnemhsilbatsE Employment Labor Income
Household AV Equipment, CD,Tape, and Record Manufacturing 43 1,258 $93,301,837
453,008$2231gnirutcafunaMtnemurtsnIlacisuM
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores 141 887 $23,598,487
875,245,7$663901serotSdroceRdna,DC,epaTdedrocererP
Record production 20 34 $1,550,278
Integrated record producti 924,219,3$3481noitubirtsid/no
Music Publishers 19 74 $9,977,279
104,020,6$072,1303soidutSgnidroceRdnuoS
Fine Arts Schools 310 1,371 $18,294,971
128,487,42$305261stsitrAdnaspuorGlacisuM
Promoters of Performing Arts with Facilities 33 1,117 $182,494,485
Promoters of Performing Arts 436,303,75$97264seitilicaFtuohtiw
Agents 106 170 $9,640,842
465sremrofrePdna,sretirW,stsitrAtnednepednI 1,447 $46,432,049
Total 1887 8,842 $485,654,445
Note: NAICS 334310 and 334610 (both manufacturing) are combined to preserve confidentiality
Industry Average Wage and Firm Size
Annual Average Wage Average Employees
Per Employee Per Establishment
Household AV Equipment, CD,Tape, and Record Manufacturing $74,172 29
2179,53$gnirutcafunaMtnemurtsnIlacisuM
Musical Instrument and Supplies Stores $26,597 6
3616,02$serotSdroceRdna,DC,epaTdedrocererP
Record Production $45,117 2
2411,09$noitubirtsiD/noitcudorPdroceRdetargetnI
Music Publishers $134,374 4
4047,4$soidutSgnidroceRdnuoS
Fine Arts Schools $13,345 4
3023,94$stsitrAdnaspuorGlacisuM
Promoters of Performing Arts with Facilities $163,379 34
Promoters of Performing Arts 6441,502$seitilicaFtuohtiw
Agents $56,822 2
970,23$sremrofrePdna,sretirW,stsitratnednepednI 3
Total $54,924 5
Georgia Average $41,711 12

GEORGIA’S DIRECT COMPETITION
FOR MUSIC BUSINESS
We have identified five other states and cities
that have forged an aggressive music business
advocacy of the type GMP aspires to, and we
consider these locations to be our main U.S.
competitors (although California should be
included in this list as well):
Louisiana
Known as “The Birthplace of American Music,”
the state boasts a rich history in jazz music,
highlighted by the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame
in Baton Rouge. Louisiana
has made a recent push to
promote and improve state-
of-the-art facilities across the
state including the historic New
Orleans-based Saenger Theatre
and Civic, Joy, and Carver
Theaters, along with the Shreveport-based Jimmy
Buffet’s Paradise Theater. The Tipitina’s Foundation
facilities in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles,
Monroe, New Orleans and Shreveport support the
music community through programs including
fundraisers, music workshops, student internships,
and co-ops.
Louisiana offers a 10-25 percent tax credit for live
performance production expenditures and state
certified higher education musical or theatrical
infrastructure projects of at least $300,000
that originate in the state. Live performance
productions generate a substantial number of
temporary employment opportunities, and an
additional 10 percent tax credit is provided for
payroll expenditures to Louisiana residents.
Additionally, Louisiana offers a 25 percent
refundable tax credit on qualified expenditures of
at least $15,000 for sound recording productions.
For digital interactive media production, Louisiana
provides a 25 percent tax credit on qualified
production expenditures and a 35 percent tax
credit for Louisiana resident labor expenditures.
Furthermore, Louisiana extends industry expertise
and opportunities for collaboration with the
state’s top educational institutions to the owners,
developers, and producers of live performance
infrastructure and production projects.
Nashville
Nashville, widely recognized as “Music City
USA” and home of The Country Music Hall of
Fame, is a mecca for music recording and live
music production.
The Nashville music
industry generates
an annual economic
impact of $10 billion,
according the Nashville Music Council’s 2013 annual
report. The study also revealed that the Nashville
area annually creates and sustains more than
56,000 jobs, which is more than any other U.S. city
in relation to population and total employment,
while producing more than $3.2 billion in labor
Nashville
New Orleans
Baton Rouge
NY Seattle
Austin
AustinAthens
Nashville
New Orleans
Baton Rouge
NY Seattle

income. Nashville tourism, driven largely by
the city’s musical identity, generates more than
$4 billion annually. The Nashville Convention
and Visitors Corporation has been assertive in
promoting and featuring music as a core of the
Nashville visitor experience. Nashville possesses
the greatest aggregation of catalog holdings in
genres including, but not limited to, country music,
folk, Celtic, classical, Americana, and Christian.
Additionally, there are major rock and pop catalog
holdings that are monetary treasures of firms
based in Nashville.
Traditionally known for country music, musicians
from a wide range of genres are migrating to
Nashville to leverage the city’s vast labor resources
and music infrastructure. The success of Emmy-
nominated ABC program, “Nashville,” filmed on
location and featuring original songs recorded by
local artists, has brought substantial visibility to
the music business and music tourism elements of
the city. Over the past decade, Nashville and the
state of Tennessee have been very successful in
working together with private businesses to further
enhance the city’s creative culture.
New York
A group of music industry figures, worried about
the flight of music production and related jobs
from New York to states like Texas and Tennessee,
is encouraging the
State Legislature to
pass a bill to give $60
million in tax breaks
each year to studios,
record companies and
others involved in the
creation of music. “The
epicenter of the global music industry was New
York, for as long as anyone can remember, and now
that’s slipping away,” said Justin Kalifowitz, chief
executive of Downtown Music Publishing and a
co-founder of New York Is Music, a new coalition
supporting the effort. “That’s something we have to
stop.”
The plan was based on New York’s $420 million tax
credit program for film and television production,
which has been cited as an important factor in the
growth of those projects in the state over the last
decade. According to a 2012 study commissioned
by the Motion Picture Association of America
(MPAA), in-state spending by film productions that
have received the subsidy grew from $600 million
in 2004, when the credit was introduced, to $1.5
billion in 2011.
New Orleans
NY Seattle
Atlanta
Augusta
Savannah
Macon
Athens

Seattle
Seattle, branded as “The City of Music,” drives a
music industry that directly creates over 38,000
jobs, with $4.6 billion in sales and $1.6 billion in
labor income, according
to a 2008 study by the
Seattle Music Commission.
Seattle’s Chamber of
Commerce has partnered
with the City of Seattle
to form the City of Music
initiative, an aggressive
B2B economic development campaign seeking to
connect artists, content creators and entrepreneurs
in interrelated media industries for the year 2020
across three categories: “City of Musicians,” “City
of Live Music,” and “City of Music Business.” By
identifying innovative new areas for economic
action and by leveraging local creative assets to
their full potential, the City of Music initiative is
aiming to position Seattle as a global leader in
digital media creation and distribution.
Texas
Texas has established a Texas Music Office under
the Governor’s jurisdiction, which acts as a
clearinghouse for Texas music industry information
using a “Business Referral
Network.” The function
of this office includes
publicity for the local
music industry and liaising
services for businesses,
talents and events in the
state. Their stated goal is
to attract new business
to Texas and encourage Texas businesses and
individuals to keep music business in-state.
The Texas music industry’s crown jewel is the city
of Austin. Austin is branded the “Live Music Capital
of the World” and serves as a creative hub for
musicians. The city is home to the internationally
acclaimed South by Southwest (SXSW) festival and
the PBS-televised Austin City Limits Music Festival.
Austin’s creative sector contributes just over $4.3
billion annually to the local economy, according to
TXP, Inc.’s 2012 creative sector economic impact
study. Of that total, nearly $1.7 billion, or 38.1
percent, is from live music and music tourism.
Musician’s wages have remained stagnant
as housing costs increase. Initiatives from
the Foundation Communities and Housing
Opportunities for Musicians and Entertainers offer
housing to musicians at reduced, affordable rates,
which enables Austin to attract and retain musical
talent within the city. Many Austin musicians are
often unemployed or underemployed with no
access to health insurance or basic health care.
The Health Alliance for Austin Musicians and the
SIMS Foundation enable thousands of low-income,
uninsured working musicians to receive health care
to improve their quality of life. More information is
available at http://austinmusicpeople.org.
NY Seattle
Austin
Austin
Atlanta
Augusta
Savannah
Macon
Athens
New Orleans
Baton Rouge
Seattle
Austin
Austin
Atlanta
Augusta
Savannah
Macon
Athens

Georgia’s music landscape is culturally diverse
across geographic regions, including Atlanta,
Athens, Macon, Augusta
and Savannah. Each
region showcases a
variety of personalities
and specialties. Since
these areas are largely
isolated from one
another, they would
all benefit from an
overarching, state-wide
initiative to promote
Georgia’s collective
music assets and
history. In other words, GMP promotes state-wide
initiatives as opposed to city-specific ones.
Athens
Once named by Rolling Stone magazine as “The
#1 College Music Scene in America,” Athens is
home to dozens of live music clubs, including the
40 Watt Club. Hundreds of musicians call Athens
home as well as several companies that involve
talent and working musicians, such as the Georgia
outpost for New West Records; Team Clermont,
a music public relations, publicity, and radio
promotion firm; and Nuçi’s Space, a non-profit
organization working to prevent suicide and assist
in the emotional, physical and professional well-
being of musicians.
For more than 35 years, the 40 Watt Club has
been one of the most famous and iconic music
venues and has been a home to Athens’ most
beloved bands, including R.E.M., the B-52’s, Pylon,
Love Tractor, Vic Chesnutt, Olivia Tremor Control,
Five Eight, Neutral Milk Hotel, Jucifer, Drive-By
Truckers, of Montreal, The Whigs and Maserati.
Over the years, many famous artists have made 40
Watt Club a tour fixture including Nirvana, Snoop
Dogg, Iggy Pop, The Strokes, Run-DMC, The Killers,
John Mayer, Kings of Leon and Kenny Chesney,
among many others.
Atlanta
The state’s capital is Georgia’s music nerve
center with recording studios that have produced
hit singles and albums in every genre; large
entertainment venues such as Philips Arena with
a capacity of over 17,000; historical venues such
as the Fox Theatre; outdoor venues such as the
Lakewood Amphitheatre; and small, yet nationally
recognized venues such as Eddie’s Attic, with
a capacity of about 175. Atlanta also contains
a variety of production services companies,
including rehearsal studios, and sound and lighting
companies, as well as professional services firms,
including national artist management agencies and
entertainment law practices.
GEORGIA’S MUSIC CENTERS
NY Seattle
Austin
Atlanta
Augusta
Savannah
Macon
Athens

Augusta
The town draws on its own heritage with branded
performing arts venues, including the James Brown
Arena, the Jessye Norman Amphitheatre, and
the Lady Antebellum Amphitheatre. The city has
been successful in using music to raise money for
charitable causes through organizations such as 12
Bands of Christmas, the annual Rock Fore! Dough
concert and Friends With Benefits.
Macon
The city’s rich music heritage draws visitors to the
Allman Brothers Band Museum at the Big House,
the Otis Redding Statute on the Ocmulgee and the
Tic Toc Room (named for the original club where
Little Richard once performed). Macon was also
home to the Georgia Music Hall of Fame from 1996
until 2011 when it closed due to lack of attendance
and funding cutbacks.
Savannah
This coastal city is a music instrument
manufacturing hub that is home to The Gretsch
Company, a fourth generation, internationally
known musical instruments manufacturer;
Benedetto Guitars, the world’s foremost maker
of custom archtop jazz guitars; JodyJazz,
a manufacturer of saxophone and clarinet
mouthpieces; and Randy Wood Guitars, where
one of the country’s most renowned luthiers crafts
guitars and mandolins. Savannah also hosts the
annual Savannah Music Festival, drawing thousands
of visitors and increasing jobs and revenue.
“Georgia should do more to support
its diverse music industry.
”Joel Katz
Atlanta Founding Shareholder
Greenberg Traurig

INDUSTRY SECTORS
The Creative Community
Georgia’s musicians and creative community boast
a rich legacy, going back to music legends like Little
Richard, James Brown and The Allman Brothers. In
the ‘80s, the alternative scene in the college town
of Athens gave birth to pop and alternative music
legends such as REM and the B52’s. Atlanta-based
record companies flourished while promoting both
urban and rock artists. Examples include Ichiban
Records’ promotion of Sir Mix-a-Lot, MC Breed’s
base music, and early releases by blues diva
Francine Reed as well as Capricorn’s promotion of
The Georgia Satellites. Other notable acts include
Drivin n Cryin, Shawn Mullins, Indigo Girls, Collective
Soul and Matchbox 20.
Throughout the ‘90s and into the new millennium,
Atlanta solidified its position as a go-to location
for breakout artists, as L.A. Reid developed many
multi-platinum acts in Atlanta (including Kanye
West, Mariah Carey, Justin Bieber, Rihanna, Toni
Braxton, Pink, Avril Lavigne, Paula Abdul, and local
talents such as Usher, OutKast, and TLC, among
others); and Brendan O’Brien set up shop in
Atlanta recording the likes of Bruce Springsteen,
Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Train and more.
This creative community was surrounded by many
supporting segments of the industry, including
producers such as Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds,
Jermaine Dupri, and Matt Still along with studios,
managers, and lawyers.
Atlanta-based law firm Katz, Smith & Cohen
emerged over the decade as one of the top music
law firms in the country, eventually merging into
Greenberg Traurig. Founder Joel Katz sponsored
the Music & Entertainment Business Program at
Kennesaw State University, which bears his name.
Today, Georgia continues to serve as a hotbed for
new talent in multiple genres, such as LaCrae’s
Christian hip-hop, Sharon Jones’ Motown-style soul
music, Deerhunter’s and Manchester Orchestra’s
alternative musings, country stars such as Lady
Antebellum, Sugarland, Third Day, and Zac Brown,
and rock acts such as Mastodon and Civil War
History.
However, many such artists end up leaving town
for other cities, or engaging in business with
managers, record companies, and agents in other
cities. Most Georgia-based record companies have
disappeared over the past decade, and many top
producers have left for Nashville, LA and NYC.
Atlanta lacks a unified music business center
akin to Nashville’s “Music Row” or Los Angeles’
Hollywood, where artists can manage the entire
lifecycle of their career within the local community.
This challenge is one of the opportunities GMP
intends to tackle.

Media Post-Production
Opportunities
The Georgia Entertainment Industry Incentive
Act provides up to 30 percent in transferable
tax credits for production expenditures, which
includes post-production and original music
scoring (excluding development costs, promotion,
marketing, license fees, and story right fees),
for qualified productions including feature films,
television projects, music videos, advertising,
interactive entertainment, and animated projects.
ADR
Automated dialogue replacement (ADR) is a
process of re-recording dialogue in the studio in
synchronization with film. Atlanta is home to many
music and sound design studios that have received
post-production ADR credits and recorded
production music for large films, television shows,
video games, advertisements, and other sources
of media – and yet most of this work for films shot
in Georgia is still being outsourced to other cities.
Most of this work currently takes place in either Los
Angeles or New York where a 30 percent tax credit
exists for production inside the five boroughs,
as well as a 35 percent tax credit for production
outside the five boroughs.
Production Music
Production music companies produce recorded
music that can be licensed to customers for use
in such media as radio and television broadcasts,
commercials and jingles, as well as scores and
soundtracks for motion pictures and video games.
Production music library owners include many
of the major music publishers in Los Angeles,
New York, and London. Fees are paid upfront to
the library for permission to use the music. In the
U.S., the libraries determine their own licensing
fees. In the U.K., licensing fees are standardized
by the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society.
Broadcasters pay these fees to performing rights
organizations such as the American Society of
Composers, Authors and Publishers, Broadcast
Music, Inc., and the Society of European Stage
Authors and Composers, who then pay their
members. The music library and the composer
typically split the performance income 50/50.
An original score from a composer enables greater
flexibility and creativity than licensed production
music. However, without proper soundstages
and convertible recording space for film scoring,
Georgia is unable to perform this work for projects
that are currently being filmed within the state and
throughout the southeastern United States.
Traditionally, most media scoring has taken place
in Los Angeles and New York where the major
film studios and broadcast television networks are
headquartered. Media scoring opportunities have
grown tremendously throughout other regions of
the country and cities, such as New Orleans and
Shreveport, Louisiana; Nashville, and Seattle have
capitalized by building sufficient soundstages and
recruiting the right talent to complete projects at
lower costs than Los Angeles and New York-based
facilities.
In Louisiana, media scoring is quickly becoming an
important part of the statewide music production
mix. Esplanade Studios of New Orleans was
opened in 2013 as the state’s largest recording
studio. BLADE Studios in Shreveport offers a state-
of-the-art recording space for film scoring and
ADR. Incentives for recording at BLADE Studios

include a 25 percent cash rebate of all expenses,
including all travel and equipment, as well as
a 35 percent tax credit of all expenses toward
completing a film’s audio post-production at
BLADE Studios.
Media scoring in these competing cities is closely
tied to higher education programs at local colleges
and universities, including the following: NYU
Steinhardt School of Music – master’s degree and
undergraduate non-degree programs (New York
City); Berklee College of Music – master’s and
undergraduate degree programs (Boston); Seattle
Film Institute/Pacific Northwest Film Scoring
Program – master’s degree and professional
certificate programs; UCLA Herb Albert School
of Music – graduate certificate program (Los
Angeles); USC Thorton School of Music – graduate
certificate program (Los Angeles); and University
of Texas School of Music – media scoring graduate
courses (Austin).
What’s happening in Georgia?
Much of the talent needed for media scoring
already exists within Georgia. The state is rife
with professional musicians and orchestras, which
include the Albany Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta
Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Philharmonic
Orchestra, Atlanta Pops Orchestra, Augusta
Symphony Orchestra, Columbus Symphony
Orchestra, Georgia Philharmonic, Georgia
Symphony Orchestra, LaGrange Symphony
Orchestra, Macon Symphony Orchestra, Macon
Pops Orchestra, New Trinity Baroque, Ocmulgee
Symphony Orchestra, Rome Symphony Orchestra,
Savannah Philharmonic Orchestra, and Valdosta
Symphony Orchestra.
With sufficient media scoring infrastructure, and
the backing of financial incentives, local businesses
should be able to escalate growth. Emulating what
competing cities and states are offering businesses
is critical in becoming competitive in this space.
In addition, Georgia could partner with statewide
film festivals and begin hosting media scoring
seminars and workshops to promote creative and
technological advancement while showcasing
local media scoring assets to lure new business
activity. Much of this is currently taking place in
other parts of the country. Georgia Music Partners,
Georgia Production Partnership, and Georgia Game
Developers Association have the opportunity to
join forces and promote this homegrown business
as well as promote national and international
opportunities in media post-production.

LIVE MUSIC AND
ENTERTAINMENT
Festivals significantly impact local and state
economies by driving tourism and generating
substantial revenue for local businesses while
creating a large number of jobs. They bring
together various creative industries to provide
professionals, local residents, and visitors the
opportunity to engage in art, technology, and
commerce.
The National Landscape
The nation’s largest festivals generate international
media coverage that brands host cities as premier
breeding grounds for innovative and creative
exchange.
SXSW
Austin, Texas is home to the SXSW festival,
the world’s premier film, music, and interactive
conferences and trade shows event. It began in
1987, and has continued to
grow in both size and scope
every year. In 2013, the event
lasted nine days and included
a 4-day trade show, a 6-night
music festival featuring more
than 2,200 bands, and a 9-day film festival with
more than 400 screenings. The festival attracted
more than 300,000 people from around the world
and produced over $218 million in annual impact,
according to a report by Greyhill Advisors. The
annual Austin City Limits Music Festival, which
celebrates its fourteenth year in 2014, generates
over $100 million in economic impact for the city,
according to festival organizers.
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
This Indio, Calif. festival signed a 17-year deal in
2013 with its venue. The festival spans back-to-
back weekends with many attendees staying
throughout the entire
week. An estimated
$254 million in local
impact and $500 million in global impact is created
along with over 30,000 jobs. In 2014, over the
nine-day period, the festival recorded 579,000
attendees and $78,332,000 in gross revenue,
according to a presentation by the Development
Management Group, Inc. The weekend following
Coachella, Goldenvoice produced the Stagecoach
country music festival, which drew a total
attendance of 190,200 and $18,615,000 in gross
revenue.
Lollapalooza
This is an annual music festival hosted by
Chicago featuring popular alternative rock, punk
rock, heavy metal, hip-hop, dance, and comedy
performances. In
2012, Lollapalooza
had an economic
impact of $120
million and brought more than 300,000 attendees,
according to the Chicago Mayor’s Office. The
festival is also a tremendous tourism driver. In 2012,
80 percent of total attendees were visitors from
outside Chicago; 59 percent of total attendees
were from outside of Illinois; and 11 percent of
total attendees were from outside the United
States. That year, Lollapalooza generated an
estimated $85 million in local spending at hotels,
restaurants, and clubs.

The Bonnaroo Music Festival
Taking place in Manchester, Tennessee, this is a
four-day camping festival, which generated over
$51 million into the state and local economy in
2012. The festival
drew attendees from
all 50 states as well
as thousands of international visitors. Co-produced
by Knoxville-based AC Entertainment and Superfly
Productions, the festival had direct expenditures
from attendees of $36 million and an additional
$15 million in indirect and induced economic
activity, including increased sales, income, and jobs.
Attendees spent an average of $86 per day during
the festival, according to a report from Greyhill
Advisors.
The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival
This event is a celebration of local New Orleans
and Louisiana music culture. The festival drew
an estimated 435,000
attendees in 2014. In 2013,
the festival created an
economic impact greater than
$300 million, according to
jazzfestandheritage.org. The
festival is held on Friday through
Sunday of the last weekend in April, and Thursday
through Sunday of the first weekend in May.
Georgia’s Music Festival Market Segment
Currently, more than 40 statewide music festivals
occur annually in Georgia. As travelers visit cities
to attend music-related performances, festivals,
attractions, and landmarks, both the music and
tourism industries benefit communities statewide.
Georgia can utilize its existing assets, create new
assets, and retain talent through the continued
development of large-scale festivals.
TomorrowWorld
This electronic music festival is held annually
in Chattahoochee Hills. In 2013, the festival
generated $85 million in economic impact, $70
million of which was in greater
Atlanta. This is the same amount
brought in by the 2013 NCAA
Final Four basketball tournament.
At the 2013 festival, 70 countries
were represented as 12 percent
of attendees came from outside the U.S. while
every U.S. state was also represented. The festival
employed the equivalent of 749 full-time jobs.
An estimated $4.3 million in tax revenue went
to the state and local governments as a result of
event-related spending. Roughly 22.5 percent of
TomorrowWorld attendees spent several additional
days in the Atlanta area, adding $28.7 million into
the local economy, according to a study by Beacon
Economics.
Music Midtown
This large music festival in Atlanta returned in 2011
after a six-year hiatus. At
its peak, the festival had an
economic impact of
$23 million.

Counterpoint
A three-day electronic music and arts festival
held at Kingston Downs in Rome, Georgia. In
2014, the festival generated
$3.5 million in economic
impact to grocery stores,
restaurants, gas, and hotels
to the Bartow-Floyd County
Line area with an estimated 65,000 attendees over
the course of three days.
The Savannah Music Festival
This even lasts 17 days and is Georgia’s largest
music festival as nearly 500 artists from around
the world participate. In 2014, the
festival attracted more than 37,000
attendees, 37 percent of which
came from more than 200 miles
away, stayed an average of 4.5
days, and spent $465 per day in
Savannah. The festival organizers
host writers from key Georgia
tourism markets, which include the U.K., Germany,
France, and Canada. The festival generated nearly
$1 million in local tax revenues, representing a 10-
to-1 return on public investment. Ticket sales from
the annual festival amount to only 40 percent of
the festival’s annual $3.5 million budget. As a non-
profit arts organization, the festival must raise the
remaining 60 percent of the budget each year in
order to produce the event along with year-round
music education programs.
A3C
A3C is one of the largest hip-hop events in the
world with performances from well over 500
artists. The five-day festival encompasses all
aspects of hip-hop culture, including music,
art, film, style, and education. During the day
attendees are able to connect with and learn from
tastemakers, icons, organizations,
brands, and industry leaders,
while evenings are filled with
special events, parties, and
performances from some of the
hip-hop industry’s most famous artists.
It is clear that the live music scene is a growth
area for the music industry in general and for the
State of Georgia specifically, and GMP is intent on
advocating with government and businesses to
promote and fund more growth opportunities in
this sector.
Live Tour Rehearsal Market
Competitive regions, including Nashville and
Louisiana, have engaged the live tour rehearsal
market. Georgia would benefit from doing the same.
Prior to embarking on world tours, international
touring acts need up to a month or more to set up
stages, design, choreograph, and rehearse shows.
Typically, these touring operations cost $300,000-
800,000 per artist for four weeks of rehearsal and
create an average of at least 100 temporary jobs.
The 2009 report “Using Arts and Culture to
Stimulate State Economic Development” notes,
“Companies’ decisions about where to locate their
businesses are often influenced by factors such
as the availability of a creative workforce and the
quality of life available to employees.”
For Georgia’s music industry to retain existing
labor resources, attract new opportunities, and
grow its competitive position, an emphasis must be
placed on the value propositions being delivered
to music artists and music industry service
professionals across the state. Steps must be taken

to fully develop and utilize the state’s existing and
prospective music assets as well as leverage all of
Georgia’s entertainment sectors while creating a
collective brand identity that represents Georgia’s
proud music past and its ambitious future.
Music High Tech
As technological advances continue to drive
the digital consumption of music, technology
entrepreneurship is emerging in the Atlanta
area creating opportunities in production music
licensing, digital distribution, music promotion, and
live music production. In 2013, Atlanta ranked 14th
nationally among the top-20 metro areas in high-
tech job growth, according to CBRE’s U.S. Tech-
Twenty: Measuring Office Market Impact research
report. Also, Georgia is second in the nation as
having the largest increase in entrepreneurial
activity during the past decade, according to the
Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity.
Recent Atlanta-based technology-enabled
entertainment start-ups include production music
licensing platforms Affix Music and Placement
Music; ticketing company TicketAlternative; music
gamification apps such as Zooz and Songster;
social marketing firm Free All Media; and digital
distribution and promotion platform Neurotic
Media. Additionally, large local corporations have
engaged the digital music space, such as The
Coca-Cola Company’s activation of a global music
department; Cox Communications’ investment
in music start-ups, and the music licensing and
production activity of multiple Turner Broadcasting
assets, including CNN and Adult Swim.
With technology being the new “star” for the Y
generation, music has become part of a bigger
entertainment plain in the past decade. The fastest
growing segment of the music industry at large
is the high tech section, fueled by the rise of
Apple’s iTunes, Amazon MP3 store, Google Play,
Microsoft’s X-Box, and in the most recent years,
Spotify, Pandora, XM Sirius and iHeart Radio. The
latest RIAA statistics show that music distribution
is divided into three almost even parts as of mid-
2014: Physical (CDs and vinyl, with CDs constantly
shrinking); downloads which represent pay-to-own
(with this year being the first to show their growth
slowing and for some actually starting to shrink);
and streaming which represents pay-to-access
(which is in fast growth mode).
While traditional brick and mortar chains are
shrinking their music product footprint in stores
every year this past decade, the growth of digital
delivery is constantly increasing as a portion
of the music industry’s product sales business.
Shoppers have embarked on a paradigm shift in
consumption, shifting culturally from “ownership”
to “access” as the preferred business model.
With the overall model still in constant flux, there
are growing opportunities for music business
entrepreneurs to build scalable, sustainable music
businesses. Interestingly, many of the founders and
managers of today’s top digital music companies
boast a music-oriented background such as
musician, producer, or business manager. In other
words, the technology-enabled side of the music
business is, to a large extent, driven by music
industry people.

In our research and competitive analysis of strong
music industry communities, we found a number of
areas to focus our efforts. Georgia Music Partners
will continue to focus on public private partnerships
to strengthen Georgia’s music economy alongside
Georgia Department of Economic Development’s
Music Office, Georgia Lawmakers, educational
institutions, and the Georgia music industry
community.
These recommendations could help move Georgia
towards attracting more Music Industry Technology
companies, retain homegrown talent as well as
support music entrepreneurs in partnering with
existing Georgia businesses.
The following are preliminary ideas about initiatives
that GMP considers to be its key advocacy segments:
Marketing Georgia’s Music Scene
Georgia Tourism
Tourism is Georgia’s second biggest business
(surpassed only by Agriculture), and the state ranks
eight in the nation in tourism economy with a total
annual impact of more than $53 billion (supporting
more than 10 percent of all payroll employment in
Georgia, according to the Georgia Department of
Economic Development).
However, according to the Georgia Chamber of
Commerce, “Every Southeastern state that directly
competes with Georgia invests 40 percent to
400 percent more than Georgia in state-funded
advertising and promotion…Studies project that
additional investment in Georgia tourism could
generate up to $1 billion in additional revenue for
Georgia and maintain/grow the state’s competitive
position.”
In 2012, Atlanta generated $11.6 billion in direct
visitor spending compared with Nashville – $4.61
billion and Austin – $4.3 billion, according to
the U.S. Travel Association. It is reasonable to
assert that a much larger share of Nashville and
Austin’s tourism is driven by the music industry
than that of Atlanta. Thus, growth in the Georgia
music industry’s tourism elements, as previously
mentioned, will directly expand Georgia’s overall
tourism industry.
For Georgia’s entertainment industry to reach
its full potential from a branding and revenue-
generating standpoint, each sector (film, music,
and digital/interactive/gaming) must cross-
promote and leverage one another’s resources.
The Georgia film industry generated an economic
impact of $5.1 billion during Fiscal Year 2014 and
created $3.8 billion in total wages from almost
78,000 jobs. Also, the 158 feature film and
television productions shot in Georgia spent $1.4
billion during that time, according to the Motion
Picture Association of America. The Georgia video
game and digital entertainment industry generated
an estimated $1.9 billion in 2013, according to
GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES
For Georgia’s
entertainment
industry to reach
its full potential
from a branding
and revenue-
generating
standpoint, each
sector (film,
music, and digital/
interactive/
gaming) must
cross-promote
and leverage
one another’s
resources.

The Georgia Game Developers Association in
conjunction with Georgia-based tax, accounting
and business consulting firm Habif, Arogeti &
Wynne, LLP.
Establish a dedicated music marketing budget as
recommended by the Georgia House Music Study
Committee (report released January 2014)
There is currently zero financial allocation to
market Georgia’s music tourism elements, including
concerts, festivals, and award shows. GMP will work
to change this. Austin, Texas currently employs
four full-time staff in their music division. New
York, Nashville and Austin each have a cohesive
music commission comprised of organizations,
institutions, large and small businesses, artists
and state and local government agencies which
work closely together on music specific targeted
marketing efforts. Building awareness of Georgia’s
vastly talented music community and world-class
recording facilities will help strengthen the film,
television and gaming industries, moving Georgia
closer to becoming as a fully functional global
entertainment epicenter.
By creating a synergistic working relationship
with other entertainment sectors, each sector
may prosper beyond what they are capable of
otherwise.
Music Award Shows
Music award shows generate tourism revenue
similar to that of sports events such as Atlanta’s
NCAA Men’s Final Four and the SEC Championship
football game. The 2010 Country Music Awards
in Nashville generated over $3 million in direct
visitor spending, according to the Convention
and Visitors Bureau. The 2014 MTV Video Music
Awards generated an estimated $50 million for Los
Angeles County, according to a study by economic
research firm Micronomics.
n Atlanta has successfully hosted the BET Hip
Hop Awards the past nine consecutive years.
The Hip Hop Awards highlight Atlanta as
an urban music epicenter and feature many
of Georgia’s homegrown artists. However,
Georgia does not host any other music award
show and there is no current initiative to
attract more. Hotel rooms, eating and drinking
in local restaurants, and transportation all
contribute to the local economies during
award events. Therefore, GMP considers
this an opportunity, as well, and is keen on
working with local businesses and legislators
to promote such an initiative.
Collateral Materials
Creating a cohesive brand and to market Georgia’s
music scene uniformly through several assets can
go a long way in driving measurable results:
Logo: One of the ideas GMP is exploring is
creating a local music industry logo which
can be used by any music business within the
state – tagging concerts, recorded media, and
any related physical and digital materials. This
would be akin to the state logos one often sees
in films that are shot in Georgia, Louisiana, and
some of our other competitive states (as well as
Australia, Canada etc.). A “music made in GA”
sort of logo.
Website: You’re on it. GMP is investing in
growing its infrastructure not only in order to
inform the world of what music people are
doing in Georgia, but also to create an internal
network for the state. Please sign up to our

email list to receive our free newsletters; join
our meet-ups and mixers; and join us to help
make a difference. We are also working on an
archival page on the site where local businesses
can create profiles, resulting in a music business
directory of sorts, which can help both local
and out-of-state parties identify the right music
person or business for any music–related task.
Live Tour and Rehearsal Incentive
Live tours on the scale of Garth Brooks, Beyonce,
Dave Mathews, and Kenny Chesney are large
operations. The band and crew set up shop often
up to a month to build/design sets and rehearse
(similar to TV productions). The average pre-tour
production spend on shows of this magnitude
ranges $300,000 - $800,000. Louisiana the
State works with the music industry and private
companies to attract and bring in more music
focused businesses, such as these. *In 2014,
Pinewood UK hosted the Foo Fighters at one of
their sound stages for their pre-tour rehearsals.
Industry Trade Missions: GMP believes there is a
lot to learn from other states and cities that have
produced successful music industry platforms
using incentives. We also believe that Georgia’s
music industry needs to advocate its case at
leading industry markets. To that end, GMP plans
to advocate for a budget (state, city, and private
sector) to be allocated to an industry trade
mission to Los Angeles to meet with key industry
executives to raise awareness of Georgia’s
current tax incentive and explore other initiatives
that we can add to our advocacy roadmap.
Advocating for financial
investment and business
incentives
We believe there are two main levers to consider in
this section:
n Tax Incentives
n Investment Incentives
Tax Incentives
Tax incentives may prove a strong tool that helps
increase funding for music education and music
businesses alike. Such incentives have proven to
work well at competing states, as well as in Georgia
with respect to the film industry, which is a good
model to review and emulate.
n In 2008, Georgia implemented one of the
country’s most aggressive film tax incentive
programs. The economic impact of this
program in 2012 is estimated at more than
$3.1 billion, according to the Georgia Film,
Music and Digital Entertainment Office. The
industry provides an estimated 25,000 jobs,
of which 11,000 are full time.
n This film industry incentive allows for up
to 30% of a studio or business’ production
expenditures to become transferable tax
credits. The program is available for qualifying
projects, including feature films, television
series, commercials, music videos, animation
and game development.
While this benefit may impact music video
productions and music pre and post production
for movies, those sections represent but a small
portion of Georgia’s music industry, which means
the majority of music industry activity in Georgia is
not enjoying the benefits of this tax credit.

While the film, TV, and gaming industry sectors are
booming in Georgia, the music is lagging behind
and bleeding talent to other states. GMP believes
we need dedicated assistance in order to bring the
music industry in Georgia up to par with the other
entertainment sectors. Georgia has an opportunity
to make a significant, positive impact for its music
industry by creating a similar, measured incentive
for music people to that created for film. Such a
program should emulate the strong points of the
film program, and implement best-practices that
drive the strongest value for both music people
and the state.
GMP seeks for such new incentives to create
enhanced opportunities to record music not only
for film projects being shot here, but also for the
wider music community that seeks to record in
Georgia; practice live shows in Georgia; or run a
music business of any kind within the state.
In order to compete with other states, GMP
recommends reviewing the following options:
n Revise the existing “Sales Tax Holiday”
to include musical instruments, musical
instrument accessories, and music
software/hardware.
n Extend Sales and Use tax exemptions to
recording studios and producers similar to
Texas’ current exemptions.
n Standalone Musical and Theatrical Production
Tax Incentive. Louisiana offers between 10-
30% incentive to musical tours that originate
and rehearse in their market. New York State
also encourages pre-tour activities with a
24% credit.
Investment Incentives
As the number of high-tech start-ups in Georgia
continues to grow, early-stage funding remains
an obvious challenge. There are only a handful of
early-stage funding resources for such companies
in Georgia – such as the Atlanta Technology
Angels (ATA), Seraph Group, and many individual
investors, also called “Angel Investors”1
which fulfill
the early need of entrepreneurs, normally up to $1
million in funding. Music industry start-ups have
leveraged resources both inside and outside the
state to fund their growth and success, although
while as the saying goes, “everybody loves music”
and it is a sexy business to partake in, most local
angel investors do not hold strong industry-specific
knowledge and are not comfortable investing in
music. As a result, Georgia struggles to deliver
the same scope of funding opportunities as those
found in Nashville, California, New York, and Boston
for music companies.
When it comes to the next, larger funding stage
of companies (normally a $1 million to $15 million
range), Georgia has just a handful of Venture
Capital (VC) firms, none of which specialize in
entertainment as their market segment. As a result,
companies must venture out of state for such
funding needs. This is true for any music related
1 Angel investors are high-net-worth individuals who invest smaller amounts such as $25,000 or $100,000 in
early-stage companies each (and by aggregating several such funding sources, new companies can amass nec-
essary seed money to launch their business). There are several angel organizations in Georgia, as noted above;
as well as several related networking events and resource centers for entrepreneurs – such as ATDC, Venture
Atlanta, Atlanta Tech Village, and Angel Lounge.

start-up business, as well as artists – many artists
would pursue sponsors in Nashville, LA or NY, for
example. With major VC firms preferring to invest
“close to home” (Palo Alto, NY, Boston, Chicago,
etc.), Georgia entrepreneurs are at a disadvantage
when competing for potential funding sources
nationally.
Nonetheless, progress has been made. In 2013,
the amount of venture capital invested in Georgia
companies was the highest since 2008. Local
companies secured a total of $411.8 million in
venture capital, up from $262.8 million the prior
year, according to the MoneyTree Report, published
by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and the National
Venture Capital Association, and based on data
from Thomson Reuters.
It is important to note that while high tech
companies are seen as hot investment opportunities,
they are not the only such investment opportunities
in Georgia when it comes to music. Other, more
traditional music entities need such funding in
multiple phases of their growth curve, including live
show promoters, recording studios, and of course,
artists themselves. In Nashville, for example, the
music community tends to re-invest in itself often,
funding artists, studios, and both traditional and
new high tech businesses. With so many successful
music entrepreneurs leaving Georgia over time to
NY, LA, Nashville and elsewhere, Georgia is yet to
develop a similar music business community that
re-invests in itself.
Importantly, the state has several programs in
place that help promote the growth of smaller
companies. We encourage music people to take
advantage of these opportunities.2
GMP is interested in promoting the following
initiatives to increase investment in Georgia’s music
industry:
State participation in funding
Opportunities exist for the state to directly
profit from start-up investment by participating
directly in such activities. For example, for the
state to participate 50/50 with each and every
investment made into a music-related venture
will send a strong signal to the investment
community that their money is less at risk
in Georgia, and that they have a strong and
motivated partner in Georgia. This would not
only further induce investors to open local
offices and invest in Georgia music people and
businesses, but also enable the state to profit as
these startups reach exit. This will lead to a win-
win situation for the taxpayers. Such investment
can be made in new media companies,
individual artists, traditional and non-traditional
music businesses, and live entertainment
productions. The state could set aside a yearly
budget for this program, invite local businesses
to participate, and perhaps invite individual
tax payers to participate in similar fashion to
how individuals can direct their Georgia tax
payments toward certain schools.
2 These programs are primarily tailored for small and start-up businesses of all kinds (not specific to music), and
seem competitive with what many other states offer as well – including (i) Small Business Tax Relief, (ii) Angel
investor tax credits, and (iii) financing of up to $250,000 through the Entrepreneurial and Small Business Devel-
opment Loan Guarantee Program. More information is available about these tools at www.Georgia.org.

Tax incentives for out-of-state VCs
Opportunities exist to create a competitive
platform for funding sources from outside the
state. If a program existed which offered an
advantageous tax profile for investors who
move their funds into Georgia banks and who
invest (or re-invest) in music companies. For
example, introduce a reduced tax profile at a
liquidity event for such investors; then Georgia
would benefit financially in similar fashion to
how the local film industry has enjoyed growth
in recent years due to its tax credits.
Education: Preparing the next
generation of Georgia’s music
workforce
We believe there is an ideal opportunity to enhance
higher education for music people by offering
strong and cohesive music and music business
grants and scholarships in desired fields of music
industry growth. GMP works with individuals,
businesses, educators, and legislators to create
more opportunities for students seeking a career
in music. We believe there is an opportunity to
create music-specific programming in Georgia that
will focus on both musicians and music business
students, with the latter focusing specifically
on areas of growth such as new music business
models, live music business, post-production and
other silos that may be identified over time. Our
goal is to gain involvement and support from both
the government and private sector. Specifically,
Georgia’s current “High Demand Career Initiative”
should include music to better prepare students for
jobs that currently exist, particularly jobs that will
continue to support growth in film, television and
interactive media.
“If we, as the creators, producers, engineers,
promoters, distributors, consumers and fans of Georgia
music, can come together as a community and find a
single voice to rally behind, we have the opportunity to
turn Atlanta into a true music capital. We can fuel an
economic engine built on tourism, creative services and,
above all, some great music.
”Brandon Bush
music publisher, Songs of The Architect;
music director, Sugarland; songwriter, John Mayer, Train.

CONCLUSION
We have an impressive history to commemorate
and preserve, and we are proud to tell it; and we
have stiff competition ahead, and challenges to
convert into opportunities; we are excited about
the road ahead, and hope that you will join us in
making a difference.
Our strategy
GMP engages local and state government, schools,
companies, and musicians to identify, develop and
exploit opportunities to retain talent in the state.
We seek to increase opportunities for both start-
up and existing businesses and music people by
leveraging statewide strengths and escalating
revenue growth. The programs we seek to develop
and promote start at the education stage and
continue through the life cycle of a music person
and a music company’s career. High level, three
focus areas emerge:
1 Create and Market Brand Awareness for
Georgia Music
2 Promote Growth In Georgia’s
Music Economy
3 Advocate For Improved Partnership Between
Education and Current Industry Needs
Please become a member and make a donation if
you can, and at bare minimum, please stay involved
by joining our free mailing list and continuing to
spread the word about our advocacy work and
about Georgia’s talented music people.
Visit www.georgiamusicpartners.org for more
information and to get involved.
GMP would like to thank the following for their contributions to this report:
Matt Daniels and Scott Mills, William Mills Agency
Shachar Oren, Neurotic Media
Jim Benson, BauerHaus Creative

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