Florida Music Festival was founded in 2002 by aXis Magazine & Promotions as a three day music festival and conference, showcasing unsigned talent and promoting major national acts. Every spring in Downtown Orlando, the Florida Music Festival showcases more than 250 unsigned bands and solo artists of all genres for the attending music industry professionals, on 15 indoor and outdoor stages. In addition to the three day 'rock and roll bar crawl,' industry professionals from all levels of the music business, including record label reps, booking agents, video game and television licensing firms and major producers speak at the conference seminars by day, and scout unsigned talent by night.

The Festival

Each night features a national headliner on the mainstage at Wall St Plaza in the center of Downtown. Past headliners include Cowboy Mouth

Cowboy Mouth

Cowboy Mouth is a rock band based in New Orleans, Louisiana. Their name usually means "One with a loud and raucous voice". The nucleus of the band formed in the 1990s, and they have become a powerhouse live act whose performances have been likened to "a religious experience."Some of their most...

(2002), Mofro

MOFRO

JJ Grey & MOFRO is a soul/funk/R&B/blues/southern rock band from Jacksonville, Florida composed of JJ Grey , Andrew Trube , Anthony Farrell , Anthony Cole and the "Hercules Horns" Dennis Marion , Art Edmaiston JJ Grey & MOFRO (formerly billed just as Mofro) is a soul/funk/R&B/blues/southern...

(2003), Less Than Jake

Less Than Jake

Less Than Jake is an American ska punk band from Gainesville, Florida. Originally formed in 1992 as a power pop trio, the band evolved into a hybrid of ska punk. Less Than Jake have also been cited as showing influences from a wide variety of genres including post-grunge, heavy metal, alternative...

/Buckcherry

Buckcherry

Buckcherry is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California formed in 1995. The band released two albums, Buckcherry and Time Bomb , before partially dissolving in the summer of 2002. In 2005, lead vocalist Josh Todd and lead guitarist Keith Nelson reformed Buckcherry and released a new album...

(2004), Everclear

Everclear (band)

Everclear is a rock band formed in Portland, Oregon in 1992 best known for their radio hits spanning more than a decade. For most of its existence, Everclear has consisted of Art Alexakis , Craig Montoya , and Greg Eklund . Eklund replaced original drummer Scott Cuthbert in 1994...

/Lit (2005), Third Eye Blind

Third Eye Blind

Third Eye Blind is an American alternative rock band formed in the early 1990s in San Francisco. The songwriting duo of Kevin Cadogan and Stephan Jenkins signed the band's first major label recording contract with Elektra records in 1996 resulting in two multi platinum albums. The band's lineup...

/Mofro

MOFRO

JJ Grey & MOFRO is a soul/funk/R&B/blues/southern rock band from Jacksonville, Florida composed of JJ Grey , Andrew Trube , Anthony Farrell , Anthony Cole and the "Hercules Horns" Dennis Marion , Art Edmaiston JJ Grey & MOFRO (formerly billed just as Mofro) is a soul/funk/R&B/blues/southern...

(2006), Flogging Molly

Flogging Molly

Flogging Molly is a seven-piece Irish-descendant band from Los Angeles, California, that is currently signed to their own record label, Borstal Beat Records.-Early years:...

/Seven Mary Three

Seven Mary Three

Seven Mary Three, occasionally abbreviated to 7 Mary 3 or 7M3, is an American hard rock band. They have released seven studio albums and one live album, and are best known for their hit singles "Cumbersome", "Water's Edge", "Lucky", and "Wait"....

(2007), Blue Man Group

Blue Man Group

Blue Man Group is an organization founded by Chris Wink, Matt Goldman and Phil Stanton. The organization produces theatrical shows and concerts featuring popular music, comedy and multimedia; recorded music and scores for film and television; television appearances for shows such as The Tonight...

/Pras

Pras

Prakazrel Samuel Michel, known as Pras, is a Grammy Award-winning Haitian-American rapper, actor, film producer, and member of the hip hop trio The Fugees.-Early life:...

(2008) and Filter

Filter (band)

Filter is a rock group formed in 1993 in Cleveland by singer Richard Patrick and guitarist/programmer Brian Liesegang. Filter has released five studio albums, the most recent being The Trouble with Angels, which was released on August 17, 2010....

/Yellowman

Yellowman

Yellowman is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay, widely known as King Yellowman...

(2009), Anberlin

Anberlin

Anberlin is an American rock band formed in Winter Haven, Florida in 2002. Since the beginning of 2007, the band has consisted of lead vocalist Stephen Christian, guitarists Joseph Milligan and Christian McAlhaney, bassist Deon Rexroat, and drummer Nathan Young.Members of Anberlin originally formed...

/Less Than Jake

Less Than Jake

Less Than Jake is an American ska punk band from Gainesville, Florida. Originally formed in 1992 as a power pop trio, the band evolved into a hybrid of ska punk. Less Than Jake have also been cited as showing influences from a wide variety of genres including post-grunge, heavy metal, alternative...

/Rusted Root

Rusted Root

Rusted Root is a band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania known for their unique fusion of acoustic, rock, world and other styles of music, with a strong percussion section that draws from African, Latin American, Native American, and Indian influences...

(2010).

The Showcases

Unsigned acts showcasing for the industry include Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift

Taylor Alison Swift is an American country pop singer-songwriter, musician and actress.In 2006, she released her debut single "Tim McGraw", then her self-titled debut album, which was subsequently certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America...

(2002), The Academy Is...

The Academy Is...

The Academy Is... was an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 2003. Before dispersing, they were signed by the Decaydance imprint of the Fueled by Ramen label. They were originally known as "The Academy", but added the "Is..." in 2004 to avoid legal complications with other...

(2003), Flyleaf

Flyleaf

Flyleaf is an American alternative metal band, formed in the Belton and Temple, Texas regions in 2000. The band has charted on mainstream rock, Christian pop and Christian metal genres. They performed around the United States in 2003 until releasing their eponymous debut album, Flyleaf, in 2005....

(2004), Manchester Orchestra

Manchester orchestra

Manchester Orchestra is an American indie rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, formed in 2005. The group is currently composed of rhythm guitarist-singer-songwriter Andy Hull, lead guitarist Robert McDowell, keyboardist and percussionist Chris Freeman, bassist Jonathan Corley, and drummer Tim Very...

(2005), Black Tide

Black Tide

Black Tide is an American heavy metal band from Miami, Florida. Formed in 2004, the group is currently signed to Interscope Records and is composed of Gabriel Garcia , Austin Diaz , Zachary Sandler , and Steven Spence...

(2006), There For Tomorrow

There For Tomorrow

There for Tomorrow is a band formed in Orlando, Florida in 2003. The group is influenced by bands such as Jimmy Eat World, Blink-182, Third Eye Blind, and The Hives.-Early years :...

(2007), Between The Trees

Between the Trees

Between the Trees was an American Rock band from Orlando, Florida, formed in 2005. The band consisted of vocalist/guitarist Ryan Kirkland, lead guitarist Stevie Benz, drummer Josh Butler and bassist Jeremy Butler....

(2008) and many more success stories. Named one of the Top 25 Music Festivals in the Southeast by the Weekly Planet(Tampa) and Creative Loafing(Atlanta), more than 2000 bands have played the stages of FMF over the past decade.

The Conference

The Music Industry Educational Seminars have included such speakers and panelists as Monte Lipman

Monte Lipman

Monte Lipman is an American music industry executive. He is presently the President and CEO of Universal Republic Records.In the current era of record company transition, Lipman transformed his own start-up label, Republic Records, into an autonomous imprint in 2005 – Universal Republic Records,...

 & Avery Lipman

Republic Records

Republic Records was a record label and subsidiary of Universal Motown Republic Group. They originally went by the name Cheese Factory Records...

(Founders & Co-Presidents of Universal Republic Records), John Janick (Founder: Fueled By Ramen

Fueled by Ramen

Fueled by Ramen is an American record label which operates as a subsidiary of Warner Music Group, and is distributed by Atlantic Records. The label, founded in Gainesville, Florida, is based in New York City...

/ President: Elektra Records

Elektra Records

Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....

), Steve Robertson

Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

(VP of A&R: Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

), Lou Pearlman

Lou Pearlman

Louis Jay "Lou" Pearlman is a former impresario of the successful 1990s boy bands such as The Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC, Take 5, O-Town and US5. In 2006, it was discovered that Pearlman had perpetrated one of the largest and longest-running Ponzi schemes in American history, leaving more than $300...

(Founder: Trans Con Records), Richard Reines

Richard Reines

Richard Reines is an American recording industry executive who is co-owner of Drive-Thru Records with his sister, Stefanie Reines. Since its establishment in 1996, Drive-Thru Records has achieved notable success with bands including New Found Glory, Fenix*TX, Midtown, Finch, The Starting Line,...

(Founder: Drive Thru Records), Rodney Jerkins

Rodney Jerkins

Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins is an American songwriter, record producer, and musician. Jerkins received two Grammy nominations in 2011.-Biography:...

(Producer: Michael Jackson/Beyonce), Richard Gottehrer

Richard Gottehrer

Richard Gottehrer is an American songwriter, record producer and record label executive.-Career:Gottehrer came to prominence as a songwriter in the 1960s with his most notable songs being "My Boyfriend's Back" and "I Want Candy". As Feldman-Goldstein-Gottehrer , he wrote various songs including...

(Founder: Orchard Distribution), Paul Doucette

Paul Doucette

Paul John Doucette is the rhythm guitarist and former drummer for the band Matchbox Twenty. A native of North Huntington, Pennsylvania – a suburb located roughly 15 miles SE of Pittsburgh in Westmoreland County – Doucette graduated from Norwin High School in June 1990. He now lives in...

 and Kyle Cook

Kyle Cook

David Kyle Cook born August 29, 1975 in Frankfort, Indiana, is a member of the band Matchbox Twenty. He plays lead guitar, banjo and sings backing vocals for the band. He attended the Atlanta Music Institute. He also lived in Oviedo, Florida for a time...

(Matchbox Twenty

Matchbox Twenty

Matchbox Twenty is an American rock band, formed in Orlando, Florida in 1995...

), Chris Kirkpatrick

Chris Kirkpatrick

Christopher Alan "Chris" Kirkpatrick is an American singer, dancer, entertainer, and voice actor who is best known as a founding member of the pop group 'N Sync in which he sang counter tenor. He has provided the voice for many kids shows, including the voice of Chip Skylark on The Fairly Odd...

('N Sync) and more.

External links

• http://www.FloridaMusicFestival.com Florida Music Festival homepage
• http://www.Myspace.com/FloridaMusicFestival.com Myspace
• http://www.Sonicbids.com/FMF2010.com Sonicbids
• http://www.Twitter.com/FMFOrlando.com Twitter
• http://www.axismag.com aXis Magazine & Promotions