Review of the Tampa Bay Music Conference

I recently attended the 6th annual Tampa Bay Music Conference, held at the Ritz Theatre (503 7th Ave. Tampa, FL. 33605)in Ybor City.

The event was not what I expected. Being billed as a top class event ($40 tickets), I figured it would be a lot of fun with a lot of people and plenty to see and do. It turns out that it wasn’t nearly as robust as I had hoped.

Firstly, let’s examine the name and why it’s misleading. When you think of Tampa Bay Music Conference, what do you think of? I think of musicians from Tampa Bay coming together, preferably from all walks of life and musical backgrounds, to meet and “confer”, jam and socialize. This was a very acute version of that ideal, as the musical scope was limited to rap, hip hop and R&B and very little of this had anything to do with Tampa Bay. While I don’t know the background on all of the acts involved, I was told by several people there that very few of the musical acts actually were from Tampa.

Secondly, when I picture a music conference, I picture vendors that are suited to the music industry. Where was Guitar Center? JBL? Fender? Shure? Where were the brands I come to know and love? Who was there? LaCie, the hard drive manufacturer. Why were they at a music conference?

Thirdly, for a highly publicized event, there were very few warm bodies. I hung around for about three hours and in that time counted maybe 100 people total in and out of the door. One would think that an event with this potential could draw thousands of people. Perhaps other people knew what I didn’t and simply chose to avoid paying $40 for a half-hearted rap concert.

Fourthly, when I think of a Music Conference, I don’t think of one guy on stage rapping while 20 people sit around looking bored. Where are the additional stages? Where is the crowd participation? Where is the excitement in the air? There wasn’t even anyone near the stage calling out the rapper’s name. There were three people standing up front with camera phones snapping photos, but where is the crowd that a big show should bring?

All of that said, there were a few good things going on. The waitstaff was awesome. Bartenders made me several good drinks. The side room was full of people actually talking about music and attempting to network. I just wish the whole event had the kind of chemistry that the side room was flirting with.

Social Networking Tampa Bay Music Conference