Apr. 14—On Thursday, the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum saw artists, musicians and other creatives from all walks of life experiences and genres making their mark at the first day of the debut of the Owensboro Music Business Expo (OMBE).
The three-day event, which looks to bring aspiring artists and music industry professionals together through innovative exhibits, panels, seminars, showcases and workshops, saw folks coming in both locally and from hours away.
And even in the early-morning hours, attendees were ready for the experience. Drew Finan, who drove about five hours from Fort Wayne, Indiana, to get a front row seat, is looking to get his music to the next level.
"I play acoustic guitar, and I have several songs that nobody's heard before, so maybe you'll hear one if it works out," he said. "I'm kind of a guy that has the music finished, but I kind of need to go to the last step where you have production quality."
Finan finds the expo is a good opportunity to network with professionals who can point him in the right direction.
"There's (also) a lot of fascinating musicians that are up-and-coming that are trying to also make their dreams come true, or at least just share — whichever's the case," he said. "I might be more of a share person; but if something was placed in a show or a movie, that would be awesome."
Music professionals scheduled to take part of the inaugural event include: Rick Barker, founder, president and CEO of the Music Industry Blueprint and former manager for Taylor Swift; Emmy Award-winning composer and songwriter Jim Dooley; Brent Harvey, executive producer and founder of the Hollywood Music in Media Awards (HMMA) and the Hollywood Independent Music Awards (HIMA); and Owensboro native and current Nashville musician Steve Bridgmon and many more.
Michael Boldischar, who arrived from Minneapolis, dubs himself as "very much an amateur singer-songwriter" who is looking to expand his knowledge.
"I enjoy going to music events, conferences, places to learn, talk about songwriting, music; and this felt like something interesting to do," he said. "My favorite thing at these types of conferences is to hear from people who have been in the music industry and gain advice and learn things from these people, because they've been on the road, they've been there before, they have ideas on how to write music.
"All of these people are very accomplished, so I'm just looking for anything I can glean from them."