- What: College Music Journal Music Marathon, or CMJ Music Marathon for short, an annual music industry trade show and festival
- When: Dates vary yearly, but it typically falls in October
- Where: New York City, New York (at venues all around the city)
- Cost: Varies depending on when you register and what parts of the event you wish to attend. Typically between $300 - $500, with discounts for college students
The last thing most people talk about when they talk about CMJ Music Marathon are the panels, but that is not entirely fair. CMJ has a wide range of panel discussions and debates throughout the course of the trade show. The panels are usually run as roundtable discussions with plenty of audience interaction, making them a useful forum for debating the issues facing the music industry or for people new to music to get an in depth look at how things work.
Though "college music" is a bit of an antiquated term, CMJ takes that student association to heart, making CMJ a friendly place for young people learning the ropes.
The reason no one talks about CMJ panels is that the action really happens at the gigs at night. Hundreds of bands get booked to play CMJ every years, and anyone with trade show pass can wander in and out of gigs at venues scattered across NYC. There are labels hunting for new talent prowling these shows, and the roots of the deals and alliances that are struck up at CMJ are planted at the gigs. Generally, there is just a good energy about the event, so the shows are not only good in a business sense, but they are simply a lot of fun.
The application period for bands hoping to land a CMJ showcase or for labels hoping to put on a showcase of their own changed yearly; it can always be found on the CMJ website. Usually, there is a long window of opportunity, from around December through July to get in your application, but applying becomes more expensive as the deadline draws closer.
There's no magic formula for applying to CMJ, as they are typically looking for some artists that have a buzz already going and some artists who are unknown but catch the ears of the staff. All applications must be submitted online.
As SXSW has grown in recent years, CMJ is probably the most hospitable large trade show to "indie indie" music - that is, music that is truly unknown or that has very little buzz behind it. A brand new band or label has a better shot at getting accepted for a showcase at CMJ than any of the big music trade shows, and even more importantly, this kind of music has a better chance of getting noticed at CMJ than at any of the large events (possible exceptions include somewhat smaller gatherings like In The City). Applying to CMJ is something everyone should consider.
If you're just getting started as a band or a label, shelling out the cash to attend one of these trade shows is usually a horrible idea. Anyone in a position to help you get your business off the ground or your band noticed will usually head to these shows with their own agenda and plans to deal with their own business - not to look for new acts. CMJ is an exception. While there are no guarantees, if you can stretch to price of a pass, attending can be worthwhile. The truly indie ethos of the event means brand new businesses and bands have a better shot of getting their music heard and getting face time with people who can open doors than at most events.
Bands in particular should consider CMJ Music Marathon because it really is a music driven event. Unlike Midem, which is heavily geared towards panels and networking during the day between industry companies, CMJ is all about the bands playing at night. At Midem, people want to sit down and meet their foreign distributor to discuss prices. At CMJ, people want to see bands. For that reason, a band can get a lot of mileage out attending CMJ, whether they have a showcase or not.
