2026 Official Music Industry Summit Playlist

By: Ohio University's Women in the Music Industry Members

As we gear up for the 8th Annual Ohio University Music Industry Summit, we are ecstatic to share this year’s lineup of artists and speakers with you through our official playlist! This playlist highlights the music of our featured artists and also includes tracks that represent the work and influences of our speakers. 

Listed below is each artist or speaker, their song selection, and a brief rationale connecting the two:

• The Crane Wives: "The Moon Will Sing" - Featured artist keynote and concert on Tuesday.
• Blood Orange: "Champagne Coast" - Featured artist keynote on Wednesday.
• Lucius: "Next to Normal" - Featured closing artist keynote and concert on Thursday.
• Girl Cologne: "Subtweet" by Girl Cologne - Newest single by Girl Cologne, who is playing the MIS Afterparty, hosted by WIMI, Thursday night.
• Hxnnah: "Wallpaper" by Hxnnah - Newest single by Hxnnah, signed artist of Ohio University's student-run record label, Brick City Records.
• PARKiNG: "Thirds" by PARKiNG - Most popular song by PARKiNG, who is playing the MIS Afterparty, hosted by WIMI, Thursday night.
• Space Kid: "So Down" by Space Kid - Most recent single by Space Kid, signed artist of Ohio University's student-run record label, Brick City Records.
• Sydney Layne: "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus - Sydney, MIS's opening Wednesday performer, covered "The Climb" at WIMI's annual fall show in November.
• Twerp: "Freedom of Choice" by DEVO - Twerp played the Union's most recent cover-up, playing DEVO hits, and they regularly cover DEVO songs at shows.
• Voxglove: "Never Reply" by Voxglove - Newest single by Voxglove, signed artist of Ohio University's student-run record label, Brick City Records.
• Zane Agnew: "Fugue State" by Red Lennon - Zane is the lead guitarist and co-founder of the Nashville-based indie rock band Red Lennon.
• LJ Antonuccio: "Bust Down" by Frzy - Newest single of Pittsburgh-based artist who works with CoMuse, for which LJ is the founder and CEO.
• Nabil Ayers: "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" by Roy Ayers - Nabil is the author of the memoir My Life in the Sunshine, which details Nabil's relationship with his father, the jazz musician Roy Ayers, growing up as a mixed-race person in America, and Ayers' life in the music industry.
• Morgan Bahr: "Leave Before You Love Me" by Marshmello, The Jonas Brothers - Before working at Bell Tree Productions, Morgan worked as a technical coordinator for the media production company Mills James, which provided production services to the 2024 Major League Soccer's All-Star Game concert featuring Marshmello.
• Libby Ballengee: "Three Quarters Away" by Paid Leave - The 2026 winners of the Dayton Battle of the Bands, which Libby produced and promoted.
• Cindy Barber: "Busted" by The Black Keys - This Akron-based band played the Beachland Tavern, which Cindy co-founded, back in March of 2002.
• Peter Bell: "Not Enough" by The Cordial Sins - One of the first live events that Peter and his company, Bell Tree Productions, helped produce was The Cordial Sins, featuring Luke Harris at Kitamu Coffee in 2014
• William Bitunjac: "I Remember Everything (feat. Kacey Musgraves)" by Zach Bryan - Zach Bryan is one of the biggest artists, selling millions of dollars in merch sales on Warner Records, a subsidiary of Warner Music Group, for which William is the Vice President of Ecommerce.
• Kathy Blackman: "Live Forever" by Oasis - This famous English rock band played The Grog Shop, which Kathy opened in 1992 and currently owns, back in October of 1994.
• Nathan Bielski: "Overcompensate" by Twenty One Pilots - Nathan produced and was the Documentary Director of Twenty One Pilots: More Than We Ever Imagined, a 2026 concert  film and documentary capturing the band's massive Clancy World Tour show at Estadio GNP Seguros in Mexico City.
• Bob Boilen: "Hands In Pockets" by Laura Gibson - The very first artist on the NPR Tiny Desk was Laura Gibson, playing at NPR Tiny Desk creator Bob's desk in 2008.
• Kevin Breuner: "Prophet, Priest and King" by Smalltown Poets - Kevin is the founding guitarist of Smalltown Poets, a Christian rock band from Atlanta, GA.
• Sam Binnig: "You'll Be Back" by Jonathon Groff, Orginal Broadway Cast of Hamilton - Bell Tree Productions, for which Sam is the VP of Operations, helped reveal the Broadway Columbus 2024/2025 season announcement, which included Hamilton on the roster.
• Jon Chinn: "Pork Chop" by Manager - Jon is the vocalist and guitarist for the New Jersey indie-pop band MANAGER.
• Rich Corsi: "My Girl" " by The Temptations - The Temptations and The Four Tops will be celebrating the 60th anniversary of the hit song "My Girl" at the Palace Theatre, presented by CAPA, for which Rich is the Vice President of Programming.
• Chris DeVille: "Such Great Heights" by The Postal Service - Chris' debut book SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS: The Complete Cultural History of the Indie Rock Explosion, features many famous indie rock bands, like The Postal Service, whose song is the name of the book!
• Alexander Elkins: "The Past Is Dead" by Beartooth - Alexander was the director of photography for the music video to this bumping Beartooth track.
• Mark C. Eshleman: "Goner" by Twenty One Pilots  - Mark has worked with Twenty One Pilots as their creative director for the last 16 years. The first music video he directed for the band was "Goner."
• Jake Ewald: "Tears Over Beers" by Modern Baseball - Jake is a founding member, co-lead vocalist, and guitarist of the emo band Modern Baseball.
• Matt Fawcett: "My God Is Bigger" by Matt Fawcett - Matt is a singer-songwriter and worship leader who travels around the world, playing shows and sharing songs about faith, life, and purpose.
• Mike Fink: "Cool Girl" by THEM - This all-girl pop rock group used DistroKid for the release of their most popular track! Mike is Senior Director of Creator Services for DistroKid.
• Jay Gilbert: "11:11" by Ben Barnes - Jay fo-founded Label Logic, which handled the EP release and distribution of Ben Barnes' first single, 11:11
• Josh Goldfarb: "Moments Like These" " by Joey Aich, KMB - Bell Tree Productions, for which Josh is the Technical Production Analyst, sponsored and produced digital installations for the 2025 Columbus Arts Festival. Joey Aich played the Big Local Artist Stage, which featured their music and light installations in conjunction with Rural ReMix.
• Thomas Golubić: "Baby Blue" by Badfinger - Last song in the final episode of Breaking Bad, a show Thomas is well known for 
• Brandon Haas: "Someone To Call My Lover" by Janet Jackson - Believe Music Publishing has recently striked a deal with Janet to have a long-term publishing agreement.
• Gary Heinrich: "Because of You" by James McKeivier - Gary mixed the album The Lucky Ones by James McKeivier.
• Drew Holzaepfel: "Olas y Arenas" by Nella - Nella is an upcoming artist performing at OU Performing Arts & Concerts Series, overseen by Drew.
• Natalie Jackson: "All My Life" by Davy Knowles - Will be one of the most current and anticipated events at Natalie's during time of MIS.
• Josiah Kaiser: "Punishers" by Die Spitz - FanMail Marketing's engineering platform (Another Planet Entertainment's) artist performing during time of MIS, (3rd most popular song).
• Maggie Kaput: "The Story" by Brandi Carlile - Artist who performed during October 2022, when Maggie started working at The Ryman.
• Cindy Katzenmeyer: "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" by Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan is playing at the KeyBank State Theatre for one night and one night only on April 10th.
• Talia Kraines: "The Best" by Conan Gray - Conan's song "The Best" is featured in playlist as well as being the current cover of Spotify's Pop Rising playlist.
• Rachel Lafranconi: "Celebrity Skin" by Holes - Scored Doja Cat covering this song for a Super Bowl commercial, "Behind the scenes was a master class in negotiation and bringing new life to a classic track."
• Marisha Legan-Johnson: "No Matter" by Risha Dee - Marisha's top song
• Belinda Ligotino: "Fine" by Ian McConnell - Helped in the artist development of Ian through her work with AmpliFLY.
• Yuri Lysoivanov: "Dear Shogher" by Kontras Quartet - Yuri engineered the album All Made of Stories by the Kontras Quartet.
• Dan Mackta: "Do You Realize??" by The Flaming Lips - Dan Mackta is the Managing Director of Qobuz, which Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips partnered with as their first artist spokesperson.
• Alex Malcolm: "Two Faced" by Linkin Park - Alex works for Warner Music Group on their Global Sync team, clearing music for video game publishers, like 2K. Their latest game, WWE 2K26, contains this track by Linkin Park, who are signed to Warner Records under Warner Music Group.
• Deborah Mannis-Gardner: "Two Six" by J. Cole - Deborah is the owner of DMG, where they recently did clearances for J. Cole's newest album.
• Theresa May: "Flowers For The Living" by Mourning [A] BLKstar - Theresa May performs in Mourning [A] BLKstar as a jazz trumpeter. This is their most popular song and the title of their most recent album.
• Harrison Mbemba: "God Please" by Manny ThaGod - Manny ThaGod is an artist for AuxChord, the company founded by Harrison Mbemba.
• John Merchant: "Still Waters (Run Deep)" by Bee Gees - John Merchant got his start at the Bee Gees' Middle Ear Studios in 1989. "Still Waters (Run Deep)" is one of the Bee Gee tracks he engineered and produced during his time at Middle Ear.
• Chris Messina: "Second Nature" by Bon Iver - Chris Messina is most renowned for his producing work for Bon Iver. He produced and engineered "Second Nature," which appears on the 2021 "Don't Look Up" soundtrack.
• Seth Miller: "Pull It" by Mithril Oreder, Locksmith, Esoteric of Czarface, DJ Pain 1 - Seth Miller is the CEO of Rapchat, where "DJ Pain 1" is a popular producer and worked on this song.
• Erika Montes: "Sugar, We're Going Down" by Fall Out Boy - Erika Montes worked for Def Jam from 2001-2011 working directly with Fall Out Boy during this time. Her biography claims that she worked with them at the start of their career, and "Sugar, We're Going Down" is their hit song off their first album under Def Jam.
• Marcus J. Moore: "King Kunta" by Kendrick Lamar - Marcus J. Moore wrote "The Butterfly Effect: How Kendrick Lamar Ignited The Soul of Black America," referring to his 2015 album To Pimp A Butterfly.
• Brian Muehlenkamp: "E85" by Don Toliver - Don Toliver recently announced a tour, using Ticketmaster as his primary ticket seller.
• Kari Nakamura: "Doing Better" by FLETCHER - Kari Nakamura worked as Management Coordinator for rouge. with FLETCHER from 2023-2024, when this song was released. 
• Tim Peacock: "Cobra" by Geese - Tim Peacock is the director of Nelsonville Music Festival, where Geese is headlining this year. Cobra is one of Geese's most popular songs.
• Timothy Pattison: "Woman" by Doja Cat - Timothy Pattinson is the Sr. Director, Creative of BMI. He has worked with notable artists like Doja Cat, who has been with BMI since 2021
• Mike Petruccelli: "dopamina" by Peso Pluma - Mike has been involved in the development of many audio products while working at Shure Inc., including the SM39 headset, which has been used by many artists, like the Tololoche player for Peso Pluma.
• Frankie Pine: "Look At Us Now (Honeycomb)" by Daisy Jones & The Six - Frankie Pine works under Whirly Girl Music as a Music Supervisor. She recently supervised music for Emmy-nominated Amazon series Daisy Jones & The Six
• J Rawls: "The Confidence of Knowing" by Talib Kweli, J. Rawls, Jimetta Rose, Blu - J Rawls is a renowned music producer and educator. In 2024, he released this song with a few other artists. 
• Jon Scanlon: "Snowblood" by ERRA - For the Dolby Creator Lab, Jon talked to ERRA on a podcast episode of Nail the Mix, discussing Dolby Atmos and their creative process for the track “Snowblood.”
• Jennifer Sellers: "Escapism." by Raye  - Jennifer Sellers is an events producer and project leader currently working at NIVA.
• Adam Sensenbrenner: "Peach Fuzz" by CAAMP - Adam began managing them in 2017, and this song released in 2019 was their first to reach #1 on Billboard Alternative Chart, released while Adam was managing them
• Ash M. Sheehan: "Halo" by Beyonce - Beyonce is the artist who's won the most Grammy's, sitting at a comfortable 35. Ash is Sr Director for the Grammys 
• Viicky Shephard: "From The Start" by Laufey - NPi is based in Cleveland and Laufey came to Blossom Music Center in Cleveland last summer. Vicky is passionate for live event production, as stated in her bio
• Cassandra Sotos: "Tum Hi Ho" by Arijit Singh - Cassandra was a touring violinist with this band for 2 years, namely on their MTV India Tour (largest tour in India's history). Song is one of band's signatures 
• Olivia Stefanoff: "Revolution (Mind Your Head)" by Big Fat Head - Olivia performs with Big Fat Head and this is their top track
• Meg Sharp: "willow" by Taylor Swift - Meg used OHD Studios' technology for a Taylor Swift fan project, where they recreated special effects from Swift's performance of "willow" from The Eras Tour.
• Clay Sullivan: "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey - Clevaland Browns NFL Draft Party with Journey. Clay was System Tech featuring Journey at Huntington Bank Field
• Joshua Thompson: "Los Ageless" by St. Vincent - NPi Audio Visual Solutions, for which Joshua is the Director of Production, helped with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 2025 Summer Concert Series! St. Vincent was one of the acts. 
• Matt Tucker: "Devin's Anthem" by Trek Manifest - Matt produced this song along with the rest of Trek Manifest's 2025 record, The Greatest Story Finally Told Vol. 1.
• Ted Van Hyning: "Up and Down" by Apostle Jones - Musical performer for 2025 Pride in the CLE, which is one of Ted's many clients at NPi Audio Visual Solutions.
• Allison Wright Clark: "I Luv How You Feel" by Tiffany - As music supervisor, Allison placed this funky Tiffany track in episode one of the first season of The Good Wife.
• Annie Zaleski: "I Got You Babe" by Sonny & Cher - Annie's most recent book, I Got You Babe: A Celebration of Cher, serves as a career-spanning retrospective of the iconic singer.

We hope that this playlist introduces you to the world of music that this years Music Industry Summit wants to celebrate. Looking forward to this years events and speakers!