Below is the slate of candidates recommended by the FAI Nominations Committee and approved by FAI’s Board following an open call for expressions of interest to stand in the upcoming annual election, which opens November 8 and closes on November 23.
There are five open seats in this election for three-year terms commencing February 2023. The following are the six candidates for the ballot, in alphabetical order by last name, with incumbents running for reelection indicated by an asterisk:
In August of 2020, Mariah Czap was promoted to Co-General Manager and Head of Digital at Yep Roc Records, becoming the label’s first female GM in its 25 year history. Over her 9 years at Yep Roc, Mariah has directed worldwide marketing campaigns for Watchhouse (formerly known as Mandolin Orange), Michaela Anne, Tift Merritt, Robyn Hitchcock, Blitzen Trapper and The Felice Brothers, among others. She currently serves on the A2IM (American Association of Independent Music) Board of Directors and is actively involved with A2IM’s Mentorship Committee. Mariah is also a member of her company’s DEI Committee.
Platform Statement:
I’m so inspired by the way FAI has fostered an environment that values diversity, equity, inclusion and access. I hope to support the organization in that mission and advocate for our music community and the many voices it represents.
Rosalyn Dennett is the Executive Director of Folk Music Ontario, Canada’s largest arts organization and conference dedicated to Folk music. She established herself on the international music scene as part of the highly-acclaimed quartet Oh My Darling, and her work with Ken Whiteley, Donovan Woods, Fred Penner, Kaia Kater, and many more; performing in 11 countries and recording on over 25 albums. Rosalyn’s passion for the music industry led her to work for MusicOntario, the Canadian Independent Music Association, Canadian Live Music Association, Music Canada, and the Canadian Federation of Musicians, as well as serving on the board of Folk Alliance International, Folk Music Ontario, and AFM Local 1000. In 2016, she founded Stump Media, a boutique label and management company, and in 2020, she co-founded The Arts Hub and Smiths Falls Music, which sees over 150 music students annually. She is a driven community organizer, with a deep understanding of the Folk music ecosystem.
Platform Statement:
As Bob Dylan once said, you “gotta serve somebody.” Folk Alliance International is one of the most progressive cultural institutions; promoting and preserving music with shared social values and expanding roots through the global music ecosystem. It’s an honour to serve the community as Member-at-Large, and I hope to continue the work.
Janice Jo Lee
artist, poet, playwright
(Toronto, ON, Canada)
Janice Jo Lee is a folk-soul singer songwriter, composer-sound designer, spoken word poet, theatre maker, and educator. Lee is a hard femme, queer, radical, truth-teller and satirist. She is interested in using art to build flourishing communities based in justice and joy. Her work explores gender justice, antiracism, friendship, community, ancestry and the Earth. Lee has worked as an arts and anti-oppression educator and organizer for 12 years. She is a second generation Korean-Canadian settler.
Platform Statement:
As a director I will further the conversations around anti-oppression and diversity. I will focus on accountability, responsibility, decolonization, reparations, while building relationships and trust. I’d like to see FAI continue to offer improved virtual programming for accessibility reasons, and to expand our international ties.
Jason is an executive of Billfold, a high-volume cashless point-of-sale solution for the live events industry, and lives in Denver with his 3 teen children. He is also co-founder of Denver-based Hatchery 17, with client highlights that include We Banjo 3, Mipso, the Motet, Keller Williams, Tao Seeger, Darol Anger, Clearwater Festival, Electric Forest, River Breeze Event Center, and CityPak, a non-profit founded by veteran booking agent, Ron Kaplan. Jason co-developed SCI Ticketing – an artist ticketing platform built around jamband pioneers The String Cheese Incident & their mgmt, Madison House. The company became the 1st artist ticketing company to compete with Ticketmaster, and eventually sued and settled an antitrust lawsuit against them in 2004. In addition to SCI, the company sold inventory for Steve Winwood, King Crimson, Eric Idle, the 1st Bonnaroo, the 1st JamCruise, and many of Superfly’s NOLA JazzFest events.
Platform Statement:
Folk Alliance represents the professional balance between my love of roots music and my passion for using tech to create frictionless customer experiences in live events. I am honored to be considered for a seat on the board. Thank you.
Caroline Randall Williams*
Artist / Author / Scholar,
Vanderbilt University
(Nashville, TN, USA)
Caroline Randall Williams is an award-winning poet, novelist, and cookbook author (Soul Food Love) as well as an activist, public intellectual, performance artist, and scholar. Born and raised in Nashville Tennessee where she is deeply connected to the music community she studied at Harvard and Oxford and joined the faculty of Vanderbilt University in 2019 as a Writer-in-Residence in the Department of Medicine, Health, and Society while she continues to work and speak to the places where art, business, and scholarship intersect, moving people closer to their best lives and corporations closer to their ideal identities. Named by Southern Living as “One of the 50 People changing the South,” the Cave Canem fellow has been published and featured in multiple journals, essay collections and news outlets, including The Massachusetts Review, Essence, and the New York Times.
Platform Statement:
Should I be re-elected to the board, it will be my second term in service to FAI. It’s been a privilege of my life to partake in the beautiful conversations we’ve been having about inclusivity, representation, and growth in the genre we all love.
Reid Wick serves as the Recording Academy’s New Orleans-based Membership & Industry Relations representative, where his responsibilities include membership, advocacy, creating professional development and networking programs across a five-state region. Wick served Loyola University’s College of Music as marketing communications manager and instructor in Music Industry Studies. He has served on numerous boards and co-owned an indie record label, STR Digital Records, which produced over 25 critically-acclaimed releases. He currently serves on the board of directors of Folk Alliance International. He received the 2018 Cutting Edge Music Conference Lifetime Achievement Award. Wick performs with New Orleans R&B band, Bucktown All-Stars.
Platform Statement:
I have had the pleasure of serving on FAI’s board for the past two terms. During that time, my hometown New Orleans hosted our 2020 conference, we endured COVID and we’re transitioning to a new ED. It would be an honor to continue to serve you.