Hey there, I’m Dani Deahl. I’m a music executive, musician, journalist, and public speaker.

Hi! Do you need an expert voice to talk about music tech or moderate your music tech panel? One that’s thought-provoking, inspiring, and gets audiences excited? That’s me!

Here’s the TL;DR.

As a prominent figure in music, I’ve been at the forefront of artist empowerment and meaningful industry change for over a decade. I’m currently a public speaker, freelance writer, and Trustee for the Recording Academy Chicago chapter.

I have a regular presence on Twitch with the flagship show Demo Drop, and can also be found on Clubhouse, where I run the platform’s largest dance music club: World of EDM.

As a speaker and moderator, my main points of expertise are: music metadata, empowering DIY musicians, gender equality in music, music tech and innovation, blockchain and music, and artificial intelligence and music.

I've been featured as a music tech expert panelist and moderator for conferences like: TEDx, AMP Music Summit, Spotify for Artists, MSNBC, Midem, Mondo NYC, Oberlin College, University of Colorado Boulder, SXSW, Switched on Pop, Ari’s Take, Music Tectonics, Billboard Live Music Summit, Miami Music Week, Movement festival, Macworld, Camp Spin-Off, Ableton Loop, Red Bull Hack The Hits, official Twitter Music Q&A, and much more.

Now, on to the goods. Here’s the details on why you should have me at your conference.

I was previously at The Verge, where I developed their coverage for the intersection of music and technology, focusing on investigative journalism in avenues like music policy, music contracts, and music metadata. While at The Verge, I also helmed YouTube series The Future of Music, featuring stars like Charlie XCX, Oak Felder, and Steve Aoki.

Many of the features I wrote at The Verge went on to have material impact in the music industry.

A feature I wrote on music metadata, titled "Metadata Is the Biggest Little Problem in the Music Industry" has been shared tens of thousands of times, is cited in papers, and was cited in congressional hearings for updating DMCA laws.

Another feature I wrote about SoundCloud’s self-monetization deal, titled “SoundCloud’s New Artist Contract Is a Raw Deal for Musicians,” resulted in the company rewriting the entire contract to address every criticism within 48 hours of the publish date.

After The Verge, I went on to work for music tech company Output, whose main product Arcade is a plug-in that delivers royalty-free samples and loops for musicians to use in their own productions. I talked about how tech like Arcade empowers the new generation of bedroom musicians at SXSW in 2021.

Currently, I am the Trustee of the Chicago Chapter of the Recording Academy. Over the past two years I have built out educational programming for our musician membership around royalties, publishing, and how to get your metadata right in order to collect the monies you're due.

Lastly, as an artist, I belong to the Recording Academy’s Producers and Engineers Wing. I have engineered songs that have been released on labels like Dim Mak, Monstercat, Flamingo, Cr2, and Armada.

I’d love to talk at your conference, school, webinar, or moderate your panel. Let’s connect and create change.

Much love,

D