Chris Willman has three decades of experience covering music for both trade and consumer-facing publications while working with some of the most respected editors in the field. Prior to his post at Variety, he wrote for the Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly, The Wrap and Billboard. He wrote a critically acclaimed book called “Rednecks & Bluenecks” The Politics of Country Music” and since joining Variety in 2018, he’s won more than 15 first-place awards from the Los Angeles Press Club, including the prizes for Entertainment Journalist of the Year in 2020 and Print Journalist of the Year in 2024.

Don’t miss this chance to meet one of today’s best known writers in music journalism.