The New Orleans Music Economy Initiative (NOME) is an ambitious economic development strategy that seeks to develop the rest of the music industry—with a focus on intellectual property management—right here in New Orleans. Spearheaded by Greater New Orleans Inc. (GNO, Inc.), NOME was created to address gaps in the local music industry and to promote a thriving music economy in the metropolitan area that provides jobs and wealth to support musicians, intellectual property managers, publishers, agents, record companies, professional services, creative services, and all other aspects of the “music business”. To achieve this goal, GNO, Inc.
has enlisted the help of Sound Diplomacy, a music policy consultancy based in London, Berlin and Barcelona and a global expert in the development of productive and long-term musical strategies. Over the course of 12 months, Sound Diplomacy will manage a quantitative and qualitative process that will provide a detailed and critical action plan with the necessary measures to cover the gaps and take advantage of the full economic potential and vision of the music economy of Greater New Orleans. The initiative is being spearheaded by Jim McCormick, staff composer for BMG Rights Management and music industry studies instructor at Loyola University in New Orleans; Jay Weigel, composer, musical director, producer, film composition instructor at Loyola University in New Orleans; and Sound Diplomacy. Together they are working to position New Orleans as the leading music city in the United States—not only for live music but also as a sustainable music industry ecosystem.
Sound Diplomacy will develop an evaluation of the economic impact of the music industry in the New Orleans metropolitan area (with a focus on intellectual property management). In addition, they will bring together and work with the entire creative and business community of New Orleans to provide statistical data and models that quantify the value of music for the metropolitan area. The NOME initiative is profound: it means that, for the first time, music is being accepted as a cultural and economic opportunity. With this initiative, GNO, Inc., Sound Diplomacy, Jim McCormick and Jay Weigel are working together to create an action plan that will ensure that musicians have access to resources they need to succeed in their careers.
