Joel Flatow is General Manager, West Coast Operations and Senior Vice President, Artist and Industry Relations for the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the trade association which represents the major U.S. recording companies. Flatow is the lead contact for all RIAA functions and operations on the west coast, including leading RIAA’s state relations, politics and policy for California and serving as its voice in the State Legislature in Sacramento, in addition to being the chief liaison to entertainment and political figures in Los Angeles. Flatow created (and currently heads) the RIAA’s artist relations program, building relationships directly with individual recording artists and producing major music events on Capitol Hill, as well as for Presidential Conventions and Inaugurals. He also created and heads the industry relations department, for which he was termed in a recent L.A. Times profile (July 14, 2008) as “The RIAA’s Musical Diplomat.” He previously served as Legislative Director of the Congressional Arts Caucus, advocating for Federal support for the arts within Congress, and also served as Special Assistant to the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan. He is a graduate of Yale University, as well as Juilliard and Manhattan School of Music Pre-Colleges and serves on the Board of AIDs Project Los Angeles (APLA). He’s proud to have served as Co-Chair of Trevor’s 2008 and 2009 NYC Gala.