Carlsbad, CA (September 8, 2021)—The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) has moved its annual pro audio/MI convention, The NAMM Show, to June 3-5, 2022. The event will remain in Anaheim, California at the Anaheim Convention Center. The trade show was previously scheduled for January 20–23, 2022.
The organization confirmed that the change in dates was intended to address ongoing concerns about pandemic activity, new product development and launches, available in-store inventory, and current travel restrictions. With the move of The 2022 NAMM Show to June, Summer NAMM in Nashville, Tennessee will not be held for the year. Given the absence of the convention from the usual industry calendar in January, on Friday, January 21, the organization will host a one-day global livestreamed event, Believe in Music, intended to unify and support the people who bring music to the world.
Joe Lamond, NAMM president and CEO, said in a statement, “The industry has not stopped evolving and innovating during the pandemic, and The NAMM Show is evolving, as well. As the health and safety of our members remains top of mind, and after carefully listening to companies here in the U.S. and around the world, the new dates will help members maximize their opportunities and accelerate what has arguably been a transformative time both in new products and in how they come to market. I imagine this gathering will have the kind of impact of a Beatles moment or the introduction of MIDI—definitely one you will not want to miss.”
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The date change elicited comments of support from around the industry. “No matter when NAMM happens, Shure is excited about the industry finally getting together to engage with each other at this important event,” said Abby Kaplan, vice president of Global Retail Sales for Shure Incorporated. Mark Terry, CEO, Exertis/JAM US Music Group, echoed that sentiment, noting, “[NAMM] has made a great decision on moving the show to June. This move ensures that it will be a very successful show for vendors and dealers. We certainly plan on being there.”
“Global travel restrictions continue to be unpredictable and challenging for our industry. Rescheduling the NAMM Show to June is absolutely the right call,” said David Via, Zoom North America vice president of Marketing.
John Hopkins, president and CEO of Sweetwater, shares, “One of our priorities here at Sweetwater is creating content and providing information to our customers about new products — we want them to have immediate, up-to-the-minute news about the latest gear and innovations. The NAMM Show brings us all together and provides an ideal platform for this each year. And this year, we’re excited that there will be even better synergy between the new NAMM Show dates and our own annual GearFest event. It’s a big win for our customers.”
“The NAMM Show is the best opportunity of the year for Yamaha to reach our dealers, end-user customers, and the music industry as a whole. It’s the one place where the new products from across our brands meet the global industry, and we can’t wait to get together in June,” shares Tom Sumner, president of Yamaha Corporation of America.
Ironically, while the convention has been pushed back, its most recent edition, back in January 2020, was the largest NAMM Show in the history of the organization, as it welcomed 115,888 members and industry professionals and more than 7,000 brands. The show also hosted 350 professional development sessions, numerous live events, networking opportunities and concerts.
