If you are like me, you've likely been closely following the World Cup, which has been hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico. And now that all 3 host countries have been dismissed from the tournament, I want to know who can tell me the last time the USA hosted the men's World Cup? 1994. And as big as that event was, I would submit to you that something else happened that same summer that was even bigger and more important to the world. Any idea I am talking about?

On June 27, 1994 the world changed. On that day, some really smart techies inside Geffen Records executed the very first digital download of a song. In this episode, I am thrilled to present two music executives who were there and played a significant role in this monumental event in music history.

Jim Griffin began his career in journalism—negotiating digital archive issues at the Lexington Herald-Leader and later representing media employees for a decade at The Newspaper Guild union in Washington, DC. He then moved into music as Geffen's first Chief Technology Officer, where he helped release Aerosmith's "Head First" as the first full-length single sold online in 1994. He went on to help write the law enabling licensed digital streaming, testifying before Congress on pricing and rules, and today advises on digital media strategy while teaching at universities and colleges.

Larry Miller is a professor of Music Business at NYU, serving as inaugural executive director of the Sony Audio Institute for Music Business and Technology. He also works as a music/tech entrepreneur, investor, advisor, producer, and host of the Musonomics podcast. Among several entrepreneurial endeavors, Larry started GRAMMY-winning label, Or Music (signing Los Lonely Boys and Matisyahu), co-founding AT&T's a2b music, which was trying to solve the same digital download issue described above. He's a Music Business Association Educator of the Year, sits on the boards of the Newport Festivals Foundation and the Louis Armstrong House Museum, and is also a Clio Award-winning voice actor.

The name of this series has never been more accurate than with this pair of seasoned music executives. And this promises to be a very informative and entertaining discussion that will be the best hour of your week. Check it out!

The Smartest People In The Room® is a series of one-on-one conversations between music industry executives and personalities hosted by Tom Truitt, Managing Director of the Music & Live Entertainment practice. These hour long conversations draw an audience of hundreds and feature every type of global music industry executive, including agents, managers, attorneys, business managers, promoters, publishers, working musicians, songwriters. The audience is global, with strong concentration in music business centers like New York City, Los Angeles, Nashville, London, Toronto, San Francisco, Austin and more.