
Judge Directory
Meet the judges scoring your performance.
Our panel brings decades of combined experience across music production, artist development, technology, and innovation. They'll evaluate finalists using our four-part finals rubric: creativity, execution, originality, and impact.
Judges
5
Combined experience
96+ yrs
Chris McMurtry
CEO at ONCE
I like music and data; In that order
Lucas Cantor Santiago
Composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist
Lucas Cantor is a composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, and speaker. He has worked with NBC’s Olympic music team since 2002, winning two Emmys. He co-produced Lorde’s Everybody Wants to Rule the World. His 2025 book explores artists in the AI era. Lucas also composed Super Bowl themes and completed Schubert’s 8th Symphony using AI.
Rick Barto
Vice President of Operations at Santa Cruz Guitar Company
I oversee all operations within SCGC, a boutique acoustic guitar manufacturer.
Soomin Kim
Senior Data Scientist at Sony Music
Soomin Kim is a Senior Data Scientist at Sony Music, where she drives machine learning initiatives focused on global streaming behavior and fan engagement to inform artist strategy. A former internationally acclaimed classical singer and winner of the NZ Aria Competition, NZ Opera Idol, and Dartmouth’s Macdonald-Smith Prize, she shares music on YouTube with over 2.6 million views and brings both artistic and technical perspectives to innovation at the intersection of music and AI.
Zachary Laev Jablow
Producer at Laev
Laev is a Grammy-nominated producer and creative executive with 20+ years across music, media, and children’s content. He has worked with artists including Chance the Rapper and Mac Miller, and led global audio production for brands like Tonies and Moonbug. He specializes in turning creative ideas into scalable, high-impact content.
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