Don't miss an afternoon of storytelling and connection with creators from Chicago. Enjoy an in-person panel with established creators, get inspired by the local art scene, and enjoy a live viewing of Patreon Assembly, a digital summit where some of the biggest names in film, podcasting, art, activism, music, and media will lead a purposeful conversation about the state of creative work.
Hannah Hart is an entertainer, food enthusiast, and a two-time New York Times Bestselling author (Buffering: Unshared Tales of a Life Fully Loaded, My Drunk Kitchen: A Guide to Eating, Drinking, and Going with Your Gut). Since creating the YouTube series “My Drunk Kitchen”, Hart has co-produced and starred in multiple films as well as hosted her own show on the Food Network, (I Hart Food). In 2018, Hart launched Hannahlyze This, the self help podcast that just can’t help itself. Hannah currently produces and hosts Tasty’s Edible History on Facebook. Hart’s consistent authenticity in her content has established her as one of the most influential voices in the LGBTQ community, as well as gained her recognition as one of Hollywood Reporters New Digital Disruptors, and one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30. Born and raised in Northern California, Hannah currently resides in Los Angeles with her fiancee and two cats.
With her own unique flare and infectious sense of humor, Rae first garnered attention for her award-winning web series and the accompanying New York Times best-seller, "The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl." She created and stars in the hit HBO show, Insecure, for which she received an Emmy® nomination and two Golden Globe® nominations. Rae made her film debut in the acclaimed drama, “The Hate U Give,” and stars in the upcoming romantic drama, "The Photograph."
Jack Conte is a musician, filmmaker, half of Pomplamoose, and a co-founder at Patreon, a membership platform that makes it easy for creators to earn salaries directly from their biggest fans. Patreon was founded in 2013, and is on track to pay out more than $500 million to creators in 2019 alone.
As a musician and filmmaker, Jack spent his days in a converted dog kennel-turned-recording studio in Sonoma County, making YouTube videos that have amassed over 120 million views. Now, he’s in full-time CEO mode at Patreon HQ in San Francisco where the company is paying millions of dollars to creators every month around the world. Jack also loves working with robots.
Michael Render, publicly known as Killer Mike, is a husband, father, activist, businessman and GRAMMY Award-winning artist. He is as synonymous with Atlanta as the iconic brands, Coca-Cola and The Varsity. Raised in the Adamsville/Collier Heights neighborhood on the Northwest side of the city, Render made a name for himself as an activist well before he ever recorded a single song. He was raised by his grandfather, a union member, and grandmother, a civil rights activist, meaning being socially and politically active came naturally.
Render’s principled positions have gained him fans—or “supporters” as he likes to refer to them—from all around the world. After releasing several solo albums, Render found his artistic kindred spirit in an unlikely source, producer and New York City native Jamie “El-P” Meline. The pair began working together in 2012 on Render’s last solo album R.A.P. Music in 2012. The musical chemistry was undeniable and the two went on to form the chart-smashing group, Run the Jewels. The duo continues to experience exponential growth and popularity.
If you distilled California into soundwaves and vibrations, it might resemble the sonic and spiritual interplay of the Los Angeles quintet—Taylor Rice [vocals, guitar], Kelcey Ayer [vocals, keys, percussion, guitar], Ryan Hahn [guitar, keys, mandolin, vocals], Matt Frazier [drums], and Nik Ewing [bass, keys, vocals].
Hills and valleys of six-string bliss, a coastal spray of neon keyboards, and sundrenched melodies comprise a growing catalog of entrancing and engaging anthems by the band. Based in Los Angeles, the group progressed their sound over the course of three full-length albums, Gorilla Manor [2009], Hummingbird [2013], and, most recently, Sunlit Youth [2016]. The latter received praise from Pitchfork, Consequence of Sound, The Guardian and many more. In between countless sold out shows and festival appearances - including a standout Coachella 2017 set - they’ve graced the stages of Austin City Limits, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Late Late Show With James Corden, and more.
Paul Scheer is an American actor, comedian, writer, director, podcaster, and producer. Scheer was born in Huntington, New York and graduated from New York University. He starred on the FXX series The League, The HBO comedy Veep, The Netflix series Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, the ABC sitcom Fresh Off the Boat, and Hulu comedy series The Hotwives of Orlando, which he also executive produces. Scheer co-created and starred in the cult MTV sketch series Human Giant as well as the Adult Swim series NTSF:SD:SUV. His films include supporting roles in The Disaster Artist, Army of One, Opening Night, Daddy's Home, Hell Baby, Ass Backwards, Clear History, and Hell and Back. He starred in a web series for JASH called The ArScheerio Paul Show, which recreates classic moments from the The Arsenio Hall Show and was dubbed 2013's best viral video of the year by USA Today. Scheer also has made appearances on programs such as Burning Love, 30 Rock, Best Week Ever with Paul F. Tompkins, Childrens Hospital, Funny or Die Presents..., Happy Endings and Yo Gabba Gabba!. He is also featured in the A24 film SLICE alongside Chance the Rapper, and earned stellar reviews for his work.
Paul Scheer can most recently be seen in BLACK MONDAY for Showtime, alongside Don Cheadle and Regina King, depicting the worst stock market crash in the history of Wall Street. He will next be seen in BenDavid Grabinski’s feature HAPPILY, opposite Natalie Morales and Joel McHale.
Getting fired changed her life.
Almost a year after being fired, Los Angeles–based comedian, actor, writer, producer, and director, Whitney Cummings had three shows on the television which she created and owned. While she is wildly successful, she is equally humbled by the road she took to get there. That road is more crooked than straight, filled with Cummings’ unfiltered stories of about failure carving the path to success, #metoo, mental health, self-esteem challenges, struggling with an eating disorder and ongoing maintenance of codependency. These moments provided her with a deeper sense of self, the tools she needed to succeed, and a commitment to helping others find clarity, and of course, lots of hilarious material.
Sensing that many subjects had become off-limits because of the current sensitive climate, Cummings wrote her current Netflix Stand Up Special Can I Touch It?, which premiered July 2019. She believes that no topic is too controversial to talk about, no area too taboo to address. In her journey to push the limits of creativity, Cummings spent months researching robotics and artificial intelligence resulting in an experimental novelty - her very own life-sized, life-like android which she named Bearclaw.
Fashioned in Cummings' likeness, Bearclaw takes the stage during the Netflix special and in some instances steals the show. Bearclaw’s programming allows her to hold a conversation, pick up behavior patterns, and literally answer any question. Cummings has plans for her android to be one of the most intuitive machines accessible to the masses. Robots in the home and workplace are on the way, whether we like it or not; they are already being used in hospitals and nursing homes. Cummings hopes that meeting Bearclaw will give everyone a taste of the inevitable future and to show people what is worth fearing about robots and what is not.
If Cummings is right, Bearclaw might be the star of her own Netflix Special and Cummings could be watching from home.
Gabbie Hanna is redefining the meaning of multi-hyphenate. She has cultivated 6.6+ million YouTube subscribers through her acerbic, comic, + infectious personality. Her hilarious comedy videos about the struggles of being cat-fished + running into rude celebrities have garnered over one billion views. She also formerly co-hosted TRL + served as an MTV personality. In September 2017, she released her first book of poems titled Adultolescence by Atria/Keywords, which quickly became a NYT Best-Seller. With her the devoted following backing her latest EP, 2WAYMIRROR (hit #3 on the iTunes chart, #4 on the Billboard Top Independent Albums chart, + she has reached #5 on the Billboard Emerging Artists chart), Gabbie is a crossover star to watch.
Adal Rifai is an improviser, podcaster, producer and writer in Chicago. Adal is the Director of Corporate Training at iO Theater where he also performs with the weekly show Whirled News Tonight. He is an adjunct lecturer at University of Illinois at Chicago where he teaches the improv curriculum he created for their theater department and he has taught improv at The School at Steppenwolf program.
As a podcaster Adal is the creator and host of Hey Riddle Riddle and plays Chunt on the podcast Hello From the Magic Tavern; having also appeared on podcasts such as Comedy Bang Bang, Hollywood Handbook, Off-Book, If I Were You, Improv 4 Humans, High & Mighty, Mission To Zyxx, How Did This Get Played, Voyage To The Stars and The McElroy Brothers Will Be in Trolls: World Tour. In addition to podcasting he also is the host of the JackBox game Guesspionage.
He has studied and performed improv for almost two decades and has created and lead improv workshops on three continents for hundreds of clients including Apple, Google, Delta, Facebook, Mercedes-Benz and Boeing.
Andrew Sims is the host of the Harry Potter podcast MuggleCast and lifestyle podcast #Millennial, as well as the Editor in Chief of Hypable.com, a fandom analysis website. He is a 14-year veteran of podcasting and uses Patreon to fund both shows and foster a close relationship with his audience. He resides in Chicago with his dog Brooklyn, where the two also offer podcasting consulting and editing services.
Tina has a background in education, art, and marketing...so when you put all 3 things together it makes perfect sense why she’s at Patreon. Passionate about creative endeavors, teaching, and learning, Tina spends her time educating creators on membership and how to to run their creative business. Outside of the office, you can find her perusing art museums and galleries, obsessively listening to history podcasts, running long distances for the croissant reward at the finish line, and attempting to cook every type of grain and noodle bowl known to humanity.
Melissa Sue Stanley is an artist in Chicago, IL. She's been sewing, sculpting, stitching, and painting the Woolbeasts for over ten years. These creatures have been adopted to homes all over the world, and shown in galleries across the US. Melissa is also an illustrator and often collaborates with her husband, Max Bare. You can find out more at her website, woolbeast.com
Melissa will be bringing her work to the event for all to see.