Winter Madness 2026 Judges
Greg Caz
Greg Caz is a veteran DJ and music writer whose voracious and nerdy musical obsessions encompass all genres. Besides being a longtime presence on the decks at venues around the city, country and world, he has also written for many magazines and websites including High Times and Wax Poetics among many others and compiled and written liner notes for a wide variety of albums and reissues..
Rachel Cleary
Rachel Cleary is a Brooklyn native, lifelong resident of the five boroughs, and veteran of the downtown performance art scene. She has made many appearances in independent films (Love, Ludlow; Werewolf Bitches From Outer Space”; “Skate Joan (of the Park)” ) , eventually working behind the camera and in live event production. Rachel is a founding member of Radio Free Brooklyn, she produced and hosted the long running Hear and Now with Rachel C., wherein she hosted everyone from local emerging artists to Grammy, Emmy, Oscar, and NAACP Imager award recipients. She currently serves as the station’s Music Director. She is currently working on the music documentary “Before It Was Cool: The Story of Brooklyn Beat at Lauderbachs.” Rachel is passionate about connecting people, live music, and nurturing the next generation of freaks, geeks and weirdos.
Varghese Chacko
Varghese Chacko is the President of Nightlife United, an industry advocacy non-profit that fundraised $200K for grants and worker training. He is proud to serve on the National Independent Venue Association's DEI Committee. Varghese is also a Nightlife Advisor to the NYC government. He loves live music and is psyched to see bands rock Our Wicked Lady.
Honeychild Coleman
Brooklyn based Honeychild Coleman is an indie recording artist and founding member of the Sistagrrl Riots. Collaborations include DJ Olive (we™ /Liminal), Mad Professor and Badawi (Raz Mesinai). She toured with The Slits and Apollo Heights (The Veldt) on guitar and HERE (Jim Coleman of Cop Shoot Cop) on vocals. Coleman appears in documentaries "Tina Turner: My Songs,My Life" (ARTE), "Afro-Punk", "Fireflies" & "Getting My Name up There" (AUSTRIA), and "Rock Chicks" (GERMANY). Her songs have been featured in the film "Pariah", and series "Woke!" (HULU) and "Everything’s Gonna Be All White" (SHOWTIME). Coleman’s writing appears in RAZORCAKE 'zine Issue #130 and James Spooner/Chris Terry’s “Black Punk Now!” She currently serves as The Underground Producers Alliance artist development mentor/cultural ambassador.
Sebastian Gonzalez
Sebastián González, Colombian singer, Guitar Player and composer is a multi-Latin-Grammy award nominee and a voting member on the academy. At an early age, he started a successful musical career signing for the multinational record company EMI, recording 3 albums leaving several radio hits in Colombia, Latin America and latin communities around the world. After touring for over 21 countries, Sebastian went to Oceania, playing several shows all over the Australian coast and New Zealand. Currently, Sebastian is leading the musical collective Eclectic Charango Beats, a band that is actively touring the tri-state area, having made more than 80 shows in different venues, festivals and events. Sebastian has published a wide music catalog of over than 50 songs as an interpreter, arranger and composer. .
Robert Johnson
Brooklyn based Robert Johnson is the founder of Scenic a concert booking and touring company that presents 400 plus shows annually across Boston, NYC, NJ, Philly and Baltimore and a co-owner of Nikki Lopez a new music venue / cocktail dive in Philadelphia.
scott kloin
Scott Kloin is a lawyer and Director at Show Brain, where he helps shape the future of the local music scene by showcasing NYC’s independent artists at free, inclusive and accessible concerts across New York’s iconic parks. Born and raised in and around the city, and a long-time East Village resident, Scott has spent 35 years frequenting local venues and supporting local artists. He has also served as a lawyer for various indie, punk and hardcore bands and is the guitarist for the developing sludge punk project Yucky Bucket.
KRISTEN LONDON
Kristen London is the Head of Publishing at TuneCore, where she partners with independent artists and songwriters to help them collect the royalties they deserve.
Outside of publishing, she’s deeply passionate about New York’s live music scene and is the co-founder of Dancing in Socks, a series centered on building community through music. She DJs on weekends and has played at venues including House of Yes, Elsewhere, Jupiter Disco, and Xanadu.
Sydra Lyn
Sydra Lyn is a Brooklyn-based musician. During the day, she advocates for independent artists, working with the distribution service TuneCore. She leads a jazz trio, performing around the city, and plays bass for Darling Robb. In her free time, you can find her at the city’s great jazz venues, such as Smalls, Mona’s, and Ornithology.
Connor McInerney
Connor Beckett McInerney is a DJ, producer, promoter, and music journalist based in Bushwick. The former Managing Editor of stalwart local blog The Deli and erstwhile host of NYC music discovery podcast LOCAL BOPS, he spends his time these days as a freelance media creative at large, working with bands in a 1 on 1 capacity and providing creative and editorial guidance. His work has appeared in Pitchfork, BrooklynVegan, AdHoc, Impose, and Bedford + Bowery. In his free time, he can be found at any number of dive bars offering unwarranted opinions on trite nonsense.
BEN OASTLER
Ben Oastler is a music industry professional with a foundation in performance and a passion for innovation. Before moving to Brooklyn in 2018, he was an active musician in Melbourne, Australia, working as a session guitarist, songwriter, and touring artist. His journey through the music world led him to the business side of the industry, where he now serves as the Director of Data Analytics and Insights at TuneCore, helping artists thrive in the evolving landscape of digital music.
With a deep appreciation for heavy rock, jazz fusion, and sharp, well-crafted songwriting, Ben brings both creative and analytical expertise to the industry. His career bridges the worlds of artistry and technology, ensuring that musicians have the tools and insights needed to succeed.
OZZIE
Ozzie is a born-and-raised New Yorker and the founder of Show Brain, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting artists and building accessible, community-centered, and free all-ages concerts in historic NYC parks.
As a drummer, Ozzie is best known as the drummer of Pons and has collaborated with a wide range of artists including Dead Tooth, Shred Flintstone, InCircles, Choked Up, and many more. Deeply rooted in NYC’s music scene, Ozzie’s work bridges performance, collaboration, and artist advocacy.
ROB PRICHARD
Rob Prichard co-founded Radio Free Brooklyn in 2015. He hosts and produces a weekly psychedelic, garage, punk, post punk, movies-for-your ears radio show called Bushwick Garage every Thursday from 12am-2am.
Sam Sumpter
Sam Sumpter is the founder and editorial director of Bands do BK—a guide to Brooklyn by bands, for everyone. (Follow along here.)
Bands do BK launched as a blog in 2019 and has since expanded to include a weekly radio show on Radio Free Brooklyn; a Friday newsletter (THE SETLIST) featuring weekend itineraries crafted by local musicians; and live shows and streams, often with a fundraising element attached. Sam has spent the last year and a half writing and conducting interviews for the forthcoming Bands do BK book. Equal parts Brooklyn guide, ode and oral history with a dash of music-fan memoir, it will be published by Lit Riot Press and hit shelves in spring of 2022.
It’s no exaggeration to say that Sam’s life revolves around the Brooklyn music scene, and no matter what form it takes, Bands do BK is the platform she uses to pursue her life passions: supporting artists, connecting creatives and facilitating a good time.
AJ TOBEY
If you’ve been accustomed to attending shows in NYC for the past decade or so, chances are you been in the room with AJ Tobey. As head of A&R for Rough Trade Publishing and Bank Robber Music, and the founder of Brooklyn based label and management company Trash Casual, AJ has been busy curating the best new sounds to join an already impressive publishing roster that includes artists like The Magnetic Fields, Alvvays and Chelsea Wolfe, and labels such as Pure Noise, Drag City and Mute Records, and Trash Casual artists Drop Nineteens, Dead Tooth, My Son The Doctor, and Joudy.
Rich Weiss
Rich Weiss founded Bloodless Management in 2019 to cultivate meaningful connections between artists, venues, and audiences. With over a decade of experience in the music industry at SPIN Magazine, Warner Music Group, and Magnum PR, Rich has worked with acclaimed artists such as And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead, Surfer Blood, and Castle Rat. A dedicated advocate for the music community, he is passionate about curating events that showcase exciting and innovative talent.
Adam Wieczner
Adam spent 4 years working for SXSW as a stage manager advancing bands, ultimately running the largest outdoor stage at Auditorium shores and advancing national touring acts like the Deftones, Wolfmother, Coheed & Cambria, Ludacris, Ryan Bingham and more. He later went on to produce his own music showcase at the festival. Adam currently runs the Jim Beam music program for Beam Suntory New York, and manages all their music and sports partnerships across the state. In his free time you can find Adam at Webster Hall, OWL, Brooklyn Steel, Avant Gardner or one of the other many great music venues across the city.
SAM WOLFF
Sam Wolff is a Brooklyn-based musician, comedian, and radio host. He works at SiriusXM and has hosted Ensnared since 2021. He also serves as Events Director for Radio Free Brooklyn, producing and programming comedy and music shows across New York City.
A drummer, Sam plays in the band DIRT and collaborates with several other groups in the independent music scene. His work spans live performance, radio, and event production, and he has been featured in the New York Comedy Festival for comedy and storytelling. More updates at @wolffmuffin.
Past Winter Madness judges include Billy Aukstik of Hivemind Studio, Jeff Berner of Studio G Brooklyn, Tommy Borscheid of The Orchard, Lia Camille Crockett of Parcha Projects, musician Rich Cahill, Jonathan Clarke of iheart radio, musician/producer/DJ Quantic, co-owner of Favorite Friend Records, musician, and producer Nick LaFalce, musician and producer Sara Landeau, artist/rapper Lawd P, producer Lucius Page, Multi-instrumentalist, producer, composer & arranger Anant Pradhan and DJ/producer/ musician Jonathan Toubin.