Folk Alliance International

Folk Alliance International (FAI) is now the official name of the former North American Folk Music & Dance Alliance. Their headquarters are currently in Kansas City, Missouri. The conference has been in Kansas City since 2014 and will remain there through 2018. Folk Alliance International has five regional affiliates that provide conferences in their respective markets: Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA), Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM), Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA), Folk Alliance Region West (FAR-West), and Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA). FAI defines 'folk' as "anything rooted in tradition, indigenous to one's culture. The organization consists of a large variety of songwriters, storytellers, bluegrass, blues, soul, old-time, traditional, global roots and world music, spoken word, Celtic, cajun," etc. In addition to the conference, FAI provides a range of member benefits, including a non-profit group exemption program for U.S.-based organizations, an FAI/PRO House Concert Agreement Program, and Visa Writing Services. They also offer to their membership special discounts with various companies covering insurance, publications, travel, and manufacturers. ==Annual conference==

The annual conference is an event that draws together music industry professionals from throughout the world to share ideas, network, and showcase emerging, mid-career, and legendary artists. Held over five days, the conference includes a keynote speaker, awards shows, over 2,400 registered attendees from 18 countries, 75 exhibitors, 150 panels & workshops, 200 juried official showcases, and over 2,800 private showcases held late at night. The conference is always held at a local hotel, and while in Kansas City has been at The Westin Kansas City at Crown Center. Each conference typically has a theme. The 2017 theme was Forbidden Folk, and was meant to "celebrate activism in art and look at the ways folk music has, in the past and currently, played a role in labor movements, the civil movements, environmental movements, pacifist movements and political movements as the voice of the people". ==List of conferences==

List of past and future conferences(as available). ==Conference themes==