“They said, ‘Go to LA, you're going to the NAMM show.' I said, 'What's a NAMM Show?'”: Ahead of NAMM 2026, we get to know the man in the hot seat of the industry’s biggest trade show

NAMM CEO.

NAMM 2026: With this year’s hotly anticipated NAMM Show looming on the horizon, we felt it was high time we spoke with the recently installed President and CEO, John Mlynczak.

With vast expertise across the music education domain, as well as a stint driving learning at PreSonus Audio, Mlynczak’s appointment in early 2023 marked a real statement of intent. At that time, the future of NAMM was looking somewhat bleaker following the industry’s painful readjustments post-COVID.

With John at the helm, NAMM’s year-round educational offerings - and people-first attitude - have been key factors in its annual winter show regaining both its attendance and its importance to the wider industry. As John explains, this year’s show is already well on course to exceed previous records across a range of metrics.

We caught up with John to learn about his experience of leading NAMM so far, and his view on some of the key industry concerns that will undoubtedly be on everybody’s lips at the Anaheim Convention Center this year…