Adria Petty to Explore Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' Enduring Impact at VersoFest 2026

Acclaimed filmmaker and managing partner of the Tom Petty estate to be joined by music and technology pioneer Sam Hendel.

Westport, CT — Adria Petty, the daughter of Tom Petty and acclaimed producer and music video director, will be on hand in the Trefz Forum as part of the burgeoning Saturday lineup for VersoFest 2026, The Westport Library’s annual music and media conference and festival powered by Verso Studios, the media arm of the Library.

Adria Petty, who works as a managing partner at the Tom Petty estate, will join VersoFest on Saturday, March 28, at 3 pm to discuss the legacy of her father and his band, The Heartbreakers, in conversation with music and technology pioneer Sam Hendel.

The event is free to attend, but registration is required. Click here to register.

This year’s fifth annual VersoFest includes a kickoff storytellers event with Susanna Hoffs (March 6), a conversation with folk-rock icon Ani DiFranco (March 26), a concert performance by Wyclef Jean (March 27), a VersoFest book talk with celebrated actress/performer Gina Gershon (March 28), a conversation and acoustic performance by alt-rock legend David J (March 28), and much, much more.

Petty is a director, producer, and creative director. She currently works as a managing partner at the Tom Petty estate with her family and the remaining members of Tom Petty’s band and operations team, preserving their archive of 40 years of American music.

As a director, Adria Petty has directed many videos for top recording artists including Beyonce, Coldplay, and Rihanna. She has also done commercial spots for iconic brands such as Lancôme, Alexander McQueen, Target, Converse, Hershey’s, McDonald’s, and many more. 

“I am a true lover of people, characters, culture, and personality,” Petty said. “As a child, I spent a lot of my time traveling with my family surrounded by musicians and artistic people of all kinds. I believe it is on those musical tours that the allure of production and the alchemy of great artistic people collaborating with a great crew got me inspired to become a director.”

Hendel is the managing partner of Chord Music Partners and Dundee Partners. He founded Chord in 2021, a joint venture with Universal Music Group, which serves as Universal’s global catalogue acquisition vehicle. Today, Chord is one of the largest independent music rights platforms in the world, with a growing portfolio of more than 65,000 works that includes The Weeknd, Fleetwood Mac, David Guetta, OneRepublic, John Legend, Diplo/Major Lazer, ZZ Top, and Morgan Wallen.