The skill set that a student leaves with after pursuing a degree in music is complex, detailed and creative. They’re prepared to be successful for a variety of careers in or beyond music.
— Rachel Calloway, Assistant Professor / Voice and Director of Spark: Carolina's Leadership Laboratory
Junior Daniel Porcelli has interned at music festivals, helped coordinate fundraising events, shadowed the touring team for Motley Crue’s guitarist (John 5) and attended the National Association of Music Merchants Show.
Opportunities for these types of experiential learning made the decision to attend the University of South Carolina’s School of Music an easy decision for Porcelli, who is majoring in Music Industry Studies.
“As I was searching for music industry programs, it became clear that USC’s program had significantly more potential,” says Porcelli, a New York native. “With the built-in experiential learning aspects of the curriculum, I recognized USC was going to provide much more value outside the classroom and give me the best opportunity to succeed in my career.”
For Porcelli, the internships at music festivals through production company Danny Wimmer Presents have been beneficial by providing exposure to the professional culture in the music industry and helping to form valuable relationships for guidance and mentorship with industry veterans.
The partnership with Danny Wimmer Presents is just one of many hands-on learning opportunities for students, says Jeremy Polley, director of the Music Industry Studies program. The program has partnerships with recording studios, such as The Jam Room, and produces weekly shows for Live at the Underground at Russell House. Students have also created a university record label, which will have its first release later this month.
At music festivals, students may work 12-15 hour days on all aspects of event production, from setting up and breaking down; to marketing, media and customer relations; to picking up rocks from the parking lot to help prevent injuries.
When you’re on site, you figure out really quick if you want to be in this industry or if you don't.
— Jeremy Polley, director, Music Industry Studies
“When you’re on site, you figure out really quick if you want to be in this industry or if you don't,” Polley says. “Our students get to have these fantastic once-in-a-lifetime experiences, and some of them have been able to turn them into careers with DWP. It's one of our bigger successes for both the company and the students.”
Diversity and growth
The global music recording market is estimated to be $74 billion a year, with opportunities in areas such as production, distribution, recording, writing and publishing, management and performing. The Music Industry Studies program offers a diverse curriculum that aims to prepare students for a variety of careers. To provide a solid foundation in management and business concepts, the curriculum includes courses in both the Darla Moore School of Business and the College of Hotel, Retail and Sports Management.
“We want our students to learn as much as much as they can in four years to choose their path and knock a few rungs off their career ladder from the start,” Polley says.
In only its fourth year, the program has seen significant growth. The school expected 28 majors at this point, but the program currently has 79 majors and 42 minors. New tracks are in development within the major to offer students with a more focused education in specific areas of the music industry, and Dean Tayloe Harding expects more collaborations with Darla Moore and HRSM in the future. For example, plans call for HRSM to partner on a café /jazz club in the Greene Street church, which houses the jazz program, when renovations are complete.
“We open our doors to students who don't necessarily have traditional musical backgrounds but who just love music and want to make it their career,” Polley says. “If you were to sit down in a room with our students, about a third of them are interested in performing, about a third want to do recording and producing, and a third lean toward business or management. That's what's great about our degree. Students have a variety of backgrounds, and they're working together – just like they will in the industry.”
Senior Chloe Grochowski, a Public Relations major, chose a minor in Music Industry Studies for its specialized perspective that aligned with her passion for music. Although she has a limited background in music, once she began interning and working within the industry, Grochowski knew she had found her niche.
She calls her participation on the marketing team during an experiential learning trip with Danny Wimmer Presents at a Kentucky music festival impactful.
“I engaged in hands-on tasks such as setting up and maintaining the media lounge, escorting artists and fans for meet-and-greets, and assisting with marketing activations and fan experiences,” she says. “The trip connected closely to the material I’ve studied in both my PR and MIS classes and solidified my interest in pursuing a communications or management role in the music industry.”
Industry partnerships
In addition to experiential learning partnerships, the Music Industry Studies program also offers students an opportunity to attend the National Association of Music Merchants convention. NAMM is the music, sound and event industry's trade association. A key component of the convention is the Gen Next program, which invites students to the convention for professional development and networking with a program of 30-35 sessions on topics relevant to the music industry.
“The NAMM show experience includes intense learning and practical follow-up, such as maintaining contacts and exploring career opportunities,” says adjunct professor Mary Luehrsen, who worked at NAMM for more than 20 years as director of public affairs and government relations and executive director of the NAMM Foundation. “The connections they make there will help them in their future careers, and it raises the visibility and reputation of USC’s state-of-the-art program.”
Luehrsen and Harding helped create the Gen Next program as a partnership between NAMM and the College Music Society when Harding served as president of the organization’s foundation. The program stresses the importance of college students and their contributions to the future of the music industry.
“Gen Next fits so well because NAMM serves as a source to keep the people in this industry, informed, engaged and advancing in education and professional development,” she says.
Harding says Luerhrsen and Polley are instrumental in the USC’s relationship with NAMM, adding that NAMM often reaches out to the School of Music about efforts to grow music industry programs and get more involvement from faculty and students in higher education.
Harry Milvid, a 2024 graduate, says his hands-on experiences as an intern with Danny Wimmer Presents along with the opportunity to attend NAMM gave him a holistic view of the live music business. Milvid writes, records, mixes and gigs as front man for his band The Industry, as well as playing guitar for several other bands. He also is a live sound engineer at Tin Roof.
“The wealth of information and opportunity for networking at NAMM is staggering. For anyone that wishes to be involved in the music industry in any capacity, there's not a much better place to be,” he says. “That, along with working at multiple music festivals with DWP, has given me a perspective of this business that most others will have to learn through years of trial and error.”
Taking the lead to meet student needs
The spark for the Music Industry Studies program grew out of the Carolina Institute for Leadership and Engagement in Music, an initiative started in 2007 to supplement a traditional music education and foster independence and leadership in students. Open to all music students, the program was rebranded as Spark: Music Leadership at Carolina in 2012.
The four pillars of Spark are music entrepreneurship, music advocacy, community engagement and audience building, and health and wellness.
“The skill set that a student leaves with after pursuing a degree in music is complex, detailed and creative. They're prepared to be successful for a variety of careers in or beyond music,” says Spark Director Rachel Calloway.
As the reputation of the Spark program at USC grew nationally, Harding recognized the school was not reaching a category of students who wanted music to play a major role in their life or career but weren’t interested in a traditional music education.
“There was no real choice at our university for them. At the same time, we were interested in growing the enrollment of the music school,” he says.
Thus, the Music Industry Studies program was formed. In addition to recruiting Polley as the program’s coordinator, Harding added Luerhsen as an adjunct professor because of her experience at NAMM.
“They have helped pave the way for USC’s program to be one of the leaders among music business and music industry programs in America through our partnership with NAMM,” he says.
Luerhsen and Harding co-teach an advocacy course as part of the Spark leadership training. The course aims to empower students to take ownership of their careers and make a positive impact in the music industry.
“We help these remarkable music majors get an understanding of what's ahead for them,” Luerhsen says. “We try to provide them the larger context to their choice to build a musical life and be in a creative industry.”
Spark program nurtures leadership
To provide support for all students in the School of Music, key Spark initiatives include professional development opportunities such as assistance with headshots and grant writing, an Up Close and Personal series with visiting artists, and financial aid for summer study and Community Impact Projects.
The Up Close and Personal series gives students a candid and safe space to ask professionals about their musicianship and career but also about dealing with issues such as performance anxiety and injury.
“It is so great to be able to connect with other artists, particularly USC alumni. Talking to people that went to USC who are now succeeding in the business is so inspirational,” says sophomore Vocal Performance major Abby Brewer.
Through its grant program, Spark awarded nearly $30,000 last year for summer study and community impact projects. Successful initiatives include wellness projects, a music and arts field day for a refugee community, engaging with students in education, and bringing music to underserved communities.
“Students generally have more interesting and cutting-edge ideas, and we want to empower them to believe in their ability to make a difference,” Calloway says.
Calloway credits her colleagues and school leadership for creating an environment that supports and encourages that creativity.
Brewer, who is minoring in theatre, says her experience as a Spark intern and the summer study grant she received will benefit her as she pursues a career in arts administration.
“I took lead on Stress Less Finals Week this semester,” she says. “It was rewarding to see people come to the events that I planned. One of our voice teachers, Ashley Emerson, led a yoga session that I think was really beneficial to get the students moving to relieve some stress.”
Encouraging students to get out of their comfort zone and explore projects that have an impact beyond themselves is a core theme for Spark.
“Students can see there is more to being a musician than just winning an orchestra job or getting a position with an opera company or whatever their goals may be,” Calloway says. “We're trying to give them the experience of how music can make a difference in their communities.”