Career Jam 2018: 'Your Generation Has the Potential to Do Great Things'
April 9, 2018
Students sing "Happy Birthday" to keynote speaker Pharrell Williams over Skype, using a mashup of the traditional song with his song "Happy."
Image by Collin Idzikowski
Berklee’s Career Center recently brought together prominent members of the entertainment industry for Career Jam, a day of panels and workshops dedicated to preparing students to build their best careers. Throughout the day, students listened to discussions by artists and industry leaders, signed up for mentoring sessions, auditioned for a variety of opportunities, and got professional head shots taken. Here are some highlights from the day's events.
Success After Berklee
- Frederic Choquette, partner, Drover Ventures: “Internships are a great, low-impact way to figure out what you want to do after college.”
- Meagan Fair, booking coordinator, Paradigm: “Everyone is going to make mistakes in their career...it’s how you move forward from it that’s going to set you apart.”
- Tim Luckow, president and cofounder, Stem: “Ultimately, [my time at Berklee] was about the community...when I look back on it, it was all about the other students.”
- Miranda Degnan, culture marketing manager, Red Bull: “You always want to be a student, no matter what role you take on.”
A New Path
Keynote speaker Pharrell Williams, rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer, film producer (via Skype): “Honestly, your generation has the potential to do great things, because you have so many tools at your fingertips. Use them...don’t be afraid to ask questions, and put it all out there, because you can."
Managing Careers, Developing Brands: Artist as Startup
- Caron Veazey Robinson, Pharrell Williams's manager, i am OTHER: "You have to believe in your work…we knew what we were making was going to catch on, so the trick was convincing the rest of the team of its greatness."
- Paul Wachter, founder and chief executive officer, Main Street Advisors: “You don’t necessarily start out knowing where you’re going to end up.... It’s okay to learn along the way.”
- Desiree Gruber, founder and CEO, Full Picture: “You have an ability to tell your story your way, and that has never really been available before.”
On the Road
- Tina Farris, tour manager for the Roots, Tina Farris Tours: “What makes you good [at tour management] is how you account for [the talent]. Plan for the next day and do everything it takes to get them onto the stage.”
- Alison D’Arrigo, assistant tour manager for the National, Straight & Narrow Artist Management: “It’s not glamorous, but you have to take a few minutes to step back and say ‘wow, I have the coolest job.’"
