Berklee Wrapped 2025: Our Top News and Stories
Image by Elizabeth Friar
During his inauguration address in October 2025, President Jim Lucchese spoke about how artists don't come to Berklee because they're looking for their vocation. Rather, "If you’re here, [your vocation] found you," he said. "You’re pursuing your art because you have to, and it creates a special connection. Our faculty see that calling in our students, and our students see themselves in their teachers.”
That special connection was on display throughout the year. Our students continued to blur the lines between classrooms and professional experience through partnerships with FIFA, Red Bull, and Boston Calling. At Berklee Valencia, faculty and alumni worked together to score Alejandro Amenábar's latest film. We focused on music's power to heal and expand opportunities, with faculty members bringing music therapy to Chinese elders in Boston and staging the Berklee Inclusion Ensemble's debut performance.
"That’s why our students are here,” Lucchese said in his remarks, citing the Berklee community's ability to heal and bring people together. “And that’s why we’re here, too.”
Below, take a look back at where 2025 took us, and join us in imagining where we're going next.
Top News of 2025
Bob Dylan Receives Berklee Honorary Doctorate
Bob Dylan Awarded Honorary Doctorate from Berklee College of Music
"Who knows what path my career might have taken if I’d been fortunate enough to learn from some of the great musicians who taught at Berklee."—Bob Dylan
This Berklee Program Turns Class Projects into Career Breakthroughs
"It’s all about getting our curriculum connected to what’s actually happening out in the industry at the moment."
—Rodney Alejandro, dean of professional writing and music technology
How Musicians Can (and Should) Use AI—According to Berklee Experts
"When we use AI, we have to develop our own ethics."
—Lori Landay, professor of cultural studies
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere Filmed at Berklee NYC's Power Station
"[The film crew was] shocked to find out that the studios. . . looked almost identical to as they would have looked when Bruce was recording Nebraska."
—Hayley Isaacson, studio manager, Power Station
Berklee Celebrates the Inauguration of President Jim Lucchese
"Some institutions talk about helping students find their vocation. If you're here, that’s not a problem. If you’re here, it found you."
—Jim Lucchese, president
Best Visiting Artist Stories
KPop Demon Hunters Singers Work with Students
KPop Demon Hunters Stars Visit Berklee for Weeklong Celebration
"The song is king. . . . Collaborate with people better than yourself. Do what you have to do to get the best melody, which takes time and practice."—EJAE, songwriter and singing voice of Rumi, KPop Demon Hunters
Rakim to Join Berklee's Hip-Hop Hall of Fame at Signature Series Concert
"[T]o stand on the steps of an institution that has drawn the blueprint for creative development for generations past and future is both humbling and exhilarating."
—Rakim
Career Jam 2025: Insights, Images, and Inspiration
Charlie Puth, NPR's Tiny Desk, top A&Rs, and more came together for a day of professional development and energetic performances.
Berklee Honors André 3000 and Sara Bareilles at 2025 Commencement
"Whatever you do, keep telling your truth to the world. That’s what makes you an artist."
—Sara Bareilles
Allison Miller Named the 2025–2026 Ken Pullig Visiting Scholar in Jazz Studies
"I look forward to working with the collective student body, as well as guiding each individual on their unique journey to access the truth behind their compositional voice."
—Allison Miller
Best Alumni Stories
Alum Esin Aydıngöz Pens 'Nevermore Alma Mater' for Netflix's Wednesday
"The lyrics were written on top of my melody. . . . It was surreal to hear Catherine Zeta-Jones sing it, because years ago at Berklee I studied Chicago, the musical she starred in."
—Esin Aydıngöz BM '17
Charlie Puth's Homecoming Was Also a Victory Lap
"Every great thing that I had at Berklee, you all have now—and maybe even more."
—Charlie Puth BM '13
How Two Berklee Alumni Landed Songs in the Oscar-Winning Film Anora
"Berklee changed my life. It made me believe I could do music professionally—not just as a dream, but as a reality.”
—Lyusi Simon, co-songwriter, Anora
PARADE's National Tour Is a Procession of Boston Conservatory Talent
"It's about finding that whole life, so that you're not only happy when you're in a show, but that every day there is some aspect of doing the thing that you love to do."
—Michael Tacconi BFA ’12
Best Faculty Stories
Chelsey Green Makes History as Recording Academy Board Chair
"Music is how culture moves, breathes, and remembers. Being elected to this role is a call to lead with integrity, to advocate for access, and to innovate boldly on behalf of the music creators who keep music alive."—Chelsey Green, associate professor, strings
Berklee Professor Regie Gibson Named First Poet Laureat of Massachusetts
"Regie Gibson is a talented poet with a proven commitment to community engagement and a deep appreciation for the history, beauty, and resilience of our state and our people."
—Governor Maura Healey
Electronic Music Genres: A Guide to the Most Influential Styles
"Electronic music is always evolving, and there will always be more to explore. Stay tuned for more innovation and more unimaginable results."
—Michele Darling, chair, Electronic Production and Design Department
The Velvet Sundown: The AI Band Controversy Explained
"Ghost artists have been part of music culture for generations, and AI is only the newest tool in that lineage."
—Ben Camp, associate professor, songwriting
Q&A with Boston Conservatory Choral Conductor Stephen Spinelli
Spinelli's research into the lost manuscripts of composer Florence Price led to a Grammy-winning collaboration with Met Opera soprano Karen Slack.
Best Student Stories
Berklee and FIFA World Cup 26 Debut Official Boston Host City Theme
“This is an incredible opportunity and a dream to partner with the biggest sports organization in the world to create something that will be heard on a global stage. The magnitude of FIFA’s reach is unfathomable and a well-deserved spotlight for [our students'] talents.”—Rodney Alejandro, dean of professional writing and music technology
Student Spotlight: Ava Della Pietra
"I've always loved both medicine and songwriting, so when I heard about the Harvard-Berklee Joint Studies Program, it felt like the perfect opportunity to explore both paths."
—Ava Della Pietra
Meet Graduates from Berklee's Class of 2025
More than 1,500 graduates from 75 countries and all 50 US states received their diplomas and entered into an exciting new phase in their artistic and professional lives.
Student Spotlight: Grigori Balasanyan
"The freedom that artists get at Boston Conservatory to express themselves and showcase their work is rare in most of the performing arts colleges in the country"
—Grigori Balasanyan
Lucy Khadder Named 2025 Jimmy Lyons Scholarship Recipient
"This award makes it possible for me to pursue my dreams at Berklee and reflects the years of dedication that brought me here."
—Lucy Khadder
Best Playlists
The Best Fictional Bands (and the Artists Who Make Them Great)
From HUNTR/X and the Saja Boys to Spinal Tap and the Blues Brothers, what makes a fake band sound so real? This playlist proves that you have to make it to fake it.
David Lynch's Music Was as Unsettlingly Brilliant as His Films
"David Lynch is not always acknowledged as such, but he is probably one of the most significant sound designers of the post-war period."
—Ryan Page, assistant professor of electronic production and design
That Great Gretsch Sound: The Iconic Gear That Made Music History
From the Beatles to jazz drumming evolution, Gretsch has been there. Listen to some of the moments where the company has shaped music history.
The Best Coldplay Songs: 21 Tracks That Shoot for the Stars
From "Yellow" to "Viva La Vida," "Fix You" to "Paradise," this playlist goes "back to the start."
20 Bob Dylan Songs That Reflect a Legacy of A-Changin'
Listen to songs that show the radical depth and breadth of a career that is less about the answers, and more about the wind.
