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Howard University Launches 2024 Music Business Insights Program with Wasserman Music

Collaboration with Wasserman continues efforts to expose Howard students to the business side of music and entertainment

Misha Cornelius
Feb 2, 2024 3 minutes

Howard students pose with singer, songwriter, and producer Pink Sweat$

The Howard University Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts kicked off the 2024 Music Business Insights Program on January 29 with a panel titled “The Business of Show” featuring Wasserman Music executives Lee Anderson and Hammond Seay alongside singer, songwriter, and producer Cautious Clay. More than 80 students attended the opening panel, with hundreds more expected to participate in programming that features influential guest speakers throughout the Spring semester, and a “Warner Days Takeover” in partnership with the Warner/Blavatnik Music Business Center at the Howard University School of Business.

“Our experience with Wasserman Music last year was unparalleled, from the brilliance and creativity of the agents, executives, artists, producers, and agency partners who came to participate each week to the multi-city summer internship program that several of our students got to experience at Wasserman,” said Pat Parks, assistant professor and area coordinator for the Theatre Arts Administration Program at the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts. “We are definitely looking to make our efforts even bigger and bolder going into year two of this collaboration and beyond.”

The 2024 Music Business Insights Program is a collaborative music business education program created to provide guidance, support, and inspiration to students seeking careers in all corners of the music industry. The inaugural program began in 2023 and featured six summer internships with Howard students joining an in-studio session with singer, songwriter, and producer Pink Sweat$ and Lindsay LaBennett, AVP of diversity, equity and inclusion at Wasserman. In 2024, students will attend guest lectures and in-class panels with top entertainment leaders. Summer internships will expose students to careers in sports marketing, music business, and more.

"The Wasserman internship provided me with a wide-ranging introduction to the inner workings of a booking agency,” said De'Anya Bell, senior theatre administration minor and media, journalism and film major after learning that she was selected for one of the Wasserman internships. “From understanding the role of the agent in the industry ecosystem to examining the life cycle of a performance, this experience will provide an opportunity to shadow and learn from Wasserman's talented and hardworking employees. I am so thankful for this opportunity!

Howard students visit singer, songwriter, and music producer Pink Sweat$ and Wasserman Music's Lindsay LaBennett in the music studio..

This year’s program will cover subjects across the full spectrum of the music business, including artist management, tour booking and promotion, music publishing, live event management, marketing, and more. The College of Fine Arts and Wasserman Music will partner with Howard University’s Warner/Blavatnik Music Business Center for a “Warner Days Takeover” during the center’s annual Warner Days celebration, a 3-day event meant to highlight urban music and its impact on culture. Warner Days also serves as a space for industry partners to engage with and recruit Howard students.

“We are excited to partner with Wasserman Music and the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts to showcase Howard's ongoing united efforts to serve our students and community by providing world-class elite programming,” said Jasmine Young, MBA (B.A.’94) director of the Warner Music/Blavatnik Center for Music Business at Howard University.

Wasserman Music is a leading global talent agency that represents many of the world’s most iconic sports and entertainment figures, music artists, and brands. The Music Business Insights Program is an outgrowth of Wasserman Music’s partnership with prominent social justice organization Color of Change and its #ChangeMusic Roadmap.

“We are thrilled to return to Howard University with an incredible new slate of speakers and leaders from across the entertainment industry, and the opportunity to empower another group of outstanding students who have the potential to help shape the future of the music business,” said Denise Melanson, senior director of social impact for Wasserman in a press release announcing the program.