Black Music Action Coalition, Nashville Music Equality, RIAA and Wasserman Music Present 2nd Annual Music Accelerator Program at Tennessee State University, powered by: Amazon Music

Confirmed guest artists and speakers include Waka Flocka Flame, Madeline Edwards, Tim Gent, Bryant Taylorr, and executives from AEG/Goldenvoice, Live Nation, National Museum of African American Music, Rolling Loud, Tri Star, Warner Music Nashville, Wasserman Music, WNXP and more.

Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC), Nashville Music Equality, The Recording Industry Association of America®, and Wasserman Music have announced the second annual installment of their Maymester Music Accelerator Program, which this year expands to include not just Tennessee State University, but also neighboring Fisk University—the oldest institution of higher learning in Nashville, Tennessee and a highly ranked historically Black university. The invaluable program, powered by Amazon Music, offers Black college students in Tennessee access to music industry leadership, mentorship, and career resources. Over the course of three weeks, students in the program will learn about a range of aspects within the entertainment industry, from touring and marketing to publishing and public relations. The Coalition will once again bring in some of the most successful executives and artists in the music industry to guest lecture throughout the program. This year’s program will be sponsored by Primary Wave’s BMAC-James Brown Education Fund—a fund announced at BMAC’s second Music In Action Awards Gala that’s set to grow annually and that will cover the costs for 30 students to take this elective class for free.

The first Maymester Music Accelerator Program in 2022 placed students in opportune internships across multiple music industry companies, including Wasserman Music, Warner Music Nashville and LVRN. The program included speakers from various focuses in the music business, such as Post Malone manager Dre London, Artistry Group founder/CEO Max Gousse, Tuma Basa (YouTube Music), Andrew Lieber (MAC Agency), Full Stop Management/GIANT Records’s Shawn Holiday, recording artists BRELAND, Blanco Brown and Joy Oladokun, Mary J Blige’s manager Ashaunna Ayars, Marcus Johnson (Goldenvoice/AEG), Brandon McEachern and Marcus Allen (Broccoli City) EMPIRE product manager Russell Barrett, RIAA’s Jackie Jones, Tina Davis (Vp of EMPIRE), BMG’s Tim Reid and Jon Loba, and Wasserman Music agents Lee Anderson, Lenore Kinder, Callender, Chappel McCollister and Mallory Smith, and concluded with guest lectures super producer Dallas Austin and recording artist Sir The Baptist, both of whom received an honorary doctorate in music from TSU that month. The last class was held at the National Museum of African American Music, where each student was surprised with their very own gold plaque from the RIAA.

"Tennessee State University is fortunate to have these music-related companies participating in our Maymester course. They bring deep content and wide contacts.  From the beginning of this partnership, we identified a mutual goal, which is to provide real-world opportunities for students who otherwise might be under-represented in the music industry," said Dr. Mark Crawford, coordinator of TSU's Commercial Music program.

BMAC Co-Founder/Co-Chairman, Willie “Prophet” Stiggers, says of this year’s program, “...while many have put the down the protest signs and lower the urgency around racial and social justice, Black Music Action Coalition is doubling down on our commitment to creating sustainable pipeline programs and providing real access for the next generation of music executives and artists, that have historically been denied access to the level of exposure and training that our music accelerator program provides. We were intentional about Tennessee State University being the hub for this program and with Nashville being such an important part of the music industry, it’s imperative that we are building programs like this right here down the street from Music Row. This year we expanded the music accelerator program to include FISK University and the goal is to eventually have students from all 107 HBCUs to participate in this program annually.”

About the program, Nashville Music Equality Community Chair and Nashville Promise Zone Manager Brian Sexton says, “The magnitude of this program is so important for TSU students who have been historically shut out of access and opportunities within our music industry landscape here in Nashville, TN. On behalf of Nashville Music Equality and the Nashville Promise Zone, I couldn’t be more inspired to see this program come back to TSU as well as the number of Black Music Executives this program will produce. To have this happen at Tennessee State University again after TSU’s Aristocrat of Bands Grammy win is absolutely amazing!”

“Being a part of this program has been an amazing experience and an important first step to bringing more voices to the table. The incredible talent these students bring to the music industry through this program and beyond is truly inspiring. I am looking forward to partnering on intentional efforts to bring music business opportunities to more students,” shares Jackie Jones, RIAA’s SVP Artist and Industry Relations.

Wasserman Music Senior Vice President Lenore Kinder says, "The outstanding students at TSU and Fisk deserve equal access to all aspects of the greater-Nashville music community and beyond. Our Maymester program is about bringing resources, relationships and expertise to these students to prepare them to launch careers in music, and I couldn’t be more honored to continue the work we started eighteen-plus months ago."

Amazon Music’s Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Gary Bushrod adds, “What the Black Music Action Coalition is doing to bridge the racial gap in the music business is invaluable work. As an HBCU graduate myself, I am extremely proud and energized by what the Music Accelerator Program is creating for students at Tennessee State and Fisk University.”

ABOUT BMAC

The Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC) endeavors to uphold and actualize the mission of Black Lives Matter in the music industry and reach racial justice not just across labels, publishers, agencies, distributors, and DSP's but throughout society at large. BMAC works together with leaders from various business leaders to hold their companies accountable and implement a system of checks and balances to ensure change takes root. The group fosters and shepherds various educational, mental health, financial literacy, entrepreneurship, policing, social justice, and political causes that directly impact Black communities.

Learn more about the Black Music Action Coalition at https://www.bmacoalition.org/.

ABOUT NASHVILLE MUSIC EQUALITY MISSION

Nashville Music Equality mission is to create an anti-racist environment in the Nashville Music industry.

ABOUT RIAA

The Recording Industry Association of America® advocates for recorded music and the people and companies that create it in the United States. RIAA’s several hundred members – ranging from major American music groups with global reach to artist-owned labels and small businesses – make up the world’s most vibrant and innovative music community, working to help artists reach their potential and connect with fans while supporting hundreds of thousands of American jobs.

ABOUT WASSERMAN MUSIC

Wasserman Music represents a world-class roster of artists for live performance, touring, brand partnerships and beyond, empowering them to create culture and impact audiences globally. The passionate, entrepreneurial agents at Wasserman Music are long-term artist development strategists who build significant, global platforms for the world's most impactful artists. Wasserman Music is a division of Wasserman, a partner to the world's most iconic sports figures, musical artists, brands, and properties.

Website | Roster | Instagram

ABOUT AMAZON MUSIC

Amazon has been in the music business for more than 20 years (CDs were the second item sold on Amazon, after books) and has long-established trust with both customers and the industry. Amazon Music launched music streaming in 2014, initially as a benefit just for Prime members (formerly known as Prime Music). Since then, it has expanded into a full streaming service, offering a variety of tiers, content, and plans to customers in more than 50 countries around the world. Amazon Music currently has more than 55 million customers globally, and today is considered the third largest streaming service after Spotify (1st) and Apple Music (2nd). Key marketplaces for Amazon Music include US, UK, DE, JP, FR, IT, ES, IN, MX, BR, CA, and AU.

ABOUT MUSIC BUSINESS ACCELERATOR PROGRAM AT TSU

This program was founded in 2022 by Willie Stigger aka “Prophet” from the Black Music Action Coalition, Brian Sexton from Nashville Music Equality, Jackie Jones from RIAA, Margaret Hart from YouTube Music, Lee Anderson, Lenore Kinder, Lindsay LeBennett and Denise Melanson from Wasserman Music, and Dr. Mark Crawford from Tennessee State University.

ABOUT TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY

Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University is Nashville's only public university, and is a premier, historically black university and land-grant institution offering 39 bachelor's degree programs, 24 master's degree programs, and eight doctoral degrees. TSU is a comprehensive research-intensive institution with a R-2 Carnegie designation and has a graduate school on its downtown Avon Williams Campus, along with the Otis Floyd Nursery Research Center in McMinnville, Tennessee. With a commitment to excellence, Tennessee State University provides students with a quality education in a nurturing and innovative environment that prepares them as alumni to be global leaders in every facet of society. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

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For more information on Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC), please contact:

Khalila Douze | khalila@biz3.net

Kathryn Frazier | kathryn@biz3.net

For more information on Nashville Music Equality (NME), please contact:

Brian Sexton | sexton.brian@gmail.com

For more information on RIAA, please contact:

Marcel Pariseau | marcel@truepublicrelations.com

For more information on Wasserman Music, please contact:

WassermanMusicPR@shorefire.com  

For more information about the course, please contact:

macrawford@tnstate.edu