Written by Emma Wideman | Arts and Life Editor
Baylor University’s music and entertainment major was abolished in 2014 following the downturn in the music industry the previous year. But this semester, the Baylor University Sports and Entertainment major’s sales strategy has brought music and entertainment back into focus.
Dr. Kirk Wakefield, executive director of the Sports and Entertainment Sales Strategy Center, said the old and new additions are of interest to many students.
“When we had our S3 orientation meeting in the fall, I asked out of the 80 or so people there, “How many of you would be interested in considering a career in music or entertainment?” said Wakefield. . “Everyone’s hands went up.”
Wakefield said the major is appealing because sports and music are what many students, and Americans as a whole, enjoy most.
“For most people, if you pick the two things you’re most passionate about, it’s going to be music and entertainment,” Wakefield said. “Who doesn’t listen to music? They’re all weird. I mean, music, entertainment, sports, those are the two biggest pastimes in America. So I guess that’s inevitable in a way. .”
Taylor Ashcraft, who graduated from Baylor University in 2011, currently works at Columbia Records as Director of Commercial Sync Licensing, promoting songs released by Columbia Records for use in commercials and brand partnerships. Ashcraft majored in music and entertainment marketing before completing the program.
Ms. Ashcraft said the negotiation lessons and insight into the music industry that the program gave her showed her what aspect of the music industry she wanted to work in and gave her the tools to get there. .
“I tell all of my S3 majors that they should take a negotiation class because that’s what you do in any job,” Ashcraft said. “Even if you’re not in a sales or contract negotiation role, you’re still negotiating terms and conditions of employment and salary. [that class] It was very helpful. ”
During a mini-mester at Belmont University in Nashville, Ashcraft and other Baylor students were given a tour of “Music City” and met with performing rights organizations, record labels, music engineers, publishers and more. Ashcraft said he finished Minimester wanting to work at Columbia Records.
“If you have the opportunity, please step in,” Ashcraft said. “I wanted to intern at Columbia Records or Spotify, so when Dr. Wakefield told me there was an internship opportunity at Sony, he jumped at it.”
Wakefield said getting students into internships and jobs is the program’s top priority. Its mission was to help follow up with his 160 alumni of original music and entertainment majors and provide contact information for current students.
“But the question is, can we provide internships and career opportunities in those fields,” Wakefield said. “And that’s the most important thing. … We’ve never just thought about building a program so big that no one can work in that field.”
Ashcraft, who has worked in the industry for 12 years, said it’s a great feeling to help artists perfect their songs and gain recognition.
“What I love most about my job is that I get to work with so many great artists and be in a position where I can help them make money, even if it’s in a small way.” Ashcraft said. “And hopefully, once we get their song and a big commercial, it helps them get a little bit more recognition and more streams for that song.”
Ashcraft said the artists who come through Columbia Records’ Manhattan, New York, office have left a lasting impression on her.
“Celine Dion came to our office and she was really, really, really fun,” Ashcraft said. “She made up songs off the top of her head and sang them to us. She was so much fun and she was really sweet.”
Bruce Springsteen is another artist whose sense of humor brightens up your day at the office.
“I said, ‘I’m not from Jersey. I’m from Texas,'” Ashcraft said. “And he said, “That’s fine.” You can be a kid.'”
A few years after Ashcraft interned at Columbia Records in the summer of 2010, she returned to her current position. Ashcraft, who was living in New York City with her college roommate that summer, fell in love with the city and returned the day after she graduated from Baylor University, she said.
Ashcraft, who has been working at a British music company called Audio Network since graduating, met her current boss, Columbia Records’ senior vice president of commercial licensing and brand partnerships, through a Women in Sync networking event in 2018. did.
Ashcraft said she couldn’t stress enough the importance of networking both after graduate school and while at Baylor.
“Don’t be afraid to talk to people,” Ashcraft says. “Don’t be afraid to go for informational interviews. Instead of going on a spring break trip with friends, I volunteer at South by Southwest literally every spring break. That’s how I make a lot of connections. , and we could do it in Texas. We didn’t have to move to New York to do it.”