Publishing & PR Internship
Provides NOCCA Jazz Students With Training
NOCCA Jazz students, through the support of the Trombone Shorty Foundation and Round Hill Music Publishing, have been able to work with professionals in the music business this semester.
This Trombone Shorty Foundation program “Pathways to Careers” was designed in partnership with the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation and the Aspen Institute to offer professional experience to young New Orleans culture bearers.
“As a Jazz Alum of NOCCA, Troy Andrews is many things: a phenomenal musician; a NOCCA Alum; a New Orleans Cultural icon; and an Ambassador for this city, state and region,” shared NOCCA President | CEO Kyle Wedberg. “He has always been an outstanding mentor to those who are the next generation of New Orleans and Louisiana music. It is a joy and a gift to have his support for NOCCA students on multiple levels through the Trombone Shorty Foundation."
“As our young, talented musicians figure out how to best enter the often challenging world of music business, this program gives them a major head start,” says Bill Taylor, Executive Director of the Trombone Shorty Foundation. “And the NOCCA students have excelled during their time with Round Hill, which has opened up doors to experts that have offered insight and guidance.”
NOCCA students have been able to interact with performing artists, song writers and producers working in the music industry. Mentors have provided insight on copyright, music publishing, and public relations.
“Round Hill Music’s partnership with this program has established a symbiotic relationship between the mentors and mentees- we are equally as inspired by the students as they are with their mentors,” says Amy Birnbaum, Sr. Director A&R, Artist Relations, who has provided leadership in crafting the apprenticeships. “We are forever committed to pairing these passionate, gifted and inquisitive students with music business professionals who can help guide their careers and provide a source of supervision and support.”
During the six-week program students participated virtually and will be paid a stipend, as to treat them as professionals, for the apprenticeship.
Highlights of students and their experiences:
Christian Mitchem – bassist, 12th Grader from New Orleans attending NOCCA Academic Studio
‘My mentor at Round Hill is Lindsay Bottari and she is the Senior Coordinator of Administration. My activities so far have consisted of me learning the ropes of copyright, covers, publishing deals, and the licensing of intellectual properties. Whether it be the simple process of learning terminology or using real life examples from Round Hill to calculate publishing splits, I’m always learning something new. It’s been my responsibility to stay inquisitive, and complete weekly assignments/projects.’
Matthew Tanner – pianist, 12th grader from Slidell attending NOCCA Academic Studio
‘George Wilde has assigned me with a Round Hill Music representative Joseph Cacciola, a long-time employee of the Warner Music Group, who is involved with music and entertainment industry research, marketing, analytics, team leading, as well as strategy growth.. We have been discussing topics such as, how to build your career around generating and analyzing data to use it to predict marketing trends, and recognizing business opportunities to develop strategies that drive revenue growth and improve operations. As well as marketing and publishing topics, we’ve been going over how to transform data into insights that change attitudes and behaviors.’
Seth Collins – pianist, 12th grader homeschooled student from Destrehan
‘I have been paired with Madison Norris, the Senior VP, Creative Operations of Zync, a Round Hill Company. My responsibilities have included weekly meetings with my mentor, listening and researching the artists they represent, pitching music for ad campaigns, and sitting in on meetings. In addition each Monday, I sign into a zoom call with the intern leaders, when we may have guest artists, who offer insights on the business side of music.’
Benicio Bodenheimer – trumpet, 12th grader from New Orleans attending NOCCA Academic Studio
‘The Shorty Foundation has really been an incredible experience so far. We’ve had a couple of guest speakers who are all incredibly talented people in the music industry and have so much knowledge to share. It’s also been really nice to learn about some of the red flags in the music industry that we should look out for. I’ve also built a great relationship with my mentor and hope I can use that relationship later in life, to continue networking and meeting people in the music industry. Overall the whole program has been really awesome and a lot of fun.’
About NOCCA
New Orleans Center for Creative Arts is Louisiana’s arts conservatory for high school students. NOCCA offers students from across the state tuition-free arts instruction in Culinary Arts, Creative Writing, Dance, Media Arts (Filmmaking and Audio Production), Music, Theatre Arts, Visual Arts, and academics. For more information, please visit www.NOCCA.com.
About Trombone Shorty Foundation
At the Trombone Shorty Foundation, we proudly contribute to the time-honored tradition of passing it on. Although many kids in New Orleans play an instrument, it’s a select few like Troy “Trombone Shorty” who have the opportunity to pursue music as a career on a national stage. We offer students both a road map and focus to allow them to pursue their passion. Our goal is to nurture their talent in a way that opens up the possibilities, and also provide a platform for advancement. www.tromboneshortyfoundation.org for more.