Success Story: JC Evans ’20 spends summer at Universal Music Group

Success Stories | Aug 09, 2018 | admin

JC Evans, BS ’20, has taken full advantage of the Gabelli School’s location in New York City and its many opportunities for networking and building relationships. Add to that his passion for music, and the ingredients were in place for Evans to land a summer internship with Universal Music Group (UMG), working for its #1 music label, Republic Records.

Evans studies marketing at the Gabelli School, where he’s taken courses in traditional marketing and foundational business concepts. He’s always been a huge music fan and has embraced the New York electronic music scene. “Every exciting concert, event, or late-night set I hear about, I find a way to go,” says Evans. Trace his actions and the connections he’s made through the last couple of years, and the line from his passion for music to his current internship becomes clear.

In Evans’ freshman year, he served as entertainment chair of the Fordham Dance Marathon. Since joining, the organization has raised nearly $200K to benefit pediatric cancer research, while growing from a small celebration in the McGinley Ballroom to a full production concert in the Lombardi Fieldhouse. As the organization grew, he took on the role of concert director. His experience with the Fordham Dance Marathon has helped solidify his interest in managing musical events and artists.

Later that year, Evans attended a conference in Brooklyn, where he met the CEO of a music events and VIP experience company, CID Entertainment, and asked him for an internship.

During the CID internship, he worked at the Panamora Music Festival. While there, he met a talent agent who later invited him to join a music industry networking group on Facebook. In the largely referral-based music industry, Evans says, this invitation was key.

Once a member of the Facebook group, he saw a posting from the Republic Records marketing director in search of an intern. He was able to contact the hiring manager directly from the Facebook group and, soon after, was offered the position.

This summer at Republic Records, Evans is learning to analyze market data from digital service providers like Spotify, pitch for playlists, develop marketing campaigns, coordinate social media growth, plan events and further understand the inner-workings of the music industry. He is focusing on dance and electronic music within their dedicated electronic imprint, Casablanca Records.

Would Evans say he had some luck? Maybe. Great timing? Absolutely. But he believes that it’s very important to simply show up.

“If you have the energy and constantly put yourself out there,” he says, “the opportunities will come.”