More than 120 Belmont student leaders participated in Social Change & ME on Feb. 20-22. The event is an overview of socially responsible leadership offered by the Belmont Office of Leadership Development (BOLD).
The guiding principles for the experience revolve around the three pillars of social change: I Change, We Change and World Change. Students joined together over four days to discuss what real world change looks like beginning with how individuals change to impact world change.
Belmont staff, graduate students and alumni facilitators guided attendees through activities that explored the seven values of socially responsible leadership that challenged them to engage in social discourse with peers and friends across disciplines. The students interacted through discussions and several hands-on activities.
“Through a focus on self-awareness for the betterment of our communities, we recognize many small actions make up the change we hope to see in the world,” BOLD Graduate Assistant Jonathan Martin said. “The objective being to encourage students that whether in a residence hall at Belmont, or in their chosen vocation, their individual voice and actions matter.”
With a focus on the University’s strategic pathway four of “reweaving the social fabric,” BOLD equips student leaders to understand that societal engagement requires inward reflection. “We are a community who radically champions a strong quality of life for all people, and we recognize that social change only comes through devotion to each of us doing our part,” Martin said.
The BOLD office organizes over 300 campus-wide leadership development offerings each year with Social Change & ME continuing as the most attended event to date. Find upcoming BOLD opportunities on the BOLD webpage.
Meet Dave Jaeger, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Belmont Counseling Services. Originally from Minneapolis, MN, Dave has worked at Belmont for 6 years.
How did moving from Minneapolis shape you? I lived Minneapolis in for the first 28 years of my life. Each year I slowly became more and more adversed to the weather. By 28, the cold had broken me forever. However, before I was in Minneapolis I lived in a smaller town up north, and it created a deep desire to explore the world.
What are you doing when you’re not at work? I love woodworking and have now built a fairly large wood shop at my house and create furniture, skateboards, bookshelves, rocking chairs and more. I am currently building a record cabinet with tambour sliding doors made out of recycled skateboards. I just finished making a chess set out of recycled skateboards, as well.
Where is your favorite restaurant to go in Nashville? I love all of Sean Brock’s restaurants and really enjoy a place with good apps, cozy spaces and a really cool atmosphere. Currently really enjoying Lockeland Table’s Community Hour.
What are you currently watching? Currently we are watching re runs of the Amazing Race and I have somehow or another found myself into a few WWII documentaries.
Do you have a secret talent? Well, not sure if it is a talent, more a developing ideology. As I have grown up, I am realizing that many things I pay professionals a lot of money for, I can do myself. So, I have built my own shed, I do almost all my own vehicle repairs, I have remodeled a good chunk of our house, and may build us a in-ground pool!
What is one thing you could not go a day without? I have a fairly deep love for my dog Rey (named from Star Wars). She brings me an incredible amount of joy. Even though she often steals my socks and eats my dinner off the counter when I turn away, she is the most special thing in the world to me outside of my wife Grace.
What is a goal you have for this year? Right now myself and Sam Simpkins (University Photographer) are halfway through training for a half marathon in April.
Do you have a favorite thing about working at Belmont? I have been a part of working at many schools and I know many people say this…but for me it is deeply true. The students here are some of the most creative, engaging, genuine and all around interesting people I have encountered. Every day I look at my case load or new clients and a truly get excited about getting to meet them and hear their story.
Fifty years ago, the first jazz band at Belmont got its start: Jazz Band I. As Belmont’s reputation for excellence in music education has grown the past fifty years, the vibrant jazz community on campus has grown as well. Today, Belmont boasts multiple jazz ensembles, dedicated professional jazz faculty and a plethora of successful jazz musician alumni.
The jazz community gathered Feb. 24 – 25 for a campus celebration in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Jazz Band I. The weekend featured incredible performances from jazz alumni, students, faculty and leading jazz artist and saxophone legend Chris Potter, as well as a masterclass with Potter.
Some of the main distinctive opportunities of the weekend were the chance for alumni to serve as mentors to current students hoping to pursue their love of jazz professionally after graduation and for students to get the chance to play with Potter.
Junior AJ Huang said the weekend was a surreal experience. “Chris Potter is one of my heroes and someone I’ve looked up to for a long time, so getting to learn from him and play with him was a dream come true! I’m really proud of how much jazz at Belmont has developed over the past few years, and I can’t wait to keep striving for greatness with the amazing musicians and wonderful friends I’ve made in my time here so far,” he said.
Huang was able to trade with Chris Potter. During the rehearsal before the show, Huang was nervous about the “blazing fast, intricate lines” Potter was playing that he felt he had no chance of picking up on. However, during the actual show, Potter assessed where Huang was at and played where he could follow along. “His playing gave mine so much more energy. He’s truly a masterful musician who is able to lift others up around him with everything he does,” said Huang. “This experience taught me what it means to really have full command over your instrument and to have a deeper understanding of music as a whole. We think about music in similar ways, he’s just way more advanced than me, which was encouraging and a sign to keep on working! Jazz weekend reminded me why I love doing what I do so much, and solidified my aspirations and drive to become the best musician I can be even more.”
Students and alumni play during A Night of Jazz with Chris Potter.
Alumni enjoyed the chance to return to campus and relive some of their favorite memories with the jazz community on campus.
Double alumna Natalie Layne (2020, commercial music, piano, songwriting emphasis and 2022, commercial music, piano, performance emphasis) came to Belmont not having studied jazz but said her time working with jazz professors changed her career as she makes jazz-influenced music to this day.
“I can’t exaggerate its effects on the way I’ve been able to move forward with music,” Layne said. “It was such a blast to see friends from my time at school, plus musicians that I work with in the industry that I didn’t even know went to Belmont! What a beautiful night of music and honoring the professors that have built the program.”
Max Dvorin, 2018 alumnus and current masters student in Belmont’s Multiple Woodwind Degree program, served as the assistant director of the alumni concert. “My favorite part of the event was being able to see and play with musicians that I have not seen in years,” he said. “Another cool moment was realizing how many great alumni are killing it in the music scene. I didn’t realize some of the musicians in town were alumni until that night. We are all connected though Belmont, which is truly amazing.”
Another alumna, Hannah Anders (2007, commercial voice), is currently a touring southern rock artist and master vocal coach. She quoted her husband talking about the event saying, ‘What a rare and beautiful gift to have the opportunity to re-live such a great time in your life at an age when you can really appreciate it.’
“Truer words could not have been spoken about this event,” she continued. “I think that we all anticipated that the event would be fun and nostalgic, but I don’t think any of us were prepared for how meaningful and beautiful it would be to come back together in the place where we met, to see the growth of our beautiful school and to see each other again after so long. All a little older, a little busier, a little more responsible, but still at our core, the same people who fell in love with our passion for music and for the people who guided and led us at Belmont. It was like being transported back into a little precious time capsule. It was the salve my soul didn’t know it needed. I will cherish this experience forever.”
View photos from the weekend in the following galleries:
Friday Night Concert featuring returning Jazz Alumni | Gallery
Belmont University’s moot court teams traveled to Brooklyn, New York for the National Appellate Advocacy Competition (NAAC) sponsored by the American Bar Association on Feb. 16-17. The two Belmont teams competed against 32 teams from a range of schools nationwide including Wayne State, Pepperdine, Texas A&M and Seton Hall, among others.
Samantha McCaleb, named8th Best Advocate in the region, Frank Toub and Carli Tuttle were Belmont’s regional semifinalist team.
Belmont’s regional champion team consisted of Katelyn Barham, Madeline Gilmore, and Alex Schramkowski, who was named the No. 1 Best Advocate in the region for the second year in a row.
The regional champion team will travel to Washington, D.C. for the national finals in April. This is Belmont’s seventh year to compete in the NAAC competition, as well as its seventh straight year to be regional champions and advance to nationals.
“This team is the only complete team to win back-to-back regional championships,” moot court coach and Belmont College of Law faculty Amy Moore said. “This is the first year we have been able to return to in-person competitions– through it all we have grown and thrived, and I am so proud of each one of them.”
The moot court teams were supported by former champions and alumni who gave insight and advice and watched rounds. Erik Halvorson, a 2022 Belmont Law alumnus and adjunct faculty member, served as an assistant coach for the team this year.
Belmont’s Women’s History Month festivities kicked off Wednesday, March 1 with a panel event highlighting female storytellers on our campus. The national theme—“Celebrating the Women Who Tell Our Stories”— anchors the events Belmont will host throughout the month-long celebration.
Four faculty members from various areas of campus participated in a panel discussion moderated by Ileia Hook, Belmont alumna and associate vice president for strategic venues and events. The panelists discussed how they each discerned their gifts and chose a specific medium for storytelling; why storytelling is important; challenges they’ve faced and overcome; and wisdom for students. Dr. Angela Yoon opened and closed the panel with song, her primary storytelling medium.
Dr. Sybril Brown, known by all as “Dr. Syb” is in her twentieth year as a journalism professor. She enjoys storytelling through social media, oral tradition, music and conversations with strangers. Before teaching, she worked as a journalist telling others’ stories and found purpose in giving a voice to those who didn’t have one. “Storytelling has always been part of me,” she said. “I’m nosey as all get out, but I want the facts. I’m not a gossip for the sake of gossip. I want to find the truth.”
As an adult, she learned she was adopted and had to reckon with a different family history than one she had known her entire life. “For me, stories have evolved and are still evolving. It’s hard being the story and the storyteller,” she said. “The challenge is that everyone wants to tell me my story, ‘You be this, you be that.’” An overcomer, Dr. Syb is currently working on her memoir to tell her story in her own words.
Victoria Banks is a songwriting instructor in Belmont’s Curb College, in her second year of teaching. New to the classroom, she brings with her a long career as a professional songwriter, having her songs recorded by the likes of Mickey Guyton, Carly Pearce, Lauren Alaina, The Shrines, Isaac Slade (of The Fray) and many more. In addition to songwriting, she writes blogs and co-hosts the storytelling podcast, “The Table Women.”
Earning a degree in zoology, Banks said she tried to run from her calling. “I have a science side to my brain, but I found I was writing song lyrics across the margins of all my papers and exams. When I finished school where I had to choose to continue in science or pursue songwriting. I moved to Nashville—the epicenter of songwriting—and the rest is history!”
Banks said it’s been a challenge working in the music industry—specifically country music—as a female songwriter. Label executives and radio stations have acted as gatekeepers, often suppressing the female perspective in a male-dominated genre. She said navigating space between what she wants to say and what other people want to hear is always a challenge.
Even still, songwriting is inspirational because it takes an experience and looks at it from every possible angle, searching for lesson, moral, meaning and purpose. “Songs give people tools for understanding and a glimpse that we’re not alone.”
Dr. Bonnie Smith Whitehouse, known to many as “Dr. Bonnie,” is a professor of English and director of Belmont’s Global Honors Program. She primarily tells stories through writing—books, letters and prayers—and sees herself first as a story listener. “I’ve always been drawn to stories on the margins; the stories that aren’t at the center of the narrative or the center of power,” she said. “I want to tell stories that haven’t been told, the ones lurking beneath the surface.”
Whitehouse describes a liberation that comes with being the author of our own stories. “This is something I hope happens as our students move from first-year students to seniors; that by the time they walk across the graduation stage, they are authors of their lives, and don’t feel like someone else is telling them what their stories should be.” She nurtures self-authorship in others through her various books and projects, cultivating storytelling in others that she hopes trickles down generations.
Dr. Bonnie has overcome challenges in her own work, particularly learning to release chasing perfectionism. “It’s been a real spiritual journey for me in understanding that I am a child of God and I’m a work in progress. The work that I do is part of God’s creation unfolding and there’s a perfection in that.”
Dr. Angela Yoon is an assistant professor for classical voice and voice pedagogy; she tells stories through music, in both music and lyrics, and by teaching. Hearing stories of women who were trafficked, she was inspired to add voice to their stories through her gift: music. With an organization in St. Louis, she set stories of sex trafficking victims, marginalized youth, immigrants and refugees to song. The social justice concert “Songs of Hope: Unveiling Darkness” premiered at the Birmingham Museum of Art was played at Johns Hopkins and Carnegie Hall.
Yoon seeks to make hard stories easier to consume. As consumers, topics she works with can be dismissed or ignored because they’re heavy. “I help to make those stories easier to understand by creating words and harmonies and melodies to tell the story.”
The biggest challenge for Yoon has been a spiritual one. “Before I was in a place to share others’ stories, I had to heal from my own pain. The only reason I am where I am is because of God’s grace.” Faith has propelled her forward and she left students with parting words, “Love yourself; be generous and forgiving and remember this is not it for us as Christians.”
Each Monday and Wednesday morning, students from Belmont’s Music Therapy program walk to Morningside of Belmont—a retirement community just steps away from the Wilson Music Building—for music therapy sessions with residents.
Music therapy can most easily be described as “music as science,” and uses music as a clinical intervention to work towards non-musical goals. With versatile application, music therapy can address everything from managing pain to enhancing communication, increasing motivation, self-regulation, maintaining independence and more.
Recently, staff noticed a decline in attendance at Morningside’s music therapy sessions from residents with higher cognitive levels. “Our sessions were geared toward the lower end of cognition, which makes sense because we want everyone to be successful,” said Channing Shippen, Belmont music therapy instructor and clinical coordinator. “Some people need a bit more complexity to be fully engaged, so we created two separate groups.”
The Monday group applies music therapy in a traditional sense with movement-based activities and singalongs to get residents active and stimulated by the music. The Wednesday group focuses on songwriting and gives space for participants to tell their own stories. As a new faculty member, Shippen was inspired by Belmont’s strategic pathways at faculty orientation—particularly storytelling—and how the craft can daily intersect with her work in music therapy.
Between 10 and 15 residents participate in the weekly songwriting group, which highlights a different songwriter each session. Their time starts by listening to and singing songs by the featured artist that week to get the residents reminiscing about their experiences with the songwriter before moving into a group discussion.
During a time when residents share personal stories and experiences, music therapy student facilitators pull keywords and phrases from conversation and write a few verses during their discussion. Sung over an extemporaneous melody, the group has co-written an original song by the end of each session.
“We had a few residents who expressed more interest in songwriting, looking to explore it personally and more deeply, but who didn’t have an outlet to do so,” said Shippen. “Joe was one of those.”
A lifelong Middle Tennessean, Morningside resident Joe has seen Nashville transform from a sleepy suburban town to a thriving metropolis throughout his life. The therapeutic intent of Joe’s songwriting sessions was to dialogue about his 94-year relationship with this city, from him living here and observing all the changes. Each week, Joe and the students would dive into a different subject, from landmarks to universities to feelings.
Throughout seven months, Joe penned the song “It’s Not Out in the Country Anymore,” a 16-verse nod to his hometown. A retired lawyer, Joe even made sure to copyright his lyrics.
“He would come back each week with a new verse, eager for feedback,” said Shippen. “It was very collaborative, but it’s really his words. With music therapy, Joe—in a sense—had a musical goal, but that wasn’t the heart of our sessions. It was about providing an opportunity for him to feel listened to and to self-express, to challenge him cognitively and offer space for discourse and elevated conversation.”
Through Joe’s direction, the song was eventually put to music where he guided sound and notation. His dream to hear it by a live band was realized when Belmont’s Bluegrass Ensemble came to Morningside to perform the song for Joe and other residents. Described as incredibly witty and enthusiastic with a great sense of humor, Joe cares deeply and takes into consideration those around him. Shippen said he didn’t tell the other residents he wrote a song, likely because he didn’t want the accolades focused on him; he wanted the students to receive those.
Belmont Bluegrass Ensemble with Morningside of Belmont resident Joe.
Performed by a guitar, a bass, a fiddle, a banjo and three singers, Joe beamed as the Ensemble brought his song to life. “This is spectacular, and it couldn’t have been better.” he said. “This has been a real inspiration and something I planned to do my entire life and it’s finally come to fruition.”
The weekly songwriting group will likely continue for the foreseeable future, but Shippen stressed the importance of continually checking in with the people music therapists are serving. She teaches her students to ask questions often such as ‘Do my clients feel growth?’ or ‘Is this beneficial for them?’ She hopes to collaborate with more ensembles within the School of Music to bring songwriters’ songs to life in a full way, just as the Bluegrass Ensemble did with Joe.
How does one become a music therapist?
Shippen describes music therapy as one of the most complex degrees within the School of Music due to its interdisciplinary nature. Students take courses in the sciences—such as biology, anatomy and physiology, and psychology—in addition to general music courses, before diving into music therapy-specific courses. Before receiving their degree, students complete a 180-hour field experience (such as Morningside at Belmont), a 1200-hour internship and a 3-hour board certification exam.
“Further licensure depends on the state,” said Shippen. Currently in Tennessee, there is a bill in the House Health Committee that, if signed into law, will require music therapists to be licensed to practice in Tennessee. Dr. Alejandra Ferrer, assistant professor of music recently testified before the House Health Subcommittee lobbying for the bill’s passage.
Music therapists must be credentialed, but because they are not licensed in every state, credentials are not always recognized. If the Tennessee General Assembly passes the bill, required licensure would provide added job protection, and would aid in legality and insurance reimbursement. “Participation in music therapy is often based on privileges and an out-of-pocket expense,” Shippen said. “Being able to bill for insurance would increase our access for people who are really deserving.”
Find out more information on Belmont’s music therapy program by visiting www.belmont.edu/music.
Through cross-discipline collaboration, Belmont’s College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences with the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business welcomed John Carter Cash, Ana Cristina Cash and Sarah Peasall McGuffey for a panel moderated by Lacey Lamberth, Belmont alumna and adjunct English professor, on Friday, Feb. 24. The three artists discussed authentic songwriting and their respective creative processes. Students were able to ask questions following an intimate acoustic performance.
John Carter Cash—son of the late Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash—is a prolific songwriter, author, record and film producer, and recipient of five Grammy Awards.
His wife, Ana Cristina Cash, is a Cuban American singer-songwriter who holds a master’s degree in creative writing from Harvard University. In 2005, she sang the “Star Spangled Banner” for the 2005 presidential inauguration, the first Hispanic in history to do so.
Sarah Peasall McGuffey, longtime friend of John Carter Cash is an award-winning singer-songwriter who earned a Grammy for her music on the “O Brother Where Art Thou” soundtrack, which won album of the year in 2002. She owns McGuffey Music Publishing.
Sarah Peasall McGuffey
Sarah recalls meeting John Carter when she was 12 years old, and the two began working together three years later at Cash Cabin Studios. He recalls Sarah as the background vocalist he has worked with most throughout his career and produced her first album “Home to You,” which he said was one of the first professional albums he produced.
John Carter talked at length about his roots, specifically the Carter Family and the influence they had on country music. By 1939, the Carter Family was broadcasting over 500,000-watt radio stations—the most powerful in the world. While people at the time had records, radio brought country music to the world.
The relative of country music greats, John Carter shared that while he knew his family’s music, he did not fully connect with it until later in life. He describes discovering the Carter Family’s music as life-changing, which led him to produce the tribute album “The Unbroken Circle” in 2006 with the likes of Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, George Jones, Emmylou Harris, John Prine, Rosanne Cash and more. “The Carter Family became something different to me. It wasn’t just my family’s music anymore; they became my favorite band.”
The three panelists shared wisdom that propelled their careers beyond songwriting and creating music. John Carter has found inspiration from his father Johnny Cash and said fans connected with Johnny’s music because of his spirit of honesty and willingness to expose himself. Cash’s authenticity and vulnerability allowed more people to find themselves within the songs.
Ana Cristina Cash
Sarah added that artists need to develop the skill of “cultivating your soul, learning who you are and learning how to listen to others. As we become authors, writers, creatives, etc., it’s important to cultivate who we are on a ground level and understand the value and worth of every other person. With that, you’ll be able to connect on a human-to-human level, regardless of similarities or differences, which in turn will make you a better writer.”
Finally, Ana Cristiana urged students to be lifelong learners, even after their formal studies conclude. “Writing has made me very aware of the world around me, which has helped me become a better songwriter. The more knowledge you can soak in, the better it will be for your artistry.”
The three ended their time with a short writers’ round-style performance. Sarah Peasall McGuffey performed “Traveled,” John Carter Cash performed “Dragon Song,” and Ana Cristiana Cash performed “Move Along Baby,” before ending with a group performance of the Carter Family’s “Keep on the Sunny Side.”
Hope abounds as Belmont University collaborates with global partners at Bangalore Baptist Hospital to save lives at birth in India. Funded by a $40,000 grant from the Laerdal Foundation, the program will engage nursing students enrolled in nursing schools throughout India.
This project aims to provide novel culturally responsive curricula incorporating best practices in labor and delivery, newborn assessment, essential newborn care and life saving measures.
The World Health Organization identified India as having the poorest inequity score for newborn health interventions among all countries in the Southeast Asia Region. While infant mortality has improved in India over the last two decades, it still leads the world in the number of newborn deaths each year. According to the United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, India also has the highest rate of stillbirths with 32.2 stillbirths per 1000 total births per year, 23 times higher than the country with the lowest stillbirth rate in the world.
Students in India using the simulation portion of the project with the “helping babies breathe” curriculum.
Project investigators from Belmont University and Bangalore Baptist Hospital’s Institute of Nursing will design, implement and research innovative teaching and learning strategies in simulation, mobile health, virtual reality simulation and e-learning to combat this health disparity. Belmont and Bangalore Baptist Hospital will also partner with INACSL’s first Regional Interest Group in India to analyze outcomes from the project
This project exemplifies Belmont’s Aspirational Aims to equip people to solve the world’s complex problems through teaching, research and service; and to be radical champions for helping people and communities flourish.
Seven students represented the Edward C. Kennedy Center for Business Ethics at the Templeton Business Ethics Case Competition at Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, Feb. 16-17.
The Belmont team, made up of students Tessa Chew, Anna Olivier, Katie Beth Raines, Morgan Brady, Colson Kelly, Kyleigh Jehlicka and Kennedy Brady, won first place in the national competition among several notable universities including the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Penn State and Georgetown University.
Chew is a Music Business major who will graduate in May. “It is an honor to be part of the winning team for this competition,” she said. “This case gave me an opportunity to apply all that I’ve learned in college in a real-life situation. It transformed the knowledge I have attained into something tangible.”
Students representing the Belmont team stand on steps at Templeton Business Ethics Case Competition at Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, Feb. 16-17, 2023.
The competition invites undergraduate students from institutions across the nation to compete, giving them an opportunity to sharpen their analytical thinking, critical thinking and presentation skills as they develop an executive summary of their analysis of a specified case.
“These students showcased impressive professionalism during practice sessions and their preparedness allowed them to not only compete — but win against notable competition,” Dean of the Massey College of Business Dr. Sarah Fisher Gardial said. “Winning at this level shows that Belmont students are honing valuable skills that will make them stand out among employee candidate pools and lead to success in the professional world.”
This year’s case surrounded recent data detailing the increasing occurrences of workplace relationships. The Belmont team was required to research, develop, and present a Workplace Romance Policy to a hypothetical $3B corporation CEO. The development of the policy included analyzing the financial, legal, and ethical dimensions of the company while respecting employees’ confidentiality and privacy.
In the weeks leading up to the competition, the Belmont team spent upwards of 85 hours preparing. Faculty from Massey College of Business, members of the Kennedy Center Advisory Board and team members from previous years supported the team by serving as practice judges. Belmont Business faculty Dr. Barry Padgett and Tony Saunders were co-advisors and Kennedy Center Director Boyd Smith served as the coach.
“I could not be prouder of them as individuals and as a team,” Smith said. “They were fabulous ambassadors for Belmont on a high-profile stage.”
This is the sixth year the Edward C. Kennedy Center for Business Ethics team has participated. Other notable universities in the competition included Emory University, University of Calgary, Florida State, University of Florida, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Florida Gulf Coast University, Elon University and Campbell University, among others.
Fresh off performing on tour as the opening act for Panic! at the Disco and preparing to headline his own tour this spring, Belmont alumnus Jake Wesley Rogers (’18) returned to campus on Feb. 22 to talk with current students about his take on storytelling through art and music and share other insights on navigating the music industry.
Telling stories, both singular and universal, can be a tricky line to walk – even for the most esteemed of artists. The major takeaway from the fully attended Q&A event in the Johnson Large Theater was that Rogers advocates for authenticity “above all else.”
For Rogers, whose bold music is queer storytelling refracted through a universal lens, it is easier for others to connect the more niche and specific the story is. “I feel hollow when I try to make something relatable to everyone,” he said. “Be authentic to your feelings, your experience, your story.”
Rogers told the students about his journey from student to signed recording artist, a move he credits to creating authentic art and finding a manager that believed in him. He advised the students who are artists and creators to find those people who believe in them and to play live as much as possible because they’ll never know who might be there.
“We were a little clueless, but we fought for it and believed in it so hard. The best things that happened to me were because I allowed myself to be who I was, to be different. People respond to that,” he said.
“There is a level of mystery to how it will all come together – it could happen when you’re opening for someone else at The Basement like it did for me. But every good thing that has happened was because of a live performance where I embraced my uniqueness.”
Rogers said going to Belmont helped him navigate the industry by helping him connect with the right people – forming his band and finding a manager. He also enjoyed the chance to learn alongside learning the music industry, and to do so with others on a similar journey.
“My last day of class at Belmont, we all went around and said what we had learned during our time here. One girl admitted that she had a hard time for the first couple years and was so scared and didn’t even pick up her guitar. Everyone else then admitted they also had a hard time while being intimidated at first,” Rogers said. “Please, don’t wait until the last day of Belmont to talk about how weird and hard it is to be an artist. Just be open and vulnerable with it, and we can support each other in that.”
These days, Rogers just tries to focus on making good work. He talked about a Patti Smith quote that says if you do that—if you do good work—and keep your name clean, your name becomes its own currency. “And I believe that. Consistency matters. I stay zoomed in on doing good work and putting trust in letting it lead me to the next thing.”
