2012
Where are you from? 
I’m from a little village called Shere just outside of Guildford in Surrey.
What's your favourite music?
I listen to all types of music and will listen to anything once. I have a particular love for singer/songwriters and folk/indie music such as Laura Marling, Daughter, Fionn Regan and Frightened Rabbit.
Why did you choose the course?
I have always had an interest in music. I studied music at college and performed as a solo artist around the south during my gap year, I still find time to perform occasionally now. In September 2009 I put on a charity event in Guildford to raise money for Macmillan, in memory of my Nan and Grandad who I had both recently lost to cancer. The event was a huge success and I raised over £300 for Macmillan. I had been thinking of going to University for a while and the success of the event spurred me to find a course that was based around events and music.
The Music Promotion course was the perfect course, as it covered promotion of events, the marketing side of the industry and even the opportunity to put on your own events, it appealed to me straight away.
Best bits about the course?
There have been lots of best bits of the course, particularly I have enjoyed my option unit in the 2nd year, Pop, Politics and Protest which led me to research into the music of Bob Dylan and explore some of the deeper meanings in his songs and how they relate directly to historic moments in his life. Another highlight of my 2nd year has been co-ordinating an event as part of the Event Marketing and Management unit.
Three course-mates and I put on three gigs in one day in unusual locations around the city. We also live-streamed them onto the internet and filmed them in HD quality. We called the event Soton Unstaged as all the venues were slightly un-conventional, with the final gig being held in an old castle vault. We also secured an interview with BBC radio on Phil Jackson’s new music show. I was interviewed about the event and he featured our event on his show. It was really exciting as we all got to go to the BBC studios, which made us feel very important. It was really good to put all of our theory that we had studied into practise and put on our own event. (Below- a couple of photos from Soton Unstaged at Quilters Vault and the Oxfam Music Store).
Work experience?
We are always being told how important it is to have lots of experience when studying any degree and with Music Promotion this is especially true. From the first year there are opportunities to work with local venues, promoters and even festivals.
In my first year I was lucky enough to be chosen for a work placement at Camp Bestival along with another course-mate. We spent the weekend working with the Artist Liaison team setting up dressing rooms for just about everyone including Madness, Ellie Goulding and Example. We also got to see a lot of the festival site, being sent off to other stages to drop more supplies off or to find an act that had got lost. It wasn’t all work though as we did get some time to go and see some artists play, we managed to catch an acoustic set from Stornoway who were randomly playing at the Rough Trade stand. It was a great experience and has led me to want to be more involved in festivals, possibly even considering a career in them.
I have also been involved in local festival EjectorSeat who have been very keen to work with students and build a link with them, for the last two festivals I have promoted it through both local and national radio. The experience and references I have gained from my work experience has helped me to get further work at festivals over the summer and expanded my contacts.
Best thing(s) you've done so far while at SSU and why?
There are so many societies to join at Solent and I joined the student radio station, Radio Sonar in my first year. I presented a rock/alternative show with one of my course-mates and we had such a great time, even getting to interview Frank Turner. The station runs trips to the national student conferences each year and we went to Nottingham Trent University last March which was incredible, we met presenters from Radio1 including Scott Mills and I even got to enter a voice-over competition in which I made it to the finals.
I now present a folk/show on my own and have been the stations Head of Events for the last year, where I have put on members nights in Unit, Orange Rooms and the Student Union. Being part of the management team has also meant I have had a part in station decisions and I was part of a team that formed the stations constitution. Presenting my own show has also meant I have gained a lot of contacts in the music industry, managers and artists are always happy to send you free music and sometimes will even put you on the guest-list for gigs.
There are so many things to get involved with at Solent and each one I have been part of so far has been really rewarding and relevant to my course or a possible career path.