The music world was very different when the Frost School’s Music Industry program (MIND) launched 60 years ago. Analog recording has been replaced by digital productions, AM radio has given way to music streaming services, YouTube and TikTok and other platforms have vastly expanded how fans can experience the artists they love, and the systems behind the business of music are far more complex.
This year the MIND program celebrates 60 years of teaching students to succeed in a constantly and drastically changing business. But professor Serona Elton, MIND's program director and a program alumna, said they continue to thrive by staying focused on the principles that underlie how the music business works.
“The music business has changed countless times over the last six decades, yet our mission remains the same,” said Elton, who continues to maintain a successful industry career and is active in numerous music industry and related educational groups. “Teach students to see the big picture, understanding not only how individual segments of the business operate but how they work in synergy to bring music from creators to listeners and create value at every stage of that journey.”
“While some aspects of the music business change and evolve nearly constantly, other fundamental principles do not. For example, how people discover new music continues to change, but the need for music to evoke an emotional reaction that resonates with listeners and inspires engagement remains as important as ever.”
The success of MIND’s method was reaffirmed once again this week with the program’s appearance on Billboard’s list of the best college music industry programs, where it’s been included every year since Billboard began publishing the list in 2011. The magazine cited MIND’s global setting, opportunities for hands-on experience and networking and the appointment of new dean Matt Serletic, a Frost School alumnus and highly successful producer, songwriter, and music industry and technology executive.
MIND is the oldest program on the Billboard list and the second oldest in the United States. Yet longevity is only one measure of the program’s success.
“There's a difference between being first and staying relevant,” said Elton. “Frost's Music Industry program has done both. As we celebrate 60 years, we're proud not only of our history but of the fact that we've continued to earn recognition among the nation's top music business and industry programs year after year. That consistency reflects the strength of our faculty, curriculum, industry relationships and alumni network. It proves that our approach is working.”
MIND will celebrate its anniversary throughout the school year. Efforts include expanding its regular guest speaker series of music industry executives with more MIND alumni speakers, including Andres Sandoval, senior manager for Latin music strategic partnerships & business development at Apple, and Rell Lafargue, president and chief operating officer of Reservoir Media Management.
Elton is organizing new alumni get-togethers in New York City, Nashville and Miami, as well as reprising the Frost School alumni gathering during GRAMMY Week in February in Los Angeles, with an emphasis on MIND graduates. Associate professor Guillermo Page is creating a timeline of the program’s milestones, documenting its history and achievements, which will be published on its website.
The MIND program typically has 80 to 100 undergraduate and 10 to 20 master’s students on campus, and 25 to 35 students getting master’s degrees in Music Industry through Frost Online. (The online offerings also include five graduate certificates in areas such as Music Rights Administration and Licensing and Legal Aspects of the Music Business.) In addition, the Frost School and the University of Miami School of Law offer a joint degree program in which students earn a combined Juris Doctor and master’s degree.
Among MIND’s strengths is its ability to adapt to changing industry practices, said Elton. “We figured out long ago that the key to doing this is to build a broad and flexible curriculum where course content can be updated regularly to reflect today's changes and those on the horizon. We do this by aligning our course titles and short descriptions with core areas of activity, such as music publishing, the recorded music business and music copyright, rather than the latest trend, such as how artists are using TikTok.”
Another strength of the MIND program cited by Billboard is its focus on giving students practical experience, whether with student-run enterprises like ‘Cane Records and Cat 5 Music, or an extensive internship program that allows students to gain invaluable experience in every sector of the music business, including artist management, record labels, music publishing, the concert business and more.
“We encourage and enable students to reinforce classroom concepts through real-world experience,” Elton said. “The music industry is relationship-driven, fast-moving and highly practical, so it is important for students not only to learn how the business works, but to see it in action.”
“What makes these opportunities especially valuable is that they help students connect the dots across the music ecosystem. By the time they graduate, they have not only developed knowledge of the industry, but also practical experience, professional networks and a deeper understanding of how the various parts of the business work together.”
Those 60 years of history don’t just give the MIND program a powerful foundation but a vision for what comes next.
“We believe the best way to prepare students for the future is to help them understand the full evolution of the music ecosystem,” said Elton. “How it worked in the past, how it functions today and how it may evolve tomorrow.”
