November 14, 2024, the Recording Academy presented the 25th annual Latin GRAMMY Awards, and several University of Miami students were in attendance. For only the third time in the award show’s history, the Latin Grammys were hosted in Miami, Florida. Artists, musicians, and producers from across the world gathered at the Kaseya Center in downtown Miami to celebrate the history, origin, and production of Latin music.
Adyna Blair Silverberg, a junior from Montville, New Jersey, majoring in Music Industry with minors in Creative American Music and Communications, is the Florida Chapter representative for GRAMMY U. This organization within the Recording Academy works to connect and mentor the future of the world’s music industry. Her job is to connect students in South Florida to GRAMMY U mentors, so students can learn from professionals within the Recording Academy. “We throw a lot of networking events for students who want to pursue a career in the industry. We did a virtual event recently, where two mentors, who are performers, got to speak on their experience in the industry,” said Silverberg. GRAMMY U has connected thousands of aspiring music professionals with mentors across the country and Silverberg herself has been able to connect dozens of her fellow Frost School of Music students as well.
Silverberg’s role with GRAMMY U had her attending and working events associated with the Recording Academy during the week leading up to the awards. The first event was the Leading Ladies event that featured four music industry professionals that were being highlighted at the awards. “It was technically my first day on the job and I was a little nervous, but I got to interview two people on the red carpet and then, I went to the showcase where I worked on the social media content for GRAMMY U,” said Silverberg. Each event gave her a unique opportunity to interact with a variety of professionals in the music world like performers, producers, and songwriters. “Tuesdays event was the Best New Artist Nominee Showcase. That was probably my favorite day because I got to interview almost all of the nominees,” mentioned Silverberg. Along with Leading Ladies and the Best New Artist Nominee Showcase, Silverberg also had a key role at the Person of the Year event, where she captured the night through interview spotlights, ‘fit check’ videos, and Tik Tok content.
Because of Silverberg’s role with GRAMMY U, she was able to invite a plus one and she immediately thought of Dawson Fuss, a senior at the Frost School of Music in the Modern Artist Developmemt and Entrepreneurship (MADE) program. Fuss and Silverberg first began working with one another through 'Cane Records, the on-campus record label, when Silverberg was Fuss’ manager. Along with Fuss and Silverberg, there were three other Frost students in attendance and many others who volunteered through GRAMMY U as a talent escort. The ambition from Frost students to get to work and meet in a professional environment, such that of the Recording Academy, has led to great unity and success amongst the students within the School of Music. “It is really cool that everyone wants to share their opportunity and knowledge with one another, no one really gatekeeps anything, and I am really grateful for that. By Adyna getting opportunities and pursuing her career she was able to invite me, and I am able to meet people and network,” said Fuss.
It is a life goal for Fuss to be a grammy nominee. “As an artist and a performer, it is really inspiring to be able to attend something like the Latin Grammys because the idea of hopefully being invited to an award show as a nominee is really exciting. It was very motivating to see all these people doing what I want to do and seeing they are real people, not robots behind a screen; it was motivating to realize ‘oh it is achievable, if they can do it, I can do it too,” stated Fuss. Fuss has been releasing music since high school and has worked tirelessly promoting his songwriting, music, and brand. Reflecting on the evening, Fuss mentioned how exciting it was to see everything he grew up watching, and striving toward, come to life, “I had never been to anything like an award show, so I was curious to see how it all went down. There was so much involved, so many people. I was kind of sitting there in awe how they were able to pull it off.”
Throughout the past three years at UM, both Fuss and Silverberg have been involved in a variety of organizations that have helped them gain experience and work with others in a professional setting. When asked to reflect on the week and the many opportunities Silverberg has earned through her college career, she said, “I have an overwhelming feeling of gratitude and I just can't believe how much I’ve accomplished. It just feels so good to work so hard for something and then experience and see the reward.” Students at the Frost School of Music are breaking into a business that is already exclusive in of itself. Adyna and Dawson are just one example of the many talented individuals that make up the Frost community and use their admiration and passion for music and art to reach their dreams. It is incredible to see the opportunities and growth students at Frost achieve in their time at UM and beyond.
