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Author: Ryan Anderson '19 Working both as a General Manager and A&R consultant for Blue Hawk Records this semester has been a rewarding experience to say the least! It all happens in the classroom. The energy from the students has been radiant, and much more prevalent than last year. We cover it all, from graphic design, to organizing a street team, and coordinating a digital marketing strategy. We also have a phenomenal teacher who pushes us in the right direction while giving us space to do what we do best. The Applied Industry III class chooses and prepares artists for Lakehouse Recording Studios by self-producing their demos with Blue Hawk Studio on campus. This extra preparation sets them up for success when it's their time to record in the state-of-the-art studio. This studio is extremely well-known in the area, has an incredible collection of equipment accessible for our use, and is even where Lorde has recorded in the past.  Once we have completed the recording process with all the chosen Monmouth University artists, we have the final cd's pressed for physical sale, and also organize their digital distribution. At the end of the semester, we run on and off-campus shows where the semester's artists are showcased and we can promote our merchandise and discography.
Being a part of Blue Hawk has been great. I love working one-on-one with artists, as well as working on marketing and overseeing all the different aspects that make "Volume 11" such an anticipated release.
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Author: Mark Rodriguez '20 Over the past few weeks, I have had the wonderful experience of bringing our Volume 11 artists to Monmouth's on-campus radio station, WMCX (88.9 FM). Every Wednesday night from 10-12pm, Blue Hawk Records takes over the campus radio station for our own segment, "Blue Hawk Talk". Our great collective of singers and bands for this upcoming compilation are constantly preparing for recording and performing. In fact, many of the artists have already gone to the studio to record their tracks this semester. However, these radio shows allow our audience to see a different side of these artists. Not only musicians, these charismatic people also like to talk and have fun. I’ve started incorporating more talk-show elements into the show since the beginning of this season. For example, my new “rapid-fire“ question segment has been a hit so far with the guests. These range from opinion questions about music and arts, to silly questions such as “what’s your favorite type of cheese?” My favorite part of running this show is the opportunity I get to pick the artist’s brains on all these different topics.
Our artists and I have also been collaborating on making their own “artist picks” Spotify playlists which get played live on-air. Each artist has had a different feel to their playlist, from Malibu’s Alternative-Rock hit-focused playlist to Jacke Tripp’s modern Hip-Hop and R&B collection. This allows for our show to appeal to a wider demographic of music listeners and hopefully make more people fans of Blue Hawk Records. Each artist also plays one or two songs live on air, including each artist’s original song for the compilation in production. Listeners caught a live rendition of The Nooks’ “Bulldog’s Cage” and Tim DiDomenico’s “Random Words” on the show in October. The talk show is a ton of fun, and we are going to have our final artist, Kristen Wilczewski, on during the month of November Keep tuning in every Wednesday night from 10-12pm, folks! Click the WMCX logo below to go to their website where you can listen to the live broadcast. Don't be afraid to call in either! Drop us a line at 732-571-3493.  Author: Rachel Disipio '20 Students from various majors made their way over to Woods Theatre last Wednesday, Sept. 11, where Monmouth University’s Music Industry III class held open auditions for aspiring artists and bands to be a part of Blue Hawk Record’s eleventh compilation album. This semester's auditions had one of the biggest turnouts to date, with almost 20 artists in attendance. So much talent came through the doors, but in the end, only 5 artists were chosen to be featured on the compilation album, on track to release December 6th. After extensive deliberation, the managers of this Blue Hawk Release hand-picked just five artists and bands who brought an abundance of musical talent and uniqueness to the table. A lot of young talent proved themselves during audition process. Jacke Tripp, Kristen Wilczewski, and band that call themselves Malibu, are all freshmen students at Monmouth University. The final two artists on the album are Junior Tim DiDomenico, and returning Blue Hawk veterans, The Nooks.  The Nooks will be recording their song, “Bulldog’s Cage” for Volume 11 once again at Lakehouse Recording Studios in Asbury Park. The studio is a state of the art facility that has worked with large names in the industry like Lorde and NJ natives, The Front Bottoms. Lead singer of The Nooks Amanda McTigue said, “We are so gracious for the opportunity to be a part of another Blue Hawk Records compilation album.” Olivia Rohlfs, a Senior who plays ukulele, bass, and provides backup vocals for the band, continued, “We plan to make the most out of this experience just as we did last year. It’s really going to be a great record.”
Guiding the Music Industry III class along with the album release is Department Chair, Joe Rapolla, who has taught the course a number of times since he began teaching at Monmouth University in 2013. “I have so many expectations for this Music Industry III class. My goal is for the students to apply what they learned and experienced last semester when we created our tenth compilation album Hang Ten and take it to a whole other level while innovating and incorporating new ideas. The music industry is always evolving, and it’s doing so in such a dynamic way. We take the information the industry gives us and integrate it into everything we do,” Rapolla said. The industry class is busy preparing for the upcoming weeks filled with promotion, recording, and marketing. Blue Hawk Records plans on having several promotional shows throughout the semester in addition to an official album release show on December 6th in the Rebecca Stafford Student Center from 2:45-4:30! You won't want to miss this. |
Authors:Various students behind the operation of Blue Hawk Records! Editor:
Olivia Rohlfs '18
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