Starting point: GRAMMYU

It was not a hard decision to make when I thought about of which trade associations I would pursue. Being an active seeker and sometimes participator in the happenings of the music industry, I had a list of organizations that I already monitored. The various benefits of these trade associations are not always exclusive to its members. For example, some associations have industry-related programs which involve supporting changes to legislation or educating the community. I joined GrammyU, a network created by The Recording Academy, so that I could learn more about the current trends, regulations, and developments influencing the music industry. So far, the most valuable benefit of my membership with GrammyU is the networking opportunities made available.

By providing musical performance opportunities, networking, and educational programs, GrammyU prepares members for careers in the recording industry. GrammyU has chapters all over the United States and caters to university students. The Florida Chapter, based in Miami, Fl, holds networking events each month located in different cities throughout the state. The first GRAMMYU meet-and-greet that I have attended was in Tampa. The event gave me an opportunity to introduce myself to other participating members of GrammyU, prospective members, as well as several current members of The Recording Academy.

Recognizing the achievements of industry professionals is what most people think of when they hear of the association. The Recording Academy’s members include producers, singers, songwriters, managers and many other professionals within the industry. Other than producing the GRAMMY Awards, The Recording Academy also established the GRAMMY Foundation, MusiCares, and GRAMMY’s on the Hill. The Recording Academy helps amplify the voice of the professionals in the music industry when adjustments to legislation are needed. Preserving the integrity of the industry and cultivating the talented minds that are the current and future members of the music community are the primary goals of the association. Of all the trade organizations to choose from today in the music industry, a membership with The Recording Academy was a good place for me to begin.

Chimamanda and the Single Story

We have all heard stories before. When we think of places unknown it is easy for us to revert to only what we have been told. Sometimes what we have been told merely describes only one shade of the vast colors in a landscape. We could not know otherwise and therefore we have fallen victim of a single story. A landscape of people and places go misunderstood with a palette incomplete. The danger of the single story is what Chimamanda Adichie spoke about at the TED convention in 2009.

A Nigerian native, Adichie is a novelist who warns of the misunderstandings that come when limited information is known about a people or place. Adichie has been victim to both sides of the single story. She tells of the undeniable shame felt when realizing that her conception has been wildly incomplete at times when the single story engulfed her view. Conversely, the same narrow mind, single-colored palette, she used on others was the very same used to illustrate her. For Africa is full of color, people, ideas, ambition, and life but some of us only see a dark shade of catastrophe, poverty and disease.


I have felt the shame of which Adichie spoke. It has been easy to hear and believe just one idea. The challenge is to believe that there is more to know, accept ignorance and have an open mind. Adichie’s speech inspires me to take on that challenge. The great stories are often the ones that teach and inspire us. Chimamanda Adichie is a storyteller who has done just that. I am often eager to learn more of people and places that I have previously known little for I do not want to continue as another victim of the single story.


Take a minute to listen to the story that has inspired me.