(NARAS) The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (Entertainment Business)

I would like to talk with you about The Recording Academy also known for the Annual GRAMMY Awards.

We will be talking about another area of The Recording Academy called GRAMMY U. This program is designed to help students get connected at an early age with the entertainment world by educating the youth about the academy and the multiple different areas of recording. Being apart of the academy has been a huge success for me. I am no longer a GRAMMY U student but have moved up to a Voting Member.

It’s important to network and be apart of something bigger than yourself. Looking back on the many journeys I have been apart of I couldn’t see my life in regards to the entertainment world being any different. I have met some of the most notable and promising celebrities in the world. Of course this started at such an early age for me being 16 and hanging out backstage with none other than Mr. B.B. King himself.

Becoming apart of the industry has separated me from the crowd. GRAMMY U has opened so many wonderful doors for me to walk through.

I remember loading the Josh Abbot Band trailer and getting to mingle with the group all day during sound check and even got to have a drink with them (Root Beer). In fact, on that same day at SXSW I also got to assist the new and upcoming star Gary Clark Jr..

Lets keep in mind that this volunteer work would only be optional for GRAMMY U students. Even though I would sometimes make long morning drives from my studio in Dallas TX to Austin for SXSW to assist many wonderful artist over the past few years I believe it was worth it.

I hope you have all liked the read.

Until next post, Joshua Knight

Thomas Dolby: “Love Is a Loaded Pistol” (Business Storytelling)

 I would like to take a moment and discuss the possibilities of performance with a story. Many artists of all kinds capture the audience very well but do they show their vision and place a strong mindset or imagery for the listener? I would like to share this short 4-minute video with you about Mr. Dolby. His inspiration can be shown here along with his strong ability to entertain the audience. Pay attention to how he captures the crowd. We can all take lessons here. Click here to view Mr. Dolby's website.

How amazing is it to hear a song that is set up by a story. I came across this song from TED.com when Mr. Dolby captures the crowd from the idea of writing a song from his boat the Nutmeg. He explains how he rarely plays songs of his own because there wasn’t any. His conversation started out talking about this project of restoring the Nutmeg and how if the polar ice caps where to melt his boat would rise up like an ark. This boat is where his recording creation station lies. What amazing humor and creativity from Mr. Dolby.

Setting up this story for the song by leading us into his life and existence of the Nutmeg is a clever way to help others understand how to tell a story. He talks about the solar panel/turbine this boat is being electrified with and how he stays up into the early morning writing new songs. Mr. Dolby has inspired me to look deeper within myself to create ideas and capture the story by using humor and creativity. Images are a wonderful thing when explaining an idea or song. What a wonderful and humorous listen. Thank you Mr. Dolby for the wonderful song. I really liked how you set us up on your vision before the performance.