PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Jamel Burgess, Assistant Director of Social Impact Programs at Carnegie Hall
0:57:14
ยท
159 sec
Jamel Burgess presented testimony about Carnegie Hall's youth program, the B-Side, which aims to promote careers in arts and culture for New Yorkers ages 14 to 22. The program focuses on developing understanding of the music business, providing hands-on experience, and fostering networking opportunities in the music industry.
- The B-Side program will work with 65 participants from across New York City this season.
- The program addresses the lack of diversity in the music industry by prioritizing BIPOC youth and those impacted by the justice system.
- Carnegie Hall provides stipends, food, and metro cards to ensure accessibility for all participants.
Jamel Burgess
0:57:14
Good morning, chair Rivera, members of the committee.
0:57:17
My name is Jamelle Burgess.
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I am the assistant director of social impact programs at Carnegie Hall.
0:57:22
With me here today is Ayanna, David, Ian, and Dimitri, who you'll get to hear from shortly.
0:57:28
We are glad that Carnegie is prioritizing or that the council is prioritizing the workforce development and grateful for the opportunity to testify, about Carnegie's Hall youth program, the b side.
0:57:40
And, also, thanks to the chair and to the commissioner for highlighting the b side earlier.
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The purpose of the b side is to promote careers in arts and culture in New York and to foster the next generation of innovative music industry leaders by helping New Yorkers ages 14 to 22 achieve the following, developing an understanding of the music business and the roles of music labels, cultivating decision making and navigating professional scenarios, gaining hands on experience, to understanding how the music industry operates, and build a network of industry professionals and their peers and applying the knowledge gained in their careers.
0:58:15
Over the course of this year's season, the b side will work with 65 participant the 65 participants from across New York City.
0:58:22
They will engage in week long intensive seminars followed by biweekly workshops implemented by Carnegie Hall, team, our teaching artists, and guest faculty experts from the field.
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Students learn different career paths throughout the music industry, engage in conversations with experts, take field trips to recording studios, record labels, and other professional settings, and of course, attend concerts at Carnegie Hall.
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The BSAT aims to address the lack of diversity in the business side of the music industry by encouraging participants from young people to that traditionally are underrepresented in the field, particularly BIPOC youth.
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We are proud to say that BSIDE is a part of speaker Adam's innovative criminal justice initiative and outreach prioritizes communities that are impacted by the justice system.
0:59:07
In addition, our collaborations with partners like ACS and community board organizations that work with youth that are just justice impacted.
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To promote access to this program, the b side is free to participants, and Carnegie Hall provides stipends, food, and metro cards for all young people who are participating in our program.
0:59:26
In b side, we acknowledge that the business learning opportunities are few and far between and usually costly, and these programs are are usually not represented by young people from the communities we serve.
0:59:37
The BSOD seeks to open the door for the creative economy for youth who are often denied these career paths.
0:59:42
We thank the committee for your interest and investment in these programs, and we encourage the council to continue to support the important work that other programs by our cultural colleagues across the city are doing.
0:59:51
Thank you for allowing me to testify today.