Chicago Professor Teaches The Business Side Of Music Industry
What do music management executives have in common that musicians may not? Higher pay.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, agents and business managers of artists can make up to $56.18 per hour. Advertising and promotions managers earn approximately $55.65 per hour. Entertainment producers and directors make about $34.31 per hour, and musicians make about $23.50 per hour.
Minus superstar musicians who climb their way up a Forbes list, there's one noticeable pattern dividing the first few entertainment professions from the latter one: a bachelor's degree.
For a business management degree owner who still has that itch to create music, there is no rule saying they can't. Just ask Assistant Professor Justin Sinkovich who works in the Business & Entrepreneurship Dept. at Columbia College, who also owns music site Epitonic and runs a small record label called File 13.
"I wanted to perform and tour all over the world and produce," said Sinkovich. "I still produce records. I'm actually a voting member of the Grammy Academy as a producer and engineer."
But even after being in a band, learning how to play several guitars and working on the engineering side of production, he still remained curious about the business side of the industry.
"Even from a young age I was taught and understood the importance of the business aspect. As I continued to produce music and perform, I gravitated more towards the business side and getting involved in a variety of projects, whether it's entrepreneurial projects and tech start-ups in music and media or working for other companies. I still try to strike a balance between the two. It's healthy to have a perspective on the creative and the professional side."
Sinkovich holds a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and a master's degree in Arts Management from Columbia College. With his guidance, students take a Digital Distribution and Promotion agency course to learn the behind-the-scenes look at music from a business perspective.
"There are so many emerging or less visible career paths within these industries that people just don't think of, and it often takes courses and programs to articulate these. I think that there's often a misconception of what job opportunities exist versus the reality."
While he coaxes business management and aspiring musicians to "remain intellectually curious," Sinkovich puts his plan into action every day as an instructor and a musician at heart.
Shamontiel L. Vaughn is a professional journalist who has work featured in AXS, Yahoo!, Chicago Defender and Chicago Tribune. She's been an Examiner since 2009 and currently writes about 10 categories on Examiner.com.
