US council launches Spotify-sponsored black exec programme

Sponsored by Spotify, the four-month initiative is designed to help black music professionals better navigate their careers. It is aimed at execs with five to 15 years of experience in the music industry including sound technicians, studio managers, marketing specialists, brand managers, producers, and more.

The programme will run from 1 September to 9 December and is limited to 60 participants.

Each participant will be assigned an executive coach who has been certified by the International Coaching Federation. The coaches will provide up to eight hours of individual support and help participants translate their Levels insights and strategies into tactics and outcomes tailored for their specific work environment.

The programme will equip participants with the knowledge to create a five-year blueprint for professional development and will design “promotion packages” for their next two advancement opportunities. Participants will be shown how to turn insights and strategies into actionable tactics and behaviour, develop data-based insights, and learn to identify high-value career advancement strategies and tactics from black music professionals.

The ELC says institute for leadership development and research aims to strengthen the talent pipeline of black leaders, providing top-rate leadership programmes that focus on individual growth at different career levels.

“In 1987, the NAACP [National Association for the Advancement of Colored People] published a report outlining the ‘rampant’ racial discrimination that existed at every level of the music industry,” the ELC said. “In June of 2021, a USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative report found that just 4.2% of top music industry executives are black. Also in June of 2021, the Black Music Action Coalition released their music industry report card, which noted how the promises made by music companies in response to the extra judicious murder of George Floyd and the social justice reckoning that ensued have yielded little in results; the report describes a continuous cycle of progress and regression within the industry.”