With lectures, round-table discussions, showcases, workshops and numerous music acts from national legends and indie up-and-comers, South by Southwest can be an overwhelming week of events for newcomers.
Thankfully for the Ohio University class of 24 media arts and studies students who will travel to the annual media gathering Tuesday, they’ll have a six-year veteran of the festival in Josh Antonuccio to guide them through the web.
“He’s a seasoned veteran,” said Leo Sideras, a senior studying audio production and business. “He really knows Austin like the back of his hand. He really knows how to prepare for it so you really get to experience it the best you can.”
Nearly 50 students applied for the class and weeklong trip, and after months of preparation and planning, the media arts students selected for the program are ready to fly to Austin.
The trip is paid for through a combination of class fees and tuition, said Antonuccio, a lecturer in music production and recording industry at OU.
However, students are still expected to pay for airline fees and certain meals, Sideras said. The fees also helped pay for business cards that students were expected to prepare. Students were also required to make a schedule and develop networking skills in advance of the trip.
The event is certainly an insider’s look at the future of the music industry.
"The emphasis here is on revenue streams in the music industry,” Antonuccio said. “All of them connect with leaders and thinkers inside of their field, whether it’s having one-on-one mentorship with someone in a studio in Nashville or going to a panel discussion, led by Russell Simmons of Def Jam, on YouTube royalties. … All of these things tie together into how people are creating music today and how that is translating into revenue.”
Sideras said they will be active from 9 a.m. to 3 a.m. the next morning to catch all the panels and music acts from Cleveland punk group Cloud Nothings to rapper Kendrick Lamar.
“At night there are basically 200 bands playing,” said Evan Sites, a junior studying audio production. “I’m really excited to see David Auburn. He’s the guy behind Blur and The Gorillaz and I was a really big fan as a kid.”
But even though the plethora of nightly music acts are a massive perk, this trip is still all about networking and gaining connections in the industry.
“All of us are trying to network as much as possible down there,” Sideras said. “There is such a wide range of professionals that are going to be down there so it will be an opportunity to expand my scope of the industry and gain a new perspective on it.”
@Wilbur_Hoffman
wh092010@ohiou.edu
