On this page, you can find the Culminating Experience (CE) Projects for all graduate students from the Berklee College of Music master’s program Global Entertainment and Music Business (GEMB) from 2015 – present. Click on any title for more information and access to the full paper and other deliverables (if available).
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Radiography of the Czech Music Market: issues, challenges and potential solutions
Anežka Pokorná
2025This research paper examines the current state of the music industry in Czechia, with a focus on the working conditions of professional musicians and music policies. It identifies the main structural, legal, and economic challenges of the industry, and proposes potential solutions, as well as good practices from abroad. The research uses a qualitative method approach with descriptive data, combining semi-structured interviews with industry stakeholders and a survey conducted among music professionals. The findings highlight issues such as financial insecurity, the complexity of freelance work, lack of access to social protection, limited market infrastructure, and the absence of reliable data of the independent sector. In addition to providing data and analysis, this paper also serves as a contribution to lobbying for music and culture as an investment, not only for their artistic value, but also for their social and economic impact. Furthermore, the paper argues that the music industry should not be seen as a collection of isolated problems, but rather as a complex music ecosystem, a living network of artists, institutions, policies, audiences, and funding systems. By presenting both lived experiences and policy insights, it hopes to support ongoing discussions and strengthen the recognition of music as an essential part of a healthy society.
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Disrupción Records: The Collegiate Recording Industry Association
Rebecca Ramaker
2025Disrupción Records is an independent record label affiliated with Berklee València. Established in 2014, this structure is distinguished by its rotating management, comprised of students from the Global Entertainment and Music Business master’s program. Each year, a new cohort of students takes on the management roles. Disrupción Records consistently adapts its internal structure to meet the needs of artists and audiences. Therefore, the division of responsibilities shifts annually. This year I was the head of CRIA: The Collegiate Recording Industry Assocation. Founded at the campus of Berklee Valencia, CRIA is a trade body that aims to provide knowledge, connection and develop best practices around college record labels in Europe and North America. This year marks the first year that CRIA was a separate role on the management team at Disrupción Records. In my role I have done research on existing college record labels, trade bodies in the recording industry and trade bodies specifically aimed at students in other fields of the arts. I established connections with new college record labels.
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Business Plan: STUDIO CUPID
David van der Linde
2025This project presents a business plan for STU.PID, a branded livestreaming platform built to support emerging global artists by connecting them with Gen Z audiences, especially Third Culture Kids (TCKs) through casual and real-time content. The idea was to offer something different from traditional artist promotion by focusing on unscripted formats that show the creative process as it really is. Content included livestreamed interviews (STU.TALKS), collaborative music making (THE COOK-UP), and on the ground segments (STU.PID IN PUBLIC), all designed to bring artists and fans closer together. The platform emphasized strong visual identity and consistent content across Twitch and Instagram. While the audience response was encouraging, the original monetization plan using Twitch subscriptions did not prove effective. Feedback suggested that brand partnerships and artist campaigns may be a more sustainable path forward. The project clarified key strengths in creative direction, live content production, and digital strategy. It also demonstrated that there is long-term potential for STU.PID to grow either as its own platform or as a creative service for artists, labels, and partners in the music industry.
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Head of Legal and Business Affairs at Disrupción Records
Lok Ming Wen
2025As my culminating experience project, I served as Head of Legal and Business Affairs at Disrupción Records, a student-run label at Berklee Valencia. In this role, I oversaw the legal and financial operations across the label’s imprints and its roster. My responsibilities included drafting, revising, and managing artist agreements, licensing deals, and termination requests, as well as supporting negotiations with artists and external stakeholders. I also created tools such as deal memos and tracking systems to streamline internal processes. On the business side, I contributed to the label’s royalties management, profitability, budgeting and financial reporting to ensure transparency and sustainability. This experience allowed me to apply my knowledge in a real-world label setting, enhance my understanding of the artist–label relationship, and gain hands-on experience in rights management and contract negotiation. It has also deepened my interest in fair music industry practices in emerging markets, particularly in Asia, which I intend to explore further in my professional journey.
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Disrupción Records - Head of Distribution, Production, and New Business
Jalen Wise
2025As Head of Distribution, Production, and New Business for Disrupción Records, I held cross-functional responsibilities spanning digital song uploads, live and virtual event programming, and day-to-day business operations. I worked closely with The Orchard to distribute our music catalog and establish strategic release timelines. I also led outreach to identify new business opportunities and successfully programmed eight unique showcases and industry events throughout the academic year. Highlights included a Women’s History Month interview with legendary publicist Yvette Noel Schure and our End-of-Year Showcase. In this role, I collaborated with seven peers across different departments to manage label operations. This experience greatly strengthened my leadership, organization, and industry networking skills, ultimately helping me secure an internship at Audiomack.
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Silkwind Media Marketing agency in China
Merida Ablat
2024This paper describes the background, goals, actionable tasks, execution, and challenges of the SilkWind Media. Initially conceived as a Silk Road album connecting artists in Central Asia, the focus shifted to establishing an agency to support international artists in building social media presence in China. The purpose of this Culminating Experience project was to create a business plan and build our capabilities as a cultural connector and event promoter while creating meaningful opportunities for cross-cultural exchange and economic growth. Key tasks included developing a business plan, conducting market research, financial planning, and establishing strategic partnerships with local influencers and digital platforms. Over the course of a few months, our understanding of both Western and Chinese culture deepened, allowing us to effectively adapt content for local audiences. This experience not only enhanced our professional skills, but also strengthened our commitment to promoting global artistic collaboration. We hope that SilkWind Media will continue to bridge cultural gaps and support artists in reaching new audiences.
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For the Love of Art: Orchestral Touring - An analysis of longevity, relevancy, and sustainability of orchestras and orchestral touring in the 21st century.
Scarlet Baker
2024For over one hundred years, orchestras around the world have conducted national and international tours, becoming a staple in the live classical music scene. Over this period, touring has been a consistent and integral part of an orchestra’s activities, evolving from its original purpose of sharing an orchestra’s sound to reach new audiences and increase ticket sales to becoming a platform with which to engage international communities, present artistic projects, increase the notoriety of an ensemble, and to foster humanitarian connections across the globe. Supporting such tours is a costly endeavor, asking orchestras worldwide to balance delicate financial structures against the costs of artistic projects. For some time, no orchestra has been able to cover the cost of its activities with ticket sales alone, and over time, the cost of producing art increases. Concurrently, statistics regarding orchestras and the performing arts sector continue to trend downwards worldwide, with audience engagement declining, reductions in subscription sales, cuts to government funding supporting education and organizational support, and contributed support fluctuating unpredictably. Nevertheless, orchestras embark on tours despite precarious financial conditions year after year. This project seeks to explore the rationale behind touring in such an environment, define the why’s and how’s of orchestra’s touring motives, compare and contrast the condition of organizational health in the United States and European region, determine if touring is a sustainable practice that will continue into the future, and identify overall challenges to orchestras and touring with suggestions for solutions.
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How Can Emerging Artists Benefit from the Superfan Trend? Approaches to Unlocking the Superfan
Julius Barriteau
2024Check the press releases for any major music label in 2024. One priority that will surely be listed in any report or article will be how to monetize superfans. Looking back at the last 30 years of recorded music revenue, we see that even though the current streaming age has rescued the industry from the early 2000s' P2P crisis, recorded music revenues today, led largely by streaming, are still far behind their early 21st-century peak when adjusted for inflation. Additionally, music revenues as a whole are increasingly becoming a smaller share of total entertainment spread, having peaked back in 1998. These realities aren't pretty for the recorded music sector, which begs the question: How can we fix this? Major record labels are looking at superfans as one of the ways to fix this problem. The idea: capitalize on artists’ existing network of superfans for opportunities to upsell and drive more revenue into music industry pockets. Given the current state of the music ecosystem and the untapped potential of the droves of fans that are looking for new ways to engage with their favorite artists, this solution is a potential win-win-win for major labels, their biggest artists, and their diehard fans. The question is: how does this model actually work for artists of all shapes and sizes? How can an emerging artist benefit from the superfan value proposition?
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HOW DOES THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A STRONG BRAND IDENTITY CONTRIBUTE TO THE CULTIVATION OF A SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY?
Telma Benhamou Schriqui
2024This research paper explores the interplay between visual aesthetics, community engagement, and branding strategies within the music industry, examining how these factors contribute to an artist's success. The study first discusses brand identity, pivotal visual components, and fan engagement. Subsequently, it presents a case study centred on the multifaceted artist Tyler, the Creator. Through examining his discography spanning four distinct phases, the author discusses how the artist translates his identities and personalities into visually compelling forms, including album artwork, music video conceptualisation, and fashion brands, highlighting key factors that have led to his success. Lastly, the influence of the visuals explored in that previous section is supported by curated data analysis taken from streaming and social platforms to demonstrate the impact of Tyler, The Creator’s identity on his community evolution and engagement.
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Production Manager / Concert Producer - INOCON 2024
Aanya Bhatia
2024As Concert Producer for INOCON, my primary tasks were to build and manage artists relations, oversee production and technical requirements of the performances (with the Berklee Production Team) and to organise deadlines and schedules. Being experienced in the field of performance and event production, this seemed like a good opportunity for me to build on these pre-existing skills and leverage them in a very unique atmosphere. This project has instilled amazing skills in me - patience and quick thinking - to name a few. It was also a good opportunity for me to understand the power of teamwork and work with people from very different backgrounds. The diversity of our executive team, supervisors and every participant significantly added to my experience working on this project and at Berklee.
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The Missed Potential of Neighbouring Rights Collection in Luxembourg: A Comprehensive Study of Perspectives
Tun Biever
2024Luxembourg, the host of the ECJ, violates the statutory rights of performers and record producers by failing to enforce domestic collective management of neighbouring rights. Consequently, Luxembourg misses a major opportunity to create a level playing field and sustainable income for its music industry. This research aims to guide the implementation of neighbouring rights collection using a mixed-method approach. Quantitatively, it estimates the potential collection by comparing neighbouring and author right collections across European territories and applying their average ratios to the author right collections of SACEM Luxembourg. Qualitatively, it explores stakeholders' perspectives on challenges and best practices linked to collective management of neighbouring rights in Luxembourg through interviews with 17 stakeholders, including a Grammy-winning performer and CMO executives. The study estimates a potential annual collection between €1.2 and €1.9 million, while these results are highly dependent on tariff negotiations. Recommendations include forming a union, collaborating with international organizations, and leveraging technology. Further research is necessary to determine the optimal structure for a CMO, but this study suggests that a small local representation could effectively operate by outsourcing most services to existing CMOs or private IT companies. This research underscores the urgency for policymakers to implement a robust collection system and provides a foundation for future initiatives in Luxembourg's music industry.
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INOCON
Jonathan Bolton
2024INOCON is a conference about music and new technologies that included panels from industry experts, performances by Berklee students, and networking opportunities for start-ups, artists, and established professionals. The event is sponsored by Berklee Valencia and celebrated its 5th anniversary edition in 2024. The weekend began with a networking event at WayCo Cabanyal on Friday, April 26. The conference took place on Saturday, April 27, at the Museu de les Ciències, with sessions held in both Spanish and English. An interdisciplinary concert was held at the beautiful Aula Magistral of the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía on Saturday evening. Finally, the weekend closed on Sunday with sessions held entirely online and in the metaverse.
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K-pop in the West: Superfan Influence and Industry Adaptations
Christelle Bonvin
2024In recent years, K-pop has emerged as a global cultural phenomenon, captivating audiences far beyond its South Korean origins through a unique blend of music, choreography, and high production values. Central to this success are the superfans, or "stans," whose passionate support drives global engagement and visibility. This research investigates the challenges Korean entertainment companies face when introducing new, "westernized" artists to the Western music market and explores the critical role of superfans in this process. Through focus groups and qualitative analysis, the study identifies key factors contributing to K-pop's international appeal and examines the specific hurdles in replicating this success with new groups. Additionally, this paper delves into the recent westernization practices that K-pop has undergone, analyzing their impact on the genre and its fanbase. The findings highlight the expectations and influence of superfans on the success of new K-pop groups, assessing whether the traditional K-pop model can effectively resonate with Western audiences. This research offers valuable insights into the strategic planning and marketing necessary for entertainment companies to successfully launch and sustain K-pop acts in the West, emphasizing the importance of understanding and engaging with superfan culture.
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Popsical Records
Paul Booker
2024Popsical Records, an emerging indie label in New York City, aims to transform concert hall virtuosity into commercially viable music for diverse audiences. Our robust A&R process focuses on identifying and developing classically trained vocalists, filling a niche in today’s music market. Talented vocalists like Ariana Grande and Elton John share a common foundation in classical training, which underpins many musical styles. These performers captivate diverse audiences, and Popsical Records will bring their talents to market through our network of preferred producers, songwriters, and an in-house marketing team.
We have chosen NYC for our operations due to its rich talent pool from Broadway, Juilliard, Berklee, and NYU. Although the competition is intense, Popsical Records will stand out by maintaining a small but impactful roster, preserving cultural relevance and avoiding the scale of giants like Sony, Universal, and Warner. Our financial projections forecast a loss of approximately $12,500 in the first year. While we expect some grant funding, we seek $15,000 in startup investment to cover initial expenses and salaries. This funding will allow Popsical Records to adapt to market changes and offer competitive signing advances to our artists.
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INOCON
Stefania Bressi
2024In this reflection paper, I will provide an overview of my experience as the Marketing & Partnerships Manager for the Inocon Music Conference and Concert 2024, for my culminating experience of the Master's program in Music Business and Global Entertainment at Berklee Valencia.
My role initially involved designing and implementing the communication strategy before, during, and after the event. Additionally, I was responsible for developing partnership agreements in relation to Berklee Valencia and collaborating with their marketing team to create social media stories about the conference.
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Operational Role: Head of Marketing, Disrupción Records
Yaryn Choi
2024The Head of Marketing for Disrupción Records is an operational role within the Global Entertainment and Music Business Master's curriculum that enables an executive board to organise and operate a small-scale independent label with supervision and guidance from our program / practicum advisor. In this role, I worked to oversee and guide all marketing activities from Disrupción and it's sub-labels, furthered our social media formats and branding, promoted artist releases through regular content development and created merchandise and support for live events.
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Disrupción Records Operational CE
Christophe Couttolenc
2024My culminating experience for the Music Business and Global Entertainment program consisted in forming part of the Executive Team as Head of Distribution, Production and New Business for Berklee Valencia’s student-run record label, Disrupción Records. I chose this role because I was seeking practical experience in the record industry, and I knew that applying my learnings from the courses into a real-life scenario would help me solidify my new skills and understandings. Working as part of the Executive Team for the past seven months has taught me a lot about the music industry, and about how to better work as a team. It also allowed me to practice working in Spanish, my second language. I hope that these outcome slides and my reflection paper can help the person who takes my role next year.
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Operational Project - Disrupción Records - Head of Social Media & TikTok Optimization
Samuel Faivre
2024Disrupción Records is an independent record label affiliated with Berklee València. Established in 2014, this structure is distinguished by its unique rotating management system, comprised of students from the Global Entertainment and Music Business master’s program. Each year, a new cohort of students takes on the management roles. The music industry being an ever-evolving landscape, Disrupción Records consistently adapts its internal structure to meet the needs of artists and audiences. Therefore, the division of responsibilities shifts annually. In my personal case, I was named Head of Social Media & TikTok Optimization; a position that did not exist before. This role emphasizes on the importance of digital marketing, encompassing the labels presence on social media and promotional campaigns conducted by artists and their team. My responsibilities include, but are not limited to: manage Disrupción Records’ online presence accross platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, and coordinate content creation alongside promotional campaigns with the different imprints.
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Fuzz Media Entertainment Business Plan
Luis Guevara
2024The motivation behind this project is my passion for music and my goal to create a sustainable business model for Fuzz Entertainment, integrating Fuzz Media and Fuzz Studiozz. This project is crucial as it leverages media and music production to support artists and engage a wider audience. By addressing the challenges artists face in professional music production and promotion, we aim to seamlessly integrate media and studio services.
The methodology involved market research, industry interviews, and the development of financial projections and business strategies. Key steps included defining our target market, creating a pricing strategy, and outlining our service offerings. Deliverables include a detailed business plan, marketing strategies, financial projections, and operational workflows.
From this project, I gained insights into the business side of the music industry and the importance of media and production service integration. Expected challenges involved competition and investment, while unexpected ones required strategy adjustments based on market feedback. This project helped me develop skills in business planning, financial analysis, and strategic marketing. The project's contribution lies in its innovative business model that supports artists and engages music enthusiasts. Future prospects include expanding services to new markets and exploring international opportunities, providing a framework that can be generalized to other regions and industries.
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Disrupción Records Executive Role: Label Manager/CEO
Mallika Guhan
2024In this project, I detail my experiences and growth as a music industry professional through my operational role of Label Manager/CEO of Disrupción Records for the 2023-2024 year. I chose the multi-faceted role for its community-driven opportunities and potential to enhance my leadership and managerial skills. My responsibilities included label operations, managing the executive team, artist relations and overseeing the different departments of Disrupción Records ensuring our activities were in line with our mission. I utilized my previous experience working both with artists and in the live industry to formalize my leadership and project management skills in the record industry. Throughout this role, I navigated numerous challenges, from workload management to team dynamics, while fostering a collaborative and inclusive work environment. This experience significantly enhanced my abilities in people management, operational organization, and artist relations. As I transition from Berklee, I am confident in my skills to lead in the music industry, pursue higher-level managerial roles, and build my own label and artist management company.
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Business Plan: “RE:INICIA” Music and Wellness Festival
Luis Carlos Guinea Moctezuma
2024The following business plan details RE:INICIA Festival, an innovative cultural event brought to Spain by Moctezuma Music Group, originally established in Mexico in 2015 as an independent record label. The festival aims to redefine the festival experience with a three-day immersive journey, blending music, art, gastronomy, and wellness activities in the Valencian Community’s magical natural setting.
The plan covers the company’s mission, values, visual identity, value proposition, venue, musical identity, pricing policy, and market positioning. A thorough market study was conducted, gathering qualitative and quantitative data to understand market trends and validate the idea's viability. Financial projections, a business model, and an implementation plan are also included.
This project's completion provided invaluable skills in both business plan development and festival organization. Each phase brought new challenges, such as securing an appropriate venue and defining the brand identity to attract potential partners. This project is not merely an academic exercise; it aims to become a reality, executed with precision and attention to detail.
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Popsical Records: The One Stop Solutions for Classically Trained Vocalists Transitioning to Popular Music
Jack Humphrey
2024For my Culminating Experience, I co-founded and co-wrote a business plan for Popsical Records, a sub-label under Disrupción Records. The business plan includes an Executive Summary, Company Overview, Business Environment and Customers, Marketing Strategy, Financial Projections, and a Proof of Process which outlines what we have accomplished under Disrupción Records this year.
Popsical Records is an independent record label based in New York City with the goal of transitioning singers with a classical vocal background to the pop and soul genres. As a play on words, Popsical combines the words pop and classical to highlight our connection to refining singers with this skill set. Singers coming from this background often demonstrate a high degree of proficiency but often lack awareness in areas like contemporary songwriting, branding, image, and mainstream trends. Through a vertically and horizontally integrated process, Popsical Records will refine the talents of these artists whilst providing them with the competitive advantage required to cut through the noise of modern day music industry.
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Catalyzing Resurgence: The Impact of Modern Sampling on Older Music Within the Music Industry
Teri Jackson
2024Taking fragments of a record and repurposing it as a new sound is a process known as sampling. It has become a common and significant component in contemporary music production. This paper explores the growth and impact sampling has on older works of music. The study looks at how modern artists use sampling as a creative tool to give old musical works new life. It does this by looking at sampling practices, cultural effects, and musical changes. The study uses case studies, critical analyses, and theoretical frameworks to show how sampling connects the past and the present, artistic value of older works while bringing them to the forefront of modern music. The results help us learn more about how sampling may transform sounds to preserve musical history, encourage new art, and keep the conversation going between musicians of different generations.
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OPERATION OF BAAGHI WITH A SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON ITS MARKETING
Jaivardhan Khatri
2024As India emerges as one of the global supergiants and one of the fastest growing territories for music business, I wanted to see how easy it is to develop an artist in the sub continent. In this study we work with multiple artists on their marketing, Branding, AnR and personality development and provide them with the right tools for them to establish themselves. We take the common and eccentric ways to achieve our mission.
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SŪRU
Matthias Kristensen
2024SŪRU is a business plan created by Matthias Kristensen and Julian Luzcywo. It is an innovative music merchandise concept that fuses the traditional merchandising method with innovative exclusive content and digital asset features. The company essentially co-designs high quality and unique merchandise with artists before selling the items on the company platform to customers. Customers unlock rewards on the platform once they receive their merchandise. The document covers the initial iterations of important components to any business, such as corporate identity, mission statements, market research and analysis, financial and operational planning, and more.