We have so many successful Alumni who have advice to share with our students. Ramon Smikle went through our program and explains how the Business & Entrepreneurship department reshaped his expectations of the music industry. In this Alumni Spotlight, Ramon talks about his Columbia experience and what he is working on currently.

What is your current job and how did you get there?

Ramon: I work on the Music Partnerships team at Shazam. I am on a small team that is responsible for managing all record label, management company, and artist relationships for Shazam throughout the United States.

Having spent more than half of my time at Columbia College interning and working for The GRAMMYs and Capitol Records, I decided that Los Angeles was the place I needed to be after graduation. I moved out here, and began interning at Dim Mak Records. About three months into my internship, I got an email from a former GRAMMY colleague who had started working at Shazam letting me know that there was a position open that he thought I’d be a great fit. Three weeks and a few interviews later, I was hired.

What field are you working in?

Ramon: Music/Technology Industry

How did the Business (formerly AEMM) program @ Columbia prepare you for what you do now?

Ramon: The program at Columbia totally reshaped my expectations of the music industry in the best way possible. I went in as a bright-eyed freshman with ambitions of either starting my own record label or making it as a artist manager. When I left, I had a very real understanding of just how much work it would take to make it in the music industry, and to get my dream job. I left not only with that understanding, but also with a skillset and the knowledge to feel confident in any situation that I would be put in. I would not have had this confidence without the program at Columbia.

What was your most valuable Columbia experience?

Ramon: The music publishing, finance, and public speaking classes were some of the most valuable classes that I have ever taken. They all taught me things that I’ve used on a daily basis early on in my career. My relationships with peers in classes were also a key factor in my success at the school. Building a great network of friends/future co-workers was crucial to my development as a student. The entertainment industry is all about networking and who you know, so what better place to start than at school!

My student advisor Monique Maye was also critical to my success. Having a faculty member in the department who you could speak to with issues or concerns was always an amazing feeling.

In what way did your degree help your career?

Ramon: Getting a degree has never been something that was “necessary” within my chosen career path or job field. It was always something that I wanted to get on a personal level. A degree represents dedication, respect, care, and follow-through. It shows that you stuck with one thing for four years, put in the hard work, and achieved your initial goal. That is a lesson that will last you for an entire career and lifetime.

Do you have any advice for current Columbia students?

Ramon: Utilize not only the campus resources and its faculty, but also the external programs that a city like Chicago offers. JOIN GRAMMY U. GRAMMY U helped me achieve my career goals more than any other program or internship that I could have ever received. The exposure it gets you as a college student to world-class talent management and artists is simply impossible to find, and is not offered by any other program.

Meet as many people as you can and always dream big. Jobs in the music industry may seem unobtainable at times, but for those who work and envision themselves there, it is not unrealistic.