Musically-inclined students and alumni will soon be able to sign with Poly Rhythm Records, Cal Poly's first student-run record label. The project is expected to launch in 2009. Jessica McPherson, a fifth-year music industry studies student, presented a business plan for PRR on Friday as part of her senior project. McPherson said the name comes not only from Cal Poly, but from "a lot of different melodies working together." McPherson attended Chico State University for one year before coming to Cal Poly, and was inspired to duplicate its student-run record label in the much larger Los Angeles market. Her attendance at a National Association of Record Industry Professionals conference also sparked her desire to create PRR. Malissa Sprints, a 2008 music business graduate, and other students have been working with McPherson to create a full-fledged record label since October 2007. McPherson and Sprints utilize lessons from internships at Novatunes and Visionworks, where they learned the importance of networking and the use of new media. "It's all about getting the licensing out there," said Sprints. "That's where the exposure comes from and that's where the contacts will come from." McPherson seems optimistic about the label. Marketing opportunities arise through on-campus concert opportunities, Bronco Broadcasting and the university's location in the Los Angeles market. McPherson also said that students in the rapidly-growing music industry study program can put the "Polytechnic" in Cal Poly's name into practice and get hands-on experience by maintaining a record label. PRR is geared towards 18- to 24-year-olds, primarily students, alumni and others based on campus. To apply, artists must be students or alumni or have at least one student or alumni in their band at all times. All of the artists' songs must be original and registered with a performance rights organization. PRR will promote and distribute music with new media such as digital downloads, blogs and podcasts, as well as the more traditional forms of radio and concerts. Artists will retain all copyrights and receive 70 percent of royalties. PRR's plan of action is to sign five to 10 bands beginning in mid 2009. The goal will then be to place digital forms of songs online, book concerts on and off campus, search for licensing opportunities and host an annual artists showcase. The main source of distribution will be TuneCore, a music and video distribution Web site that distributes artists' songs to services such as the iTunes Store and Rhapsody. McPherson plans to apply with a charter as a non-profit organization. McPherson said some of her obstacles are lack of experience, scheduling conflicts and the question of how much profanity to allow in artists' songs. The estimated costs for the first year, 2009, are more than $3,300. Faculty advisors Dr. Dave Kopplin and Arthur Winer will help guide the students to create the record label. Part-time professor and Grammy award-winner John Wooler is also a resource that McPherson and Sprints have relied on for guidance. Wooler has 25 years of music industry experience, and is a producer, former record label executive and co-founder of Exolution Entertainment LLC. Sprints already graduated, but still devotes much of her time to Poly Rhythm Records. "[I would like] to see this thing help out the school that I have learned so much from and have gotten so much out of," said Sprint. "It's just a great thing to be a part of because I got to see growth that is already happening, but now it can actually be visualized." McPherson will graduate next year but plans to remain active with PRR. "It's hard to find jobs, especially in the entertainment industry," said McPherson. "But if you still have an active involvement with something that you're passionate about, you're still learning, working and feeling good about yourself."
Student-run record label to launch in 2009
Poly Rhythm Records to feature Cal Poly musicians
Published: Monday, November 24, 2008
Updated: Sunday, February 22, 2009
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