Ouachita Stories

Previously published in the 2021 Ouachitonian yearbook

Being in love with the music industry gave Dawson Bray, senior music industry major from Little Rock, the drive to succeed as a musician. Bray decided to spend his pandemic summer in Nashville, Tenn., as an intern at the music label SSM Nashville on Music Row.

Bray felt that living in Nashville was a unique opportunity because of how different everyone is. Living in Music City during a pandemic was challenging at times considering Bray was unable to experience the city in its entirety, but he claimed he had the time of his life. Bray spent several years gaining experience in the music industry by learning in the classroom and producing music for streaming platforms. Bray’s ambition shaped him into the musician he is today.

“This was a really fun and great opportunity to dip my foot in the music industry and to finally work with other people that have experience and connections,” Bray said.

Bray said that working in Nashville was an experience that he will never forget. He believes it was an opportunity that will allow him to advance in his career after graduating from Ouachita.

“It was really good to see how everything worked behind the scenes with the music label and artist relationship,” Bray said. “It is cool to see how everything is made behind the scenes, because that is what I am interested in.”

Bray gained a new admiration for those who work hard behind the scenes in the music world. He helped market artists on social media by creating ad campaigns for numerous outlets. Bray also used the internship to accumulate connections in the industry and to learn from others that are living out his dream.

Bray gave an inside look at the music industry stating, “It’s a very humble culture. It’s like a small community inside a big city.”

Bray utilized his networking skills as a launching pad for landing the internship. “An alumnus from Ouachita, Beaux Schmidt, is one of my good friends and helped me get this job opportunity,” Bray said. “He had a connection and gave me some phone numbers that I called, and everything fell into place after that.”

It was a fun and interesting journey in the music industry for Bray, but his journey is not over quite yet. With the investment of more time and hard work, Bray’s goal is to walk alongside the top artists in Music City. Bray also aims to inspire others by encouraging them to “take advantage of your opportunities no matter how intimidating it is.”

Photo by Hannah Smith

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