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With new talent emerging all over the nation, Music Forward aims to partner with the best! On June 19, The Big Easy visited Los Angeles when Music Forward industry mentors Kemic Smothers and Octarve H. Anderson, Jr. from OAKSway Entertainment joined our home office in Hollywood. With them they brought Bringing Down the House alumni from New Orleans, Jake Exavier (Class of 2019) and Dallas Burke (Class of 2018), and OAKSway Entertainment artists Maxxi Bryant and Peblo Da BG. Music Forward sat down with the team and gained important insight into their experiences with Bringing Down the House in their city, as well as what the future looks like for these young artists.<\/p>\n
OAKSway<\/span><\/span> Entertainment is an entertainment management firm invested in providing opportunities for young artists to grow their musical presence and build their brand. They have been a Music Forward partner for three years, and as the Chief Operating Officer (C.O.O.) Kemic Smothers said, \u201cthis has been a rewarding experience for young artists from not only New Orleans, Louisiana, but all over the nation.\u201d <\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Dallas Burke, BDTH 2018\u00a0alumni, went from performing in a band called The\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Tainerz<\/span><\/span>, to becoming a solo artist\u00a0at just\u00a0sixteen\u00a0years old.\u00a0He claimed that BDTH was a great learning opportunity because he now has the \u201cknowledge of how the music business works.\u201d When asked what it feels like to transition from being in a band to going solo,\u00a0Burke decided he enjoys riding solo\u00a0more. \u201cWorking independently is great because I have more of an opportunity to drop the type of music I personally want to put into the world.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Maxxi Bryant, an OAKSway Entertainment artist, is thrilled to be at Music Forward headquarters. She recounted, \u201cI have been living vicariously through Jake, so coming from his experiences and watching him do the showcase, I just think that it is very stimulating\u2026This is the only foundation within my radar that I have seen [provide free access to workshop and performance opportunities]. And of course, once\u00a0it opens up doors, it opens up doors \u2013 you\u2019re teaching, you\u2019re\u00a0motivating, you\u2019re potentially putting them out there to be seen and that\u2019s awesome.\u201d\u00a0Growing up in\u00a0a musically-oriented family, she has always had her heart and soul in music.\u00a0Maxxi\u00a0is appreciative of the opportunities she has seen Music Forward provide others \u2013 she said, \u201cYou give young people\u00a0the willpower\u00a0to be themselves.\u201d To further hone her\u00a0musical abilities, she will\u00a0be applying to be in the Bringing Down the House Class of 2020.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Written By Mariam Boyadjian<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<\/h3>\n
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Experiences with Bringing Down the House (BDTH)<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n
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The one word 21-year-old\u00a0alumni,\u00a0Jake\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Exavier<\/span><\/span> uses to describe his experience is\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u201cexciting.\u201d Through the program, he learned about artist management, stage production, connecting with other upcoming artists and artist branding. These were all crucial, transferrable\u00a0skills that he credits helping him to market his own brand, as well as write and perform his own songs. On June 11, Jake released his single, \u201cUpside Down,\u201d and gave the New Orleans audience a sneak peek of the song during his performance at the New Orleans Bringing Down the House\u00a0showcase. Every day, he works diligently to ensure he gets to where he wants to be in the future, which is being a well-known artist.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nUpcoming Artist<\/b><\/h3>\n
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<\/h3>\nWords of Encouragement from C.O.O.<\/span><\/b><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Kemic Smothers<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n
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