MTSU’s Recording Industry Department celebrates 50 years of making music     

Middle Tennessee State University’s Recording Industry Department is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2024, a golden tribute to a highly regarded program whose alumni have produced an impressive haul of Grammy gold and many other accolades across all facets of the music industry. 

 Founded in 1973 with just two professors and one studio, the department has been at the forefront of shaping the music industry and educating the next generation of recording professionals for five decades.   

Today, the department has grown to more than two dozen professors, 1,400 students, several recording studios, multiple labs and a songwriting center.

MTSU’s Recording Industry Department trains song creators and performers in its Commercial Songwriting Program, experts in recording live music and audio in its Audio Production Program, and music entrepreneurs, including managers and publishers, in its Music Business Program.   

Beverly Keel, dean, College of Media and Entertainment — Beverly Keel

“MTSU is truly a unique place where students are nurtured, inspired and challenged,” said Beverly Keel, Dean of the College of Media and Entertainment. “Quite simply, there is no other program like MTSU’s Department of Recording Industry, which is why we have attracted students from all over the world.”

The department is celebrating its golden anniversary all year by hosting guest speakers, panels, concerts and sharing memories from the archives while paying tribute to the past, celebrating the present, and setting the stage for the future. Details will be shared on the College of Media and Entertainment’s social media pages.  

Michelle Conceison, chair, MTSU Recording Industry — Michelle Conceison

“It is no wonder you can find multiple MTSU alums at any music industry event you attend — whether on stage or behind the scenes. Where there is music, MTSU is there,” said new Recording Industry chair and associate professor Michelle Conceison, who took the reins of the program this semester and was part of an MTSU group that traveled to the Grammy Awards in February to celebrate and witness MTSU alumni, most of whom were Recording Industry alums, capture at least eight Grammys from 15 total nominations across multiple genres. 

A signature celebration event will also be held from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, at the National Museum of African American Music, located in the heart of downtown Nashville, for alumni, students, staff, advisors, and faculty who have helped shape the department into what it is today. A special presentation will begin at 6:15 p.m. For more information, email rim@mtsu.edu.

About MTSU’s Department of Recording Industry 

Since awarding its first degree in 1974, MTSU’s Recording Industry Department has graduated over 7,500 industry-ready alumni and has produced top songwriters, producers, musicians and more.

“The MTSU Department of Recording Industry laid the foundation for my career as a music and entertainment attorney,” said Rachel Guttmann, a 2009 graduate. “The education provided gave me the tools to counsel and advise artists, songwriters, producers, and other music industry creatives and entrepreneurs throughout the world. More importantly, the relationships I formed as a student resulted in the existence of my law firm, which I co-own with one of my former MTSU professors.”  

Recording Industry faculty Odie Blackmon in the new Songwriting Center in the Miller Education Center. Odie Blackmon, Recording Industry faculty, standing center, with Kyra Gosney, seated left, Alex Wons, seated center, and Arden Johnson.

Students have worked with top celebrities like Bruce Springsteen, Celine Dion, Keith Urban, Jimmy Kimmel and Kane Brown, to name a few. Some famous names who studied at MTSU include country artist Chris Young, songwriter and producer Tay Keith, Christian artists

Brandon Heath and Lecrae, country artist Hillary Scott of Lady A, rap artist and songwriter Daisha McBride and Grammy-winning songwriter Josh Kear, among others.  

Alums have also written songs for Alan Jackson, George Strait, Kacey Musgraves, Lady Gaga, Usher, Wiz Khalifa and more.  

“Our alumni have found tremendous success in rap, hip-hop, country, rock, pop, Christian music and other genres. Their names are regularly found on the Billboard charts and Grammy nominees list. What is so special is that our alumni love to return to campus to share their knowledge with current students,” Keel said.  

For more information about MTSU’s Department of Recording Industry, visit https://mtsu.edu/recording-industry/.    

— DeAnn Hays (deann.hays@mtsu.edu)  