Holmdel, New Jersey (January 13, 2021) — Vydia is proud to announce its partnership with Propel Center, a new global campus headquartered in Atlanta, GA that will support leadership and career development of students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU)s nationwide. Propel Center is a physical and virtual campus designed to support the HBCU community’s work in preparing the next generation of leaders who work to advance equity and justice. Vydia will collaborate with Propel Center to deliver an innovative curriculum focused on music business, technology, and entrepreneurship, including a focus on rights and metadata management, global distribution, analyzing and actioning performance data, royalties accounting, contract negotiations, building marketing plans, and more.
“The opportunity to build infrastructure and connections for students at HBCUs, so they can become the next leaders in music and technology, was one we had to jump on,” said Andre Benjamin, Vydia’s Senior Vice President of Strategy and Finance. “We are honored to be collaborating with the Propel Center and its partners to provide students with a progressive education, a pipeline of exceptional career opportunities, and direct access to industry advisors to support their professional development.
Propel Center’s founding partners include Apple, Southern Company, and Ed Farm, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing education through technology. The first-of-its-kind initiative will serve as a central hub for all 100+ HBCUs to provide HBCU students with the knowledge, skills, tools and resources necessary to transform our nation’s talent pipeline and workforce. Students from participating schools will access Propel Center’s online digital learning platform from anywhere, and will also have access to the 50,000 square-foot physical headquarters in Atlanta, equipped with state-of-the-art lecture halls, learning labs, and on-site living for a scholars-in-residence program.
“The HBCU community is a tremendous engine of Black creativity, entrepreneurship, and inclusive opportunity,” said Lisa Jackson, Apple’s Vice President of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives. “We are thrilled to join with partners and community stakeholders to support the Propel Center and be part of this groundbreaking new global hub for HBCU innovation and learning, devoted to helping faculty create best-in-class curriculum and ensuring students have access to cutting-edge skills.”
“These investments are critical as we begin to truly scale Black innovation ecosystems,” said Anthony Oni, Chairman, Ed Farm. “By leveraging technology and partnerships to connect students with unique learning opportunities, we can lift up the talent that already exists at these institutions of higher learning and accelerate their development. In doing so, we will have a hand in shaping the workforce of the future — and the leaders of tomorrow.”
Additional information on Propel Center can be found at propelcenter.org
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About Vydia
Vydia is an end-to-end music technology platform that provides labels and managers with the infrastructure and tools to power their business. With a full suite of services, Vydia offers supply chain, global distribution, analytics, rights management, payments, detailed revenue reporting, and marketing. Vydia is a premium partner of leading digital service providers such as Spotify, Apple, TikTok, Vevo, YouTube, and Facebook as well as networks like BET, MTV, and Music Choice. Combining innovative technology with industry expertise, Vydia is distribution reimagined. To learn more, please visit vydia.com
About Propel Center
Propel Center is a physical and virtual campus that is designed to provide Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) with shared services to support their work of preparing leaders who improve our world. Via a physical campus, and digital learning tools, students from all 101 HBCUs will connect with the brightest minds in the world, global opportunities, and with each other on their way to developing into civic-minded leaders and entrepreneurs.
About Ed Farm
Apple’s $25 million contribution will support construction of the Propel Center’s physical campus in Atlanta and virtual resources for students and faculty. As the program’s sole technology partner, Apple will provide ongoing support for the Propel Center’s curriculum development, technology to support the in-person and virtual learning spaces, and mentorship and internship opportunities for students across the HBCU community.
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