
Burgeoning creators on college campuses across the U.S. are already harnessing their creativity for great ideas for the future of audio. At Spotify, we know that once they get the tools they need to amplify their voices, they'll be able to bring their stories to the world.
Enter NextGen, a program from Spotify for Podcasters designed to activate and grow podcast culture on college campuses, and make a career in podcasting more accessible for the next generation of Black content creators and storytellers. NextGen is funded by Spotify's Creator Equity Fund, which powers our commitment to showcasing and uplifting creators from communities that have been historically underrepresented in the audio industry.
We currently offer NextGen programming at New York University, the University of Southern California, and the University of Pennsylvania. We announced last fall that we'd be expanding the program to historically Black colleges and university (HBCU) campuses across the U.S., starting with Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia.
Yesterday, during our first-ever NextGen Creator Day at Spelman, we announced three ways we're broadening our partnership and further supporting students aspiring to work in the audio industry.
NextGen Curriculum Program Spelman is offering a custom, audio-first curriculum designed to upskill students in the art of podcasting. It's co-created with Spelman faculty, starting with Dr. Michelle Hite, and Spotify's SoundUp team. The curriculum shows students how to design an audio newsroom, edit content, and produce a final podcast in place of a traditional paper or presentation.
We have more than 50 students who have reported having already created their own podcasts, and more than double that number who have indicated an early interest in a career in the audio industry, says Dr. Hite. These numbers weren't surprising to me because Spelman students have routinely indicated a sophisticated understanding of the importance of storytelling as a needed companion to their investment in social justice. Our students value storytelling as an instrument for expanding how people confront the possibilities for how Black lives can be imagined and considered. This partnership with Spotify gives them an opportunity to learn how to enhance and professionalize their interests.
The Spotify NextGen Scholarship Program This multiyear scholarship is for five first-year Spelman students interested in pursuing a career in audio media, including podcasting, storytelling, writing, sound engineering, and music. Each recipient will receive a $10,000 scholarship during their sophomore, junior, and senior years.
Spotify Labs Creator Program During a weeklong incubator program, the Spotify for Podcasters team will train aspiring podcasters with the goal of launching a new podcast. Students will participate in a series of interactive workshops that teach them how to successfully develop, launch, and grow a podcast using Spotify for Podcasters-our new, all-in-one podcast creation platform. Students who complete the lab will have a chance to win a podcast starter pack and have their show on the Spotify Student hub.
Leading with audio and centering it in our approach has led us to capturing our voices and the sounds of our environment in compelling ways, explains Dr. Hite. It has allowed us to establish an oral history in the classroom, and in doing so, we have expanded the register for hearing an environment of inquiry that reflects on Black people thinking about Black children-as well as other Black people-with love, respect, and probing. In Spotify, we have a committed partner who understands the importance of our objective and is skilled in storytelling that involves the richness of this landscape of Black life and can help guide us toward recovering parts of the story that we didn't know how to tell or capture so that it so profoundly reflects what we experience.
Together, we're setting out to create a new class of Black content creators-equipping them with tools and resources to develop their podcast skill sets and ultimately making a career in audio more accessible for the next generation of storytellers, said Spotify Equity & Impact Lead Kristin Jarrett. But this is just the beginning, and I'm eager to expand Spotify's NextGen program to more HBCU campuses in the future.
Lessons from the best in the biz In addition to the announcements, students heard from Congresswoman Nikema Williams, Spotify executives including Kristin Jarrett, and attended a fireside chat with Nailing It co-host Wunmi Bello and We Said What We Said hosts Rickey Thompson and Denzel Dion.
I'm so grateful to this partnership at Spotify for uplifting students and continuing to highlight more black excellence in this country, said the congresswoman. Spotify is coming in at a time when a lot of people are saying they want to support HBCUs, but they are stepping up and doing it.
For the Record also asked Wunmi, Rickey, and Denzel to reflect on their creative journeys and imagine themselves in the students' shoes.
What's one piece of advice you would have for your 18-year-old self? Rickey Thompson: Have fun and stop worrying about what others think!
Denzel Dion: Looking back with all the knowledge and experience I have now, there's not one change or risk that I wish I could've taken. I've taken all the risks in order to get to where I am today. I was young, ambitious, and had a goal. To make this happen, I had to move to LA at 17. But a piece of advice I have for my 18-year-old self is to ask for help when necessary.
Wunmi Bello: Be OK with making mistakes. Try not to see them as failures, as they add so much texture and knowledge to the journey. When I was younger, I felt like I had to do everything at once, and the reality is thi
Most recent headlines
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
09/05/2025
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Studio Technologies said the Harvard University athletics department has integrated Dante-enabled equipment from the vendor into its broadcast ...
09/05/2025
NEW YORK ITN, a provider of a local linear supply side platform, and Magnite, a independent sell-side advertising company, have announced that they working toge...
09/05/2025
LEEDS, U.K. Nugen Audio has launched a new speech intelligibility plug-in, DialogCheck and offered up quotes from technologists working at places like Netflix p...
09/05/2025
AJA I/O Gear: The Heart of Broadcast Solutions' VEGO Mobile Editing Solution
Brie Clayton May 8, 2025
0 Comments
When working remotely on broadcas...
09/05/2025
What do they teach in an Advanced Adobe After Effects Course?
Roland Kahlenberg May 8, 2025
0 Comments
There aren't many advanced After Effects co...
09/05/2025
Larry Jordan Sits with Trevor Morgan of OpenDrives at NAB 2025
Brie Clayton May 8, 2025
0 Comments
Trevor Morgan, COO of OpenDrives, shares how the co...
09/05/2025
Berklee Popular Music Institute Announces UK Festival Debut and Tour Dates For the first time, BPMI will bring Berklee-affiliated artists and students to the ...
08/05/2025
A sinister fairy infiltrates a desperate family in Kenneth Dagatan's In My Mother's Skin, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo co...
08/05/2025
As expected, continued weak demand from key sales markets and declining economic...
08/05/2025
A new three-part series is coming to BBC iPlayer and BBC One
(Image: The Christie Archive Trust)
The BBC has announced Agatha Christie's Endless Night, a...
08/05/2025
For skyward-bound operators, training focuses on the unique aspects of flying ISR missions, including the management of onboard surveillance equipment and the e...
08/05/2025
The cable industry has told the Federal Communications Commission it supports the National Association of Broadcasters' proposal to allow broadcasters to us...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Consumer Technology Association has continued its opposition to mandates requiring that NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 tuners be included in new TV sets, sa...
08/05/2025
TAG Video Systems, the leader in software-based IP end-to-end workflow monitoring, deep probing, and real time visualization, has named Paul Maroni as Vice Pres...
08/05/2025
This year's UK Pavilion in hall 5, once again managed by Tradefair, will provide visitors with the unique opportunity to discuss and be involved in cutting ...
08/05/2025
Rohde & Schwarz will showcase its latest energy-efficient transmitters and 5G Broadcast technologies, designed to support network operators and content provider...
08/05/2025
IRVING, Texas Nexstar Media Group has tapped Bill Nardi as vice president of station operations, responsible for overseeing the day-to-day broadcast operations ...
08/05/2025
SEATTLE LumaTouch is partnering with CNN Academy to improve mobile storytelling techniques and support training across all of CNN Academy's training simulat...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Society of Broadcast Engineers has filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission that support a proposal by the National Association ...
08/05/2025
Senior adviser to the United States Agency for Global Media Kari Lake has announced that One America News Network (OAN) will provide newsfeed services for fre...
08/05/2025
EdMon Expands as AI-Driven Post Production Workflows Gains Traction in Sweden an...
08/05/2025
Using Luma Mattes in Adobe Premiere Pro
Graham Quince May 7, 2025
0 Comments
This very quick tutorial shows you how to take an RGB clip and apply its ...
08/05/2025
OpenDrives Unveils Free Your Data' Initiative with New Astraeus Cloud-Nativ...
08/05/2025
Student Spotlight: Grigori Balasanyan The Armenian composer, who was named Boston Conservatory at Berklees 2025 student commencement speaker, talks about his ...
08/05/2025
08 May 2025
VEON Shareholders Re-elect Board at 2025 AGM, Founder Augie Fabela ...
08/05/2025
Comedy and entertainment channel U&Dave bring back their #1 ranked programme of ...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Unveils New Premieres Spanning Film and Music
Slick Rick's Victory with Idris Elba a...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Announces Lineup for Inaugural Storytelling Summit
11-Day Industry Event Launches with Tal...
08/05/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Vizrt's Nicholas Jameson on AI in Workflows, Pushing Boundarie...
08/05/2025
Creating Alternative Brand Experiences: Live Sports in the Age of Fortnite, Meta...
08/05/2025
PGA TOUR's David Piccolo: Advanced Graphics and Virtual Production Tools are...
08/05/2025
Tech Focus: Advancing Immersion in Sports Broadcasting with AR and Virtual Produ...
08/05/2025
Expect even more chaos this July with Harriet Webb leading the returning cast, p...
08/05/2025
Back to All News
Now in Production: Comedy Action Film Husbands in Action'...
08/05/2025
TenneT relies on Arvato Systems for market communication
Energy industry: Impressive market communication know-how and system integration expertise
G tersloh...
08/05/2025
When Taiki Hamamoto, 22, came across a Hanafuda deck at his local game shop, he was intrigued. He had grown up playing the traditional Japanese card game with f...
08/05/2025
The Liveline is now open , said Joe Duffy earlier today, as he previewed this af...
08/05/2025
RT , in association with the BBC, Screen Ireland and Cineflix Rights has reveale...
08/05/2025
Artificial intelligence is helping identify and treat diseases faster with better results for humankind. Natural disasters like wildfires are next.
Fires in th...
08/05/2025
Calling all wiseguys - 2K's acclaimed Mafia franchise is available to stream...
08/05/2025
As AI use cases continue to expand - from document summarization to custom software agents - developers and enthusiasts are seeking faster, more flexible ways t...
07/05/2025
Discovering music should feel effortless and fun. That's why Spotify continu...
07/05/2025
SBS and NITV mark National Reconciliation Week with compelling premieres recogni...
07/05/2025
SBS commences search for a new Western Sydney production hub location
7 May, 2025
Media releases
SBS has today launched a Request for Expressions of Intere...
07/05/2025
Warsaw, Poland - April 28, 2025 - Nielsen, a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics, has released its latest March All Screens Video Landscap...
07/05/2025
LONDON Movie fans hoping to save money by waiting until their favorite new films appear on streaming services will have to wait a bit longer now, according to a...
07/05/2025
MECCA, Saudi Arabia Saudi Broadcasting Authority (SBA) has selected Grass Valley to provide a major technology upgrade of its broadcast facility here....
07/05/2025
Sony and Nevion provide guidance on IP network architecture options for live pro...