Ruben Studdard is a firm believer in the “see it, be it” philosophy.
Visualizing a positive trajectory for his life’s path has worked for him, he says. He helps others build on that idea through his annual youth summer camps as well as master classes he leads at campuses around the nation.
Studdard will be a guest lecturer at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for three to five sessions this semester. In a phone interview, the “American Idol” winner said the sessions will be a mix of virtual and in-person classes.
“These classes will be more about the business of music than actual performance,” Studdard said. “As a music student, you don’t have the opportunity to learn more about the music business because everybody at your school is a music clinician. For example, I talk to them about how contracts can vary in a lot of ways: On some, you do better as your record does better in sales and how streaming has affected that. Some contracts come with signing bonuses; others don’t.
“A lot of music majors and students in the arts want to be part of the music industry, but they really don’t know what that looks like in real life.”