Student Profile
Vitals:
Name: Shante Skyers
Graduation Year: 2010
Hometown: Bronx
Major: Music Management
Weekend Activity: Going to the movies with friends
Shante Skyers is a sophomore majoring in Music Management. She has participated in a variety of activities at Manhattanville, including the gospel choir, Habitat for Humanity, The Lords Pantry and the Black Student Union. In August she traveled with a group of students from the Duchesne Center to help with the rebuilding effort in New Orleans. This year she will be working on the campus newspaper The Touchstone and will also be involved with the St. Jude’s Fundraiser.
Shante decided to major in Music Management in order to pursue her dream of one day working for a record label. “I really want to be involved with the talent and grooming component,” she said. “People in that part of the industry help the artists work on their images. This can include things like coaching them on how to speak in public. I am really interested in helping today’s artists present a more polished image.”
Shante got to experience a little of what it would be like to work in the entertainment industry when she landed a competitive internship position during her freshman year at BET International, a new television network. “The internship was a really great experience because I was doing things like going through legal contracts, writing promos for celebrities, arranging trips overseas, and ordering items for award shows. Especially in working with the legal contracts I learned a lot of new terminology.”
Although she was able to meet celebrities during her internship Shante says that she didn’t really get star struck. “You really start seeing them as everyday people,” she said. When asked what she would tell students who are in the process of deciding on a major Shante said, “I would say to follow your instincts and major in whatever makes you most happy. I spent a semester studying a different subject because I thought it was something that I should do. I was pretty unhappy that semester, and decided to change my major to Music Management because it is what I am truly passionate about. I really enjoy my studies now and am much happier with my new career path.”