Music Business Academy for Africa partners with The Orchard for the second installment of the Talent Project

#FeatureByMBAA: The Talent Project of the Music Business Academy for Africa returns for its second year in a new partnership with global artist and label services company The Orchard.

The Talent Project is a complement to MBA’s annual program geared towards developing the next generation of music industry executives in Africa.

The partnership with The Orchard will give seven amazing African talents an opportunity to introduce themselves and their music to the global music industry.

Founder of the MBA, Godwin Tom states that, “The MBA for Africa Talent Project is an activity we developed to ensure that students have an avenue to practise the things they have been taught. It makes it real for the students. With this partnership, we are making it more worthwhile for the talents as well. We are giving talent an opportunity to use our platform to kickstart their careers in the music industry.”

The Orchard will provide financing for the artist development of all seven artists which will be used to develop the talents from song creation to release. The company will also provide marketing and promotions support for the release of the EP project from The Talent Project.

Speaking about the partnership, the Vice President for Africa at The Orchard, Ben Oldfield says, "As The Orchard continues to grow its relationships across the African continent, it's essential that we lend support to the next generation of its emerging artists. This partnership with MBA gives these artists access to a new global fanbase and a chance to build their brand beyond language or geographical boundaries."

All funds will be managed by the MBA for Africa team led by the Program Director Elizabeth Sobowale, who said that the sponsorship will go a long way in, “ensuring that students gain practical knowledge and experience of the music industry so that they are well equipped for their future careers.”

The Talent Project will run from the start of September until the release of the EP on the 16th of December, 2022. Interested artists have until the 22nd of August to submit their music on www.mbatalentproject.com.

The top 30 talents will be selected by MBA’s A&R team for the general public to vote for their top 15 via The Talent Project’s website. Final voting for the top seven winners will be done by the students of the Music Business Academy for Africa 2022.

In 2021, MBA’s Talent Project gave over 190 students from over 30 cities from Africa, and the world, the opportunity to work with five African artists, release two EPs [Heart On A Sleeve (https://onerpm.link/heartonasleeve) and Moments (https://onerpm.link/moments-ep)], create and implement roll out plans, execute music recording contracts, and more. MBA in partnership with The Orchard will expand its reach for 2022, giving even more students the opportunity to gain first-hand experience of how things work in the music industry.

Artists interested in starting or advancing their careers in the music industry or just curious about how the African music industry works can register for the 2022 edition of the Music Business for Africa on www.musicbusinessafrica.org.

The MBA is developed by iManage Africa, in partnership with Music Ally, and Dr. Carlos Chirinos of the Music Business Department at the New York University. The Music Business Academy for Africa began as an internship scheme in 2017 before evolving into a talent management training program, and ultimately the full music business education initiative that launched in 2020.

This year's program will run between August and December 2022, and will teach students about a range of music business trends and technologies, as well as give them hands-on experience to release and promote music and create sustainable careers.

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