Alumni Update: Samantha Nikolich, Music Performance & Technology (Vocal Major)

Samantha Nikolich is a 2017 honours graduate of the Music Performance & Technology (Vocal Major) program, and the recipient of both the prestigious Founder’s Award and the Randy Lennox Mentorship Award. She has since secured an internship position at The Feldman Agency where she is continuing to develop her skills and experience the ins-and-outs of the music business.

In her current role, Samantha has multiple tasks, ranging from maintaining ticket counts to inputting offers for performance opportunities for signed artists. In discussing her role, Samantha tells us, “I have learned many aspects of what it takes to become an Agent. From maintaining single shows to big tours, keeping track of ticket sales, and every little detail in between … I am truly inspired by what I get to see every day. The office is constantly buzzing with excitement and there’s always something new to learn and someone there to help you learn it.”

We then asked Samantha about her Mentorship Award experience,

When you graduated, you won the Randy Lennox Mentorship Award. What did you take away from this experience?

“Receiving the Randy Lennox Mentorship was an extremely humbling experience. Randy Lennox is such an intelligent and inspiring businessman [and] I have been extremely grateful to learn from him. Through our meetings, Randy has taught me a lot about the fast-paced music industry…[and] about presenting myself and letting my confidence shine through. It’s a pretty exceptional experience to get to hear how a very successful industry professional made his way from the ground up and it really shows you what to strive for and what can be achieved. I don’t think I can pinpoint one single thing that I’ve learned from Randy because I truly believe that he has been a huge influence in my ever-growing confidence.”

Looking back on her Metalworks education, Samantha tells us:

“I honestly think in some way or another, every aspect of Metalworks has helped me on this journey into the music industry. Aside from the immense amount of knowledge I felt I left with, I think it was even more so the teachers … and the support from them on a daily basis. Every teacher had a completely different way of teaching and supporting you [and] it led to some very valuable lessons from each of them. Metalworks was not a textbook school, it was a hands-on opportunity where you had the ability to do projects and tasks you would be faced with in the industry and got to put your skills into practice. I found one of the most helpful, underlying things for me at Metalworks was homing in on the skills that I really excelled at … I really started to strengthen those while building other skills in a safe learning environment.”

And lastly we wanted to know if Samantha had any words of wisdom for current students or her fellow graduates; she had this to say:

“All I can say to any graduates is to stay humble, respectful, and be the best version of you. Going through any post-secondary education is a roller coaster and everyone takes a different ride. It is the hardest, yet most rewarding experience. Take in every bit of learning you can, and never be afraid to ask questions. Use your resources, your superiors, and your peers. It is an extremely competitive industry but everyone is going through or has gone through what you’re going through and more often than not they will have no problem helping you. Never go into a meeting like it’s going to be the only one, make an effort to continue relationships with as many industry professionals as you can. Keep your head up, you’ll be so happy with the outcome!”