Teri McMahon
Please introduce yourself and briefly tell us what you are working on now (name, graduation
year, and current role in the industry).
Graduating in March 2013, I, Teri McMahon frolicked away from Drexel with my Music Industry degree
in hand and dove right into the workforce. I truly began my professional career doing various facets of
festival production, anywhere from Production Assistant, VIP event manager, Artist Liaison/Relations,
and media and sponsor outreach. At the end of that long and winding road, I found myself relocating to
San Diego, where I am now a Supervisor at the House of Blues. I still pick up some larger festival gigs
(Coachella, Firefly, Lockn’, Kaaboo, etc) to keep things interesting, but learning to balance everything is
another job in its own. On top of all of that, I also run all operations and artist relations for Homestead
Amplifiers a fantastic highend custom, boutique guitar amplifier company based in Pennsylvania. I’m
fortunate enough to be able to work remotely across the country while performing my neverending
balancing act.
How does your experience within the Music Industry Program at Drexel compare to your actual
experience now that you are out in the field?
Of course no education can 100% prepare you for the real world, because everyone’s experience is
completely unique...but Drexel got me pretty close. The practicum courses (very appropriately named)
proved to be the most beneficial in my eyes. The deal memos, offer sheets, press releases, and many
other things that were thrown my way in class are things that I look at or write myself almost on a daily
basis. I am so glad I kept all the originals that my professors gave me!
Another thing I do not take for granted is the professional demeanor Drexel groomed me to have. I
pride myself on my ability to spruce up a résumé and have a well rounded conversation with almost
anyone I cross paths with. I have come to learn that not every college graduate can say the same.
Have you had any “AHA “ moments that you would like to share, either during your Drexel days
or postgraduation?
Maybe not any one particular moment, but it is so important to take your education seriously. I cannot
stress that enough. Listen to the terminology the professors are spewing at you, because that could
possibly be one of the most important things that I absorbed. During an interview or even just
networking around, if you’re able to toss out some extensive industry lingo, it is so impressive to certain
people and it absolutely will leave a lasting impression. To this day, doing festival and venue operations,
I find myself explaining phrases and terms to older, more experienced coworkers who were not as
fortunate to come from a program like this one.
Can you talk about ways in which Drexel’s coop program helped you to determine your career
and professional goals? Where did you coop and what was your experience like?
My first coop was with the Philadelphia Folksong Society. I had these grandiose ideas that I
wanted to be in LA working at a label or agency, so when I accepted the offer at PFS, I almost felt like I
was settling. I could not have been more wrong. This was such an eye opener into the crazy, magical
world of festivals that completely took me by storm. I was hooked so the following year I interned with
CID Entertainment when they were still in a tiny office in Manhattan. I was so eager to get started, I
actually made my class schedule work so I could bus into NYC and work two days a week for three
months before I moved there full time. Then I had the summer of my dreams, organizing and executing
VIP programs for festivals all around the country with some of the coolest people I’ve met to date. The
amount of knowledge and experience I gained over the course of my two coops cannot be measured,
along with the connections I made. There is such a rush that comes with learning how to run such a
largescale operation and watching all of your hard work come to fruition.
How would you describe your growth as both a student, and as an active member of the music
industry, from your start as a freshman to the current day?
Drexel made me eager to learn and practice what I already knew. Looking back on how I’ve
grown from September 2009 to today, I have grown so incredibly much and I’m honestly quite proud of
myself! I am confident while networking and conversing, and when I land a new gig, I usually know what
to expect. I have learned that there will ALWAYS be curve balls thrown your way, but I am so much
better equipped to handle them now than ever before. I am proud of the positive contributions I now
know I can make to a team confidence and competence are so so important.
What are your plans for the future? What do you hope to accomplish in the next five years?
I understand this question, but man is it hard to answer. Plans in the music industry are tough. I was
told by one of my professors that anyone truly engrossed in this industry will wind up covering all
jobs/bases, just in a different order. So far I’ve checked off the venue, festival production, and gear
manufacturing marks, so who knows what’s next. My plans are to never stop learning, growing, and
remaining open to change. I’m pretty happy with where I’m at right now, but I could absolutely see
myself taking on even larger roles in any of the aforementioned.
Were there any particular classes or professors that helped you to decide on your career path,
or which you would recommend to future MIP students?
The practicum courses were huge game changers for me. As I mentioned before, I always thought I
wanted to be involved with management or the label side of things, but once it came my time to lend a
hand with MAD Dragon Records, it definitely helped me learn that that was not where my passion was
at the time. It was a fantastic experience, nonetheless, because it is so incredibly important to know
how all aspects of this industry works. Touring and Concerts & Booking were my favorites, for sure. We
are/were so lucky as students to have a crazy cool faculty stacked with industry veterans who aren’t just
teaching out of textbooks they’re using examples from their own private agencies, labels, or firms to
teach us. These classes were intimidating because we were tossed into the real world, deep end first,
with floaties on. How cool is that, though, to end a semester and say you just routed a band’s first tour
around the country or helped curate a series with Motion City Soundtrack and get school credit it for it?
That’s awesome!
Any last words or takeaways you’d like to shout out to our prospective students and their
parents about our program and your experience?
This program is truly an incomparable one I’ve been out of it for three years now, and I’m sure it’s only
improved since I’ve left. If you are given the honor of entering Drexel’s MIP, do not take it lightly. Take
advantage of every single resource at your fingertips, including the alumni! I encourage being nervous-
that means you want to succeed but do not be scared. Your world is about to get rocked (maybe
literally, maybe figuratively), and it’s important to embrace it. Without my bold attitude and slightly
insane work ethic, I probably would not be where I am today. Parents: This is not just a Music Degree it
is so much more, I can promise you that.