Making It In Music
When Paul “King” Konye ’23 was offered a distribution deal from Identity Records for his album People’s Choice, he knew whom to call before signing.
Evan Jagels, an artist-in-residence and educator who is also an accomplished professional musician. “Evan is a major mentor, and I always take his advice to heart,” says Konye. “He’s knowledgeable, he genuinely cares, and when he said the deal with Identity was cool, I knew I could take it.”
President Margaret Drugovich is another influencer. “She is someone who unites the campus,” Konye says. “She’s the one who says ‘We’re going to get through this; we’ll figure it out.’” He’s given her a shout-out in his song “Touch the Stars,” which he wrote during on-campus Creative Survival workshops when artists collaborated with students to address human trafficking.
Konye is a frequent fixture at on- and off-campus events, including Hawks Town Fever and Wickstock. And he’s put together a branding deal that has Track 23 clothing playing his music in their Albany store. Konye’s also featured on the cover of Identity’s spring catalog along with Akshay “Markhus” Dammar ’23, a computer science major who performs under the moniker Love Lagoon.
In the midst of all this attention, Konye is quick to credit Hartwick. “The College’s music business minor is 40 percent of my success,” says this business administration major. “There are so many musicians who drop out of the business, but might have stayed if they’d taken these kinds of courses.”
His mentor is proof. Jagels took business courses while earning his master’s in music performance. Now, as a professional bass player as well as educator, he needs to know the business behind the music. He’s applied that experience to helping develop Hartwick’s music business minor.
“You don’t learn how to do your taxes in a traditional music program,” says Jagels. “They don’t really teach you how to be successful beyond how you play your instrument. Having practical information is really valuable.”
The interdisciplinary minor offers courses in music technology, music history, accounting, social media, and more. The combination is designed to help students build their brand and be successful as musicians. “This program will be helpful for a performer who wants to have better working knowledge of music technology, someone who has an interest in concert promotion or opening a venue, or someone who wants to go into marketing,” Jagels explains.
His advice is already making a difference. “King Konye has a solid vision of his art and what goes into his performances and recordings,” Jagels says. “He has a good background on publishing rights, distribution, and record contracts. It feels great to help guide him.”
