Stone Mountain Native Isaiah Hill to Perform at Music Midtown

Berklee Popular Music Institute (BPMI) wraps up its summer festival season, which saw seven up-and-coming artists from the college perform at popular music festivals in the U.S. and Canada, with an appearance by pop/rock singer Lyric Rachae at Music Midtown in Atlanta, September 15–16. Rachae’s band features Dontavius Turner on guitar, and Berklee alumni Isaiah Hill of Stone Mountain, GA, on keyboards and Josh Foster on drums. This year, the festival is headlined by Kendrick Lamar, Imagine Dragons, and Janelle Monae. BPMI is a program that guides students through every step of going from the classroom to the stage – important preparation for a performance career.

Students in BPMI’s A&R group reviewed more than 300 submissions and narrowed the field through a combination of factors, including recordings, videos, social media presence, and live audition showcases. In addition to Rachae, the class chose R&B singer Yanina, pop artist Emilia Ali, electro-pop groups luhx. and AJNA, metal band MDFK, and Americana group Jacksonville Kid to represent BPMI at this summer’s festivals. Artists already performed at Essence Festival in New Orleans, Lollapalooza in Chicago, Osheaga in Montreal, Outside Lands in San Francisco, Welcome to Rockville in Jacksonville, FL, and Country LakeShake in Chicago.

While most college classes are one semester, BPMI runs on a three-semester, full-year cycle. In the fall semester, the class chooses the artists and splits up into management teams. In the spring they work on artist development, marketing, digital presence, budgets, merchandise, and sponsorships; and in the summer, they rehearse with the artists to prepare them for the festival stage – a much different experience than a club show – and accompany them to each festival to handle on-site promotion, production and tour management.

"Performing at some of the top music festivals in the U.S. as a new artist has been an incredible experience,” said Rachae, who appeared at Atlanta’s 2016 Funkfest opening for Snoop Dogg and at Milwaukee’s 2018 Summerfest opening for Janelle Monae. “But I'm most hyped about Music Midtown because I'll be performing my debut singles, ‘Rockstar’ and ‘Bad Decisions.’ Not to mention the festival is in my hometown!"

“We are integrating the academics of a class with the live music industry. When we place an act in a festival slot, the promoter expects the same from us as any of the major agencies,” said Jeff Dorenfeld, founding managing director of BPMI. “Students are responsible for finding talent, rehearsing them for the festival stage, travel logistics, executing lengthy contracts, and meeting all production requirements. At the festivals, they are treated like every other artist on the lineup. It's demanding, but the experience is priceless.”

About Lyric Rachae
Lyric Rachae is an entertainer, singer-songwriter, and Berklee alumna from Atlanta, GA. Beginning at the age of 10, she appeared in musical theater performances all around the city in major venues such as The Fox Theatre, The Rialto Center for the Arts, and Variety Playhouse. Rachae studied voice, drama, and dance at DeKalb School of the Arts in Decatur. In 2012 she opened for the Southeast Emmy Awards alongside Jasmine Guy, and wrote the theme song to the short film What About Us. Rachae graduated a semester early from Berklee – where she attended on a full tuition City Music scholarship. While at the college, she shared the stage with Beyonce’s Original All-Female Band at a concert celebrating the group's 10th anniversary. Rachae’s band features Dontavius Turner on guitar, and Berklee alumni Josh Foster on drums and Isaiah Hill on keyboards.