049: Returning to a Creative Outlet as a Path Forward

Catalyst: A Creative Industries Podcast

Catalyst is a Creative Industries podcast, from Chapman University. Each episode features Chapman students who have completed a Podcasting course through the Center for Creative and Cultural Industries at the university. Students who had no podcasting experience or technical ability in the genre before taking the course were able to contribute all the segments to Catalyst this season with the goal being that they will take this ‘hands-on’ experience and carry it over to the launching of their very own series. Each episode of Season 7 will feature one to two different interviews conducted by CCI students, exploring different aspects of the Creative and Cultural Industries.

Bailey Sullivan leads us into the first segment this week with an interview of Ari Elkins a digital creator and music curator who has developed a Tik Tok presence which has gained him over 30.4 million likes. Elkins, who at one point had planned on a career in medicine, walks Bailey through his journey back to music and how a college job with Warner Records and a Covid canceled Internship contributed to his rise on the social media platform. By identifying that there is was a major gap in the market for music curation and playlist organization, Ari has skyrocketed to Tik Tok fame with his playlists that he creates always with a specific target audience in mind. Ari elaborates on how he has used this momentum to point audiences toward new music, even developing a weekly live stream event called Wednesdays, where he can feature live music, and talk with the artists.

Not to be outdone, in her segment of Catalyst this week Kyla Turner speaks with lifestyle YouTuber and creator of the ‘Twenties World’ skin care company, Emily June. A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising of Los Angeles, June has 3 degrees covering Beauty Industry merchandising & marketing, Beauty Industry Management and Business Management. Kyla and Emily dive into how the degrees and a YouTube channel she started when she was in her teens have influenced her current career moves. They also discuss what from her background, experience and education Emily deems to have been the most help when setting up her own company.