Senior Ben Grider always thought he wanted to start his advertising career after MSU in the film industry. It wasn’t until after his internship with Meridian Entertainment Group that he realized a career in music was much more his style.
He was thrilled when he landed a summer internship as a marketing intern at Meridian Entertainment Group, because he was able to put entertainment experience on his resume.
“I felt a very big sense of importance,” said Grider. “I didn’t expect to feel like I had such a large impact in preparation for concerts. When I went to shows, I looked around and felt proud that I was a part of these productions.”
Grider said he was excited to have large responsibilities, even as an intern. Meridian Entertainment Group facilitates large concerts and shows, such as Lansing’s Common Ground. There are around seven full time employees and Grider was one of a few interns for the summer.
“The coolest part of our team was that there are essentially a handful of people that put on these massive shows,” Grider said. “It’s an incredible feeling.”
As part of his internship, Grider would reach out to artists and their publicists, try to obtain merchandise that they could give to radio stations, coordinate interviews between artists and media outlets, and even indirectly tell Johnny Depp what to do.
Part of Grider’s role included trying to persuade artists to create shout out videos for the Meridian Entertainment Group shows. Hollywood Vampire, featuring Johnny Depp, shot a video mentioning their show at Soaring Eagle Casino.
“Watching something like that just again makes me feel like the work I am doing is impacting fans, artists and the music community,” Grider said. “I never thought I would have experiences like this in college.”
Talking on the phone with publicists and being in a constant professional environment made Grider comfortable speaking in front of others. He said he learned a lot about patience and dealing with all types of personalities.
During his undergraduate career Grider received the Sven Kins Scholarship Award, which helped him focus on gaining experience.
“There was never a day where I didn’t want to go to work,” Grider said. “The staff was incredible, the people were awesome and I was able to ask everyone the questions I had about the music industry.”
By Meg Dedyne
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