Brooklyn’s Roc Nation School grows with new programs, industry giants

BROOKLYN - The Roc Nation School of Music, Sports, and Entertainment at Long Island University is back in session. Launched in the fall of 2021 with five undergraduate programs in music and sports, the program has now expanded to six, along with a graduate program in sports management.

Jay-Z's Roc Nation is a global entertainment company offering management, label, publishing, touring, and film/TV services. 

Since its partnership with LIU, it has provided students with a world-class education in downtown Brooklyn, just two miles from where Jay-Z was raised in The Marcy Projects.

Jay-Z makes an announcement of the launch of Dream Chasers record label in joint venture with Roc Nation, at the Roc Nation headquarters on Tuesday, July 23, 2019, in New York. (Photo by Greg Allen/Invision/AP)

"Roc Nation has been an incredible partner, and I think that's the benefit of having an active partner," said Roc Nation School Dean Tressa Cunningham. She added, "The courses are rooted in theory."

"We've benefited from partnerships with Wieden+Kennedy, Condé Nast, VFiles, and JPMorgan Chase to create courses that are relevant, interesting, and applicable to students' day-to-day lives and future careers."

Cunningham says leveraging Roc Nation's connections with industry leaders like Sony, iHeartMedia, Paramount, and Live Nation has created valuable internship opportunities. Jordan Calixto, a senior Music Technology Entrepreneurship and Production major from Elizabeth, New Jersey, has been with the program since its launch and interned at Roc Nation and Interscope, home to artists like Kendrick Lamar and Billie Eilish.

"I have a lot of friends who are engineering students at Princeton, Rutgers, and other schools in New Jersey, where I'm from. We share similar experiences in terms of classes and homework, but I'm learning what it takes to be a great entertainer," says Calixto. He adds, "Another unique aspect of our school is that our faculty are actively participating in the industries we’re learning about."

Jordan is referring to Adjunct Faculty Member Anthony Cruz, a Grammy-nominated engineer for Meek Mill's Championships, and Young Guru, a Grammy-winning engineer who has mixed 10 of Jay-Z's 11 albums, according to his website.

Every month, students engage with industry giants through the Speaker Series, held in the Kumble Theatre, which accommodates more than 300 guests.

"In addition to quality academics inside the classroom, students participate in programming outside the classroom, like our industry speaker series. We've been fortunate to have Adam Silver from the NBA, Michael Rubin from Fanatics, Fat Joe, and many more."

Driven by a passion for music and sports, Cunningham notes that 53% of students are from out of state. The Hope Scholarship provides full scholarships to 25% of each incoming class, a goal Cunningham says the university has exceeded every semester.

Jordan, an inaugural class member who enrolled during the pandemic, will graduate this May. He plans either to work for a label as an engineer or collaborate with classmates to release music.