Troy holds BPM Expo

Troy’s John M. Long School of Music collaborated with Ilium Records to hold the Business, Production and Music Expo, better known as “BPM” last Thursday and Friday. 

Troy students and Pike County high school students joined forces for the two-day expo working toward one shared goal: creating and performing an original song. By the end of the clinic, that goal became a reality with “On My Own,” performed live Friday night. 

“We started this song from scratch,” said Chase Dawson, a senior interdisciplinary studies major from Phoenix, Arizona, and fiddler for POPulus. “We put together a melody and we wrote the lyrics. 

“It was an amazing experience putting it all together.” 

Christian Pate is a freshman music education major from Andalusia, Alabama, and a vocalist in POPulus. Pate had background and harmony parts on “On My Own” and said his first BPM experience was one to remember. 

“Jumping into something new is always a little scary, but I came in with high expectations, and it didn’t disappoint,” Pate said. “Even though we didn’t have a lot of time to put the song together, it was fun and wasn’t too difficult.”  

Through breakout sessions, songwriting workshops and live performances, students explored careers in the music industry while learning from Grammy-winning and nominated professionals, including guitarist Kevin Enstrom, music industry expert Matt Fulton and producer and engineer Tom Kahre. 

“It surprised me how receptive everyone has been,” Kahre said. “In these situations, you never know what the student's energy level and interest in anything we have to say will be. 

“Everyone has been really engaged and it’s been fun.” 

Dr. Chandler Bridges, an associate professor and the coordinator of Troy’s music industry program, said the expo helped students connect what they’ve learned in the classroom to real-world experience. 

“It connects what they’ve been learning with actually doing,” Bridges said. “The big idea is fundamentals make sense and some of the rules make sense, but until you actually practice it, it’s hard to understand how it all fits together. 

“This is an opportunity for them to see how their learning fits into practice in the real world.” 

The release date for “On My Own” has yet to be announced but is expected to be released sometime in May. Students can visit @populusband on Instagram for more information.