UPDATED: March 6, 2017 at 8:40 p.m.

With a communication and rhetorical studies major and minor in public communications on an advertising track, fifth-year Erica Hall has been able to hone skills that will help market herself in a highly competitive field.

“My dream is to be as influential as possible through music, so whatever that ends up being, I just want to connect with people and be a positive influence,” she said.

She admires the CRS department’s flexibility and has been able to take several music industry courses, such as record production, audio engineering and music business. With these classes, Hall has learned the ins and outs of the music world.

“A lot of people don’t know the stuff by the book and get screwed a lot on the business side because only about 40 percent of this is about the music. Other stuff is about branding, advertising, marketing yourself and building a brand,” Hall said.

Based off current artist trends, Hall believes remaining independent without a label is the current state of the industry. She admires Chance the Rapper and attended his show in Schine Underground just four years ago.

Chance, the 23-year-old rapper, has never sold his music and recently made history by becoming the first independent artist to take home three awards at the 2017 Grammy Awards.

“I respect his message and his artistry. He takes it very seriously and he has a message,” she said.

Hall said all of her own music is very personal because she only writes about her own experiences and of those close to her. She is currently working on her first mixtape titled “Sorry Four The Weight,” which she plans to release by the end of this semester.

“It’s about my dream, and about how I got to this point and figuring out what I want to do in life, and getting over the hump of working towards that and becoming into who I am as a person,” she said.

Hall has a relaxed demeanor which helps her stay calm while balancing schoolwork, music and extracurricular activities like playing on Syracuse University’s women’s club basketball team. However, she said she puts the most effort into her mixtape since it’s the activity most important to her.

“I try to fill my life up with as much stuff that I love to do,” Hall said. “I think that as long as you’re always being creative and doing things that you’re passionate about, that’s what keeps me happy and keeps me at a good place mentally and keeps me going. It makes the stuff that I don’t really like as much, like school, worth it.”

CORRECTION: In a previous version of this post, the mixtape “Sorry Four The Weight” was misnamed. The Daily Orange regrets this error.

Published on March 5, 2017 at 8:33 pm

Contact Caroline: caschagr@syr.edu