Jessie Monville

I attribute my success to every single person who helped me get to this point, from an education standpoint and a client standpoint. A lot of people really believed in my journey and in me, and I definitely couldn't be here without every one of them.

The best career advice I ever received was from Deborah Wagner, who I still call my mentor. She's an entertainment attorney, and her advice was to always maintain your integrity. You can't buy that.

The honest advice I give all the time, and it's not necessarily popular, but it's the truth, is to understand that this industry is still a bit antiquated. That doesn't mean you have to agree with it, you just have to understand it. You will have to work 10 times harder than the person next to you, depending on your role, but most of the time. If you believe in yourself, it's worth it, and it'll pay off in the end. If you stick with it, eventually you will be seen for your work and not your gender, so just hang in there. Don't give up. And it's not everyone, it's just some.

Additionally, I would like to add that in terms of the challenges I notice in the business (below), I do not see many take the following advice, but it truly has a near 100% success rate. If someone really wants to make a living on the business side, and they do not wish to work in a corporate entry level position, find an internship where the mentor is providing a wide range of tasks to see what you are interested in and best suited for. Take that opportunity to figure out some way that you can make things more efficient or beneficial for the mentor that they are not currently doing, and pitch that to the mentor. Likely, if you are willing to consider a commission in return for your services that you created, it is likely you will be well on your way to growing that into a role that will earn an offer for hourly or salaried pay.

Be dependable. Create a value. Roll with the unpredictability of the business. Enjoy the ride.

From the perspective of the back-end of the business, it seems there are as many people wishing to work in the business as we traditionally see. However, in many cases, the rose colored glasses of what working as an "invisible one" entails are a bit more distorted than I recall. Often I notice an expectation to come into the business with little to no experience, little to no understanding of key terms and industry language, yet an expectation to hit the ground running with a wage most do not see for a couple years of education/interning and/or hands on experience to "earn the seat". This is difficult because on the one hand, I understand their wishes and wish for everyone that this business provides fair pay to all coming in, and staying in. However, the nature of the business, particularly in commissioned roles, is that you must build your network and skills in order to earn the pay you seek. There are ways to come with pay and benefits, and I do share that with information when asked. If stability right out of the gate is sought, I recommend starting out at a studio or label in an entry level role and putting in the years there to gain the basic understanding and knowledge necessary to providing a benefit as an independent manager or other similar music business role. This is an unusual business in that it is not enough to show up. To be successful you must be adaptable to a wide variety of personality types that come from the creative space and while you may not need to have all the answers, building the skills and tools to know where to go to get the correct answers is a critical skill that can only come with being mentored by experienced professionals which is generally through internships.

The values most important to me in my work and personal life are honesty, transparency, trust, and dependability.