UMG UNVEILS SPECIAL PROGRAMMING, MENTORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES FOR BLACK CREATIVES & STUDENTS

The initiative is the company's fourth since 2017 celebrating the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference.

Universal Music Group and its recently-established Task Force for Meaningful Change are celebrating the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference (CBC ALC) this year with a series of special programs, discussions and opportunities.
The celebrations kicked off last week with a trio of events, including the °1824 Mentorship Initiative, which selected 15 young Black creatives and college students for a new UMG mentorship program; an interactive recruitment workshop with UMG’s diversity & inclusion team; and a panel entitled “The Soundtrack to Change: A Discussion on Music and the Social Justice Movement” mounted by Republic Records’ Action Committee.


Other events and initiatives going forward will include “Black and Blue,” a live conversation on police brutality against Black and Brown communities hosted by Def Jam Forward with special guest Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) along with Def Jam artists Chuck D, Jadakiss and Bobby Sessions; “Music Mavens,” a discussion between women leaders across UMG with special guest Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL); and “The Art of Black Entrepreneurship & Brand Building,” a panel hosted by IGA with special guest Rep. Yvette Clark (D-NY).
This is the fourth year UMG has celebrated the CBC Foundation’s Annual Legislative Conference. Past years have included appearances by politicians, executives and artists including U.S. Senator and current Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris, Meek Mill, BJ the Chicago Kid and Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-NY).
Unveiled in the wake of massive nationwide protests that sprang up following the May 25 killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers, the Task Force for Meaningful Change was designed to review UMG’s commitment to addressing issues of equality and inclusion inside the company and beyond. UMG simultaneously unveiled a $25 million “Change Fund” designated to further racial justice in multiple arenas.