Conversations with Sierra Lever

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sierra Lever.

Hi Sierra, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Before stepping foot into the music industry, I devoted a lot of my time to producing concerts & festivals in high school and college. At 17 years old, I would use the money I saved up towards planning concerts that showcased local talent in my hometown, Portland, OR. While attending college at Oregon State University (OSU), I’d partner with a couple of friends to book artists such as Big K.R.I.T., 9th Wonder, Rhapsody, Too Short & more for concerts off-campus and then took the opportunity to join OSUs Memorial Union Program Council as the Festival Coordinator.

I was determined that while in this position, I would make sure the campus experienced its first-ever hip-hop headlining show. Understanding the audience, I booked Macklemore & Ryan Lewis as the first-ever hip-hop headline act for the college’s largest annual event, Dam Jam (formally known as Flat Tail Music Festival). It was the largest attended festival to date, with over 10k festival goers, and set the trend of hip hop acts as headliners on-campus to follow for six consecutive years (artists such as Hoodie Allen, Mike Posner, B.O.B., T-Pain, Amine, Kyle). After graduating from OSU, I landed a gig working at the Nike Inc. headquarters in the Global Meetings & Events department where I worked on event logistics for the LeBron James Skills Academy.

A few months down the line, I made a tough decision to leave a promising role at Nike to enroll in graduate school at Syracuse University (SU) to pursue a degree in Sport Venue & Event Management. While attending graduate school, my passion for music persisted and so I picked up gigs in production across every show I could get my hands on (whether it was physically building the stages, operating the lighting and soundboards, serving as VIP talent liaison, and handling media requests). After graduating from SU, I booked a flight to Los Angeles for an internship with The Recording Academy, which is a true testament of manifestation and going after what I wanted despite the doubts of others. It was the opportunity of my dreams, and I give honor, love and respect to Yvonne Faison (former Recording Academy LA Chapter, Sr. Membership Manager) for seeing something great enough in me to give such an invaluable opportunity, an open door into the music industry.

After my internship, I then went on to temp in multiple departments at The Recording Academy and gained a larger scope of the organization as a whole and worked at my first GRAMMY Awards show and many significant GRAMMY week events. I then pursued a role in marketing for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association (LA Phil), marketing amazing concerts (across Classical, Jazz, Latin, Pop/Rock/Folk, World Music, and more.) at some of LA’s most iconic venues including the Hollywood Bowl and Walt Disney Concert Hall. At this point, I knew that music served my highest passions, so I entered the record label business. I worked in marketing at Motown Records and Capitol Records, working on projects for acts in both hip hop and pop genres, including artists such as Stefflon Don, Migos, Lil Baby, Zaytoven, Sam Smith, Niall Horan & more. A few years later, I found my way into my current role as an Associate Marketing Director at Columbia Records.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road hasn’t been smooth, but what I remind myself is that this is a road of my own, designed specifically for me. Along the way, there have been highs, lows, challenges, pivots and successes, but going after what you want and making it happen takes courage, commitment, perseverance and resilience. At one point in my journey, I struggled to land a full-time job and to afford a place to live, but in my heart I knew there was more for me to discover in music. I’d drive back and forth from Phoenix (where my Dad lived) to Los Angeles for job interviews and for short-term temp jobs. However, I didn’t do it all on my own. Over the course of my journey – and still to this day – I’ve been fortunate enough to have influential mentors and close friends (within and outside of the music industry) who have believed in me, supported me, welcomed me into their home, inspired me, and pushed me towards stepping into my greatness.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I currently work at Columbia Records as an Associate Marketing Director. When you’re in marketing at a record label, you’re involved with every piece of an artist’s development and music promotion. Nothing is off limits when developing the overall campaign strategy. In this role, I work closely with the artist, their management, and the label internal team to ensure we have the best plan for an artist’s overall brand and music cycle. In my time at Columbia Records, I’ve worked across marketing album and single campaigns for artists including Chloe x Halle, 24kGoldn, The Kid LAROI, Lil Nas X, Fivio Foreign, Polo G, Tyga and more. Most recently, four artists I work with were named part of XXL’s 2020 Freshman Class, which is an incredible recognition for an artist’s career. It’s a celebratory moment for all of the hard work that the artist, management and the supporting teams put in every day to make these achievements like this happen.

Additionally, I currently sit on the Black Employees (BE) Board at Sony Pictures Ent. as the Events Co-chair, where we serve to foster an environment of inclusion and visibility for Black employees and storytellers with events serving black voices, culture and experiences.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
In the next 5-10 years, there’s really no telling with how quickly trends are becoming fads. I see more artists start to identify themselves as genre-fluid, as well as artists being more vocal about their resistance to being placed in a box. There’s definitely been more openness and desire to experiment in creating genre-bending music. Which means the marketer and teams supporting an artist will need to diversify their approach in business partnerships, collaborations, artist development, and overall promotional strategy.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sierralever/?hl=en