After walking the halls of IAR and speaking to students, it does not take long to realize that many are already entrepreneurs pursuing their own music and entertainment business ventures. Vince Austin, a student in his third quarter, has been running VIP Underground, for 2 years with partner Duane May. VIP Underground is their online social network that provides free advertising for all New York City events and hosts photos of those events. Partygoers, concert lovers, and socialites can join the website, become members, create profiles and interact with other members similar to the popular networks Myspace and Facebook.

As the President and Event Coordinator for VIP Underground, Vince is in constant contact with club owners and members of elite street teams, to learn when and where events will be and arrange for VIP Underground’s photographers to be present. Vince also maintains the website.

Vince attends IAR to learn about music production and audio engineering, and about the business of music. Vince says of his IAR experience: “I am developing a broader background of music with real hands-on experience. IAR has helped me understand what perfect sound is and what the world craves to hear. Not only has IAR taught me the fundamentals of audio engineering and production, but the school has its own great community, similar to VIP Underground, and I meet many people with a love for music and make lasting friendships that will help me with my future goals. After IAR, I plan to become an Artist Manager. Then I really want to get into publishing and distribution.” To learn more and join the community, visit vipunderground.com.