Riah Stevenson wants to work as a touring concert photographer for Top Dawg Entertainment, photographing their artists from smaller venues to arena shows with Kendrick Lamar. She has a passion for music and using photography to give voice to others. Her goals are to build her photography and music production skills through education and mentoring to grow her brand and portfolio in order to get an internship with Top Dawg Entertainment.
2. Arena
I want to work in the music
industry as a touring concert
photography for R&B/ Hip-Hop
artists on the Top Dawg
Entertainment Roster in Carson,
California. I will start
photographing the smaller artists
on the roster who perform in
small/intimate venues and
gradually move up to Kendrick
Lamar, their major artist, who
performs in arenas.
3. Identity
My name is Riah Stevenson. I am from Mississippi, the birthplace of blues, which I believe explains why I hold
music so closely to my heart. Mississippi is also a historically notorious land of inequality. This is a topic that I
also hold closely to my heart so I figured it would be a powerful and fulfilling way to live my life to combine
these two topics.
My purpose here on this Earth is to give voices to the voiceless. I fell in love with the art of storytelling through
music. I am passionate about being able to make a difference through the most powerful and universal
entertainment field: MUSIC. Partnered with still photography to represent the ideas told through stories in music,
this feels like an unstoppable force when making a difference!
Core Values:
• Respect
• Passion
• Intelligence
• Candor
• Creativity
4. Skills
My skills include:
• Efficient in photography software such as
Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Lightroom
• Nikon DSLR Camera operative
• Web design using Wordpress
• Active listening
• Active learning
• Speaking
• Social Perceptiveness
• Service Orientation
5. Profession
I am a story teller. I help to the story of those who use their
voice to change the world. I do this through photography,
specifically partnering with musicians- Hip Hop artists.
I always approach my work with a nontraditional mindset. I
never want to do things the same way every time. I want it to
fun but most importantly I want my work to inspire, challenge,
and change the way people view the way of the world. I aim to
make this world a better place by capturing important
moments from artists with the same ideals.
6. Credentials
• Bachelor of Science in Music Business expected graduation
date of 2020
• Professional experience working with talent
7. Promise
Lighting is a universal issue for all
photographers. I understand
photography and how good
lighting is a major factor to
produce an incredible image. I
also understand that flash is a
disturbance for the audience. I
promise to be considerate of the
artist as well as his/her audience
and pledge to never use flash and
to work with the lighting team to
collaborate and/or be informed of
good lighting moments.
8. Positioning
I understand the importance of being incognito while taking
pictures of performers as to not disturb their performance. This
means working without flash and without physically walking in
their way. To compensate I will make sure to work diligently
with the lighting team to put small quick lights on stage in
strategic areas as to get the perfect lighting as to be a part of
the show instead of a disturbance. I will also make sure to go
over lighting schedules so that I know when appropriate
lighting will come.
9. Audience
My audience is the A&R/ Management
executives at Top Dawg Entertainment.
They are the group of people who tour
with the artists. They are all mostly
active on Instagram and Twitter which
will allow me to interact with them as
well as make it easier to view the work
that I’ve done. They are family oriented
people which is what holds their
attention outside of the job.
I will also reach out to in house
photographers Andres Tardio, Parsons,
& Starks via email and Instagram to
inquire about an internship opportunity.
10. Networking & Marketing
To get the attention of my future employer I will first build a
strong portfolio that really speaks to my brand identity. Then I
will reach out to them via email and Instagram. I will send a
gift along with my resume to the office in Carson, California.
I am already a part of Grammy U. I hope to take my
membership to the California chapter where I will be able to
make connections in that particular market. I will also attend
various networking events that I come across.
11. Competitors
My competition is music photographers. Via LinkedIn my
competition is Bret Byers. He is a Los Angeles based music
photographer who has experience photographing Hip Hop
artists. He graduated from Otis College of Art and Design in 2004
with a bachelor in Fine Arts with an emphasis on photography.
He already has the experience and connections in LA that I do
not. Also, he went to college specifically for photography whereas
I am learning on my own and through a mentorship. He already
has a developed portfolio whereas I am just now building mine.
He has years over me, however, with time and experience I am
sure that I will get to his level and beyond.
12. Professional Development
I currently lack the business and some technical skills to be a photographer and
technical skills to be a music producer, which I foresee is the next level in my
professional development. To remedy this, I intend to enroll in the Music Production
Bachelor of Science program at Full Sail University in 2020. I understand that I will
learn how to use Quickbooks as I continue with my current bachelor in music business.
To learn video software I will use lynda.com to become certified. I will also use this
website to learn more about the music production process, software, and equipment
like songwriting, Logic Pro, and MIDI keyboards.
I currently have a mentor who teaches me the basics of photography and editing. We
lets me shadow his photoshoots and we discuss the photos after the shoot as well as
the edit at least one picture on the spot before the night is over. He is great at opening
my eyes to creative angles as well as lighting techniques and positioning. As I grow in
my professional career, I want a mentor who is experienced in music production and is
willing to teach me what she/he knows about the recording process, foundation of
songwriting, and how to identify an exceptional artist from a business perspective.
13. Goals
I will grow my brand awareness
online by developing and
publishing more music related
content to my social media
platforms. I will increase my brand
related content on Instagram by
50% by the time I graduate from
Full Sail University in May 2020.
14. REFERENCES
• Top Dawg Entertainment. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/topdawgent/
• 27-4021.00 - Photographers. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/27-4021.00
• INFO. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://christopherparsons.format.com/contact
• About. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.andrestardio.com/about
• Trigger. (2017, December 15). The Assault on Professional Concert Photography Finally Comes Into Focus.
Retrieved from https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/the-assault-on-professional-concert-photography-finally-
comes-into-focus/
• Instructables. (2017, October 04). How to Design a Basic Logo in Photoshop (York College). Retrieved from
https://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Design-a-Basic-Logo-in-Photoshop-York-Colle/https://
www.onetonline.org/link/summary/27-2012.01
• Cicero, C. (2018, January 07). Kendrick Lamar to perform at halftime for National Championship. Retrieved from
https://www.redandblack.com/culture/kendrick-lamar-to-perform-at-halftime-for-national-championship/
article_e44e98ba-f1d0-11e7-9a9d-8ba64e18dedf.html
• Full Sail University. (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.teenlife.com/college/full-sail-university/
• Bret Byers. (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/in/bret-byers-59354022/#experience-section
