Six months after the announcement of a partnership between global entertainment procurement experts, the SMC Group and The Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts (EMCVPA) to boost Jamaica’s creative industries through direct investments in the institution, The SMC Group has selected final-year student Chelsie Gregory for a year-long apprenticeship programme with the company.

Gregory, who is completing a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Arts Management and Humanities will not only have her final-year tuition covered by the SMC Group but will spend the next year, under the expert guidance of the company, discovering, developing and marketing Jamaican creative talent.

“I am very excited about and grateful for this opportunity not just for me but for what this opportunity means for other creatives. The mandate of this apprenticeship programme is, in addition to developing me as a creative manager, find and develop other local talents, producers, artistes, dancers and so on and provide them with platforms and opportunities through SMC’s international network,” Gregory said.

Global CEO of the SMC Group, Maurice Hamilton said the apprenticeship programme is just the latest in the company’s investment in boosting the country’s creative industries.

Earlier in May, the SMC Group pledged an initial investment of US$30,000 to the EMCVPA to establish a fully equipped music production studio that will develop the talents of local songwriters, producers, and artistes attending the institution.

“Over the past few months, we have been making great strides in the work that we are doing to advance the local creative industry. Chelsie is a perfect representation of the type of talent and passion that we are looking to invest in as we work to boost, formalise and monetise the creativity that we have here in abundance. We are very excited to take Chelsie under our wings and work with her over the next year to do what it is that she is passionate about which is to develop and manage creative talent,” Hamilton said.

Over the next year, the SMC Group, which operates in 17 markets across five continents, will be supporting Gregory in finding and developing local creative talent, tapping into its wide network to find opportunities for their growth and the exportation of their work.