My name is Tolu and I am a student at Coventry University studying Digital Marketing, doing my placement with BURN. My role involves content creation, developing a digital presence and growing our organisation’s social media accounts.
Before this placement I was, a member of the music group, Light Heavy Records, created by BURN. Alongside my studies during my free time, I attended weekly workshops with other artists and musicians . In the process we created an album. After recording several songs, we were helped to mix and master them to an industry standard level. We even hosted an event over the summer to mark the launch of the record label and I was very grateful for the opportunity performed my songs in front of my friends, families and followers.
Doing this placement gives me the chance to blend two of my passions, marketing and music together. I believe it is extremely important to do what you have a passion for otherwise life becomes dry and monotonous. There are many young people like me in our community who also have passions wether it is music, dancing, sports etc but sometimes they do not have the resources to act on those passions, or in certain situations, especially in urban environments, circumstances surrounding young people lead them into a lifestyle below their potential where their talents are under-utilised. Burn was established to support people like that and I want to be a part of making that happen.
BURN is a small organisation in its early years which means that it is relatively obscure to the public. This could be seen as challenging but I think it presents me with a the opportunity to learn to be more creative with my marketing practice as well as how to be effective with a little budget. Being small also means that we are a close knit team which I prefer to work in, knowing every one in the organisation and being able to go to directly to my manager to immediately sort out issues helps a lot.
I have an entrepreneurial nature that I have been able to explore with BURN. In the future I hope to pursue music and marketing as an independent career path. A lot of people are only aware of the “art” side of music, but the best musicians understand that there is a balance between art and business that makes a great musician. That is why I see myself as a brand and with my talent, knowledge and skillset, I am able to blend my passion of music with marketing. I want to create a marketing agency to help small businesses, artists and organisations to develop their brand presence, and perform effectively in the online space.
Currently, I am almost finished with building my own multi-purpose studio at home. It was a project that I started over the summer to convert my shed into a creative space with which to jumpstart my digital presence. I will be producing music, podcasts and photography with the purpose of building my fan base, connecting with the digital community of likeminded individuals, creators and professionals.
If you would like to know more about me, I have a facebook page called “deazylyf community” or you can visit my social pages via the handle “deazylyf” on all other platforms.
In the mean time my role here is to update this website and develop a content strategy to increase its traffic. I am very grateful for the opportunity to work at BURN as a Digital Marketing Intern. I feel responsible for the success of this organisation and I will do my best to contribute to its digital effectiveness.