Nearly two dozen Atlanta youths gathered in the City Hall atrium Monday morning, wearing T-shirts with “Rico Wade Music Executive Training Program” printed on front and “Class of 2024″ on the sleeves. The young ladies and gentlemen represented the first cohorts of the Rico Wade Music Executive Training Program, which launched in May.
It’s an initiative named for and inspired by Wade, the late Atlanta music pioneer who cofounded the Dungeon Family and was part of the legendary music production trio Organized Noize. Mayor Andre Dickens first announced the program during funeral services at Ebenezer Baptist Church after Wade passed away unexpectedly in April.
Wade guided the careers of OutKast, Goodie Mob, TLC, T.I. and Future, and was known for shedding his own ego to champion talented musical artists. The Rico Wade Music Executive Training Program, like its namesake, is an effort to continue his legacy by connecting young people with professionals across all aspects of the business.
At the program’s inaugural commencement ceremony, participants heard messages of support and encouragement from city officials, Dungeon Family members and Wade’s own children.
Proudly rocking his shirt, Andrew Mayson Jr., a rising Therrell High School senior who took part in the cohort for ages 14 through 17, said the training was a great learning experience that will help him decide what he wants to do after graduation. The other cohort included participants ages 18-24.
Mayson’s favorite part of the program was a trip the students took to an Atlanta radio station.
“The people we met inside and what they had to say got me really intrigued about it,” he said. “They made me want to do something like that one day.”
Phillana Williams, director for the Mayor’s Office of Film, Entertainment and Nightlife delivered the opening remarks.
“Music executives have done a lot to pave the way for not only the incredible artists that we see, but the music and the visuals,” Williams said of the program led by the Mayor’s Office of Film and Entertainment, which she codirects.
“We felt like it was fitting for the City of Atlanta to have a program where we trained our young Atlantans to become part of this fast-growing and ever-changing business.”
Credit: Joshua Spruiel / City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Communications
Credit: Joshua Spruiel / City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Communications
In his address to the cohorts, Dickens emphasized the importance of “paying it forward” with the training program, which he says is fit to carry Wade’s name.
“As we all know, music plays an incredible part in the city’s history and the city’s culture … much of that global influence started with Rico Wade, Organized Noize and the Dungeon Family,” he said.
The training program spans five weeks. Participants in the older cohort had the opportunity to receive on-the-job training with one of four music business companies: ONErpm, Sony Music Publishing, Stankonia Studios and United Talent Agency.
Two graduates were also chosen to receive a home studio from Q Parker at the event.
Wade’s indelible mark on his hometown was echoed by other influential music minds he molded.
Ray Murray, Wade’s Dungeon Family and Organized Noize cofounder, offered his advice to the graduates on their future endeavors in the music industry.
“Don’t quit. Keep going,” Murray said. “You have a support system so you can succeed … I would hope that you guys would be role models, would try to be outstanding individuals, and would try to be as remembered or as influential as Rico Wade has been, and is.”
Murray, Wade and Sleepy Brown’s Organized Noize production team are credited with fusing hip-hop with live instrumentation, crafting the sound of Atlanta and bringing attention to oft-overlooked Black creatives. The latter rings true with the program.
“We’re trying to make sure that our people have a way out,” Murray said.
Kawan “KP the Great” Prather said he considers himself to be the “first graduate” of the program of training young music executives, as he was taken under Wade’s wing at a young age.
Credit: Joshua Spruiel / City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Communications
Credit: Joshua Spruiel / City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Communications
“You can’t talk about Rico without talking about his giving spirit,” said Prather, who was an influential music executive at LaFace Records. “That was one of the things that helped all of us because he helped people who didn’t deserve it sometimes.”
From the stage Prather also commended Wade’s son, Ryder, for being in the inaugural year of the training program. The younger of Wade’s two sons said his interest and ambitions in the music industry started early.
“Being around it at a very young age, being backstage and just seeing how they made the crowd react, I was like ‘Yeah, I gotta do it,’” he said.
Orlando McGhee, another mentee of Wade who became Organized Noize’s manager, reminded the audience that other acts, including superstar Atlanta rapper Future who is Wade’s cousin, got their starts in “The Dungeon,” Wade’s mother’s basement.
“One of the things I like to profess to people is Rico invested a lot into people,” McGhee said. “For this program to come into fruition, I’m sure he has a big smile on his face because of what it stands for — investment in people and their careers.”
Credit: Joshua Spruiel / City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Communications
Credit: Joshua Spruiel / City of Atlanta Mayor's Office of Communications
The Dungeon crew is a real family for Ryder Wade — one that taught him critical lessons about the music industry and life in general. He said he plans to take what he’s learned from his father, the extended Organized Noize family and the program with him as he goes forward.
“Every accomplishment from now on is for my father,” he said. “And I’m determined to reach newer and greater heights.”
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