John Murphy

Music has occupied my waking thoughts for as long as I can remember. My very first memory is of bouncing on couch cushions to a screaming R&B song by The Contours off a Motown's Greatest Hits album when I was 3 years old. The cushions were so big and I was so small it was as if trampolines covered the floor. There was an unmistakable energy in the room and from that moment on I was hooked on music.

After exhausting the Motown's Greatest Hits LP and Aretha Franklin's I Never Loved A Man, I soon fell in love with Elvis and The Beatles. From there I was ushered into the world of classic rock, which latched onto me and has yet to shake lose.
To get close and personal with my fascination, I finally begged my way into guitar lessons when I was 5. I chose the standup bass for school when I was 10 and started my classical education.

I played guitar, bass guitar, double bass, and sang in several different ensembles, orchestras, jazz combos and various bands - finding new genres and artists along the way.
Amidst numerous performances in high school, I eventually reached a revelation: a career in performance was quite unattractive. I prodded through the music industry for an alternative, first enticed by recording and production, of which I started pursued and gained some experience (especially after a project with a recording arts professor at Berkelee College of Music).

But after more research, my attention was quickly captured by promotion due to my fascination for the messages in advertising. I’m drawn to solving the puzzle of promotion much more than being onstage or in a recording booth.

I'm currently in a program at UMass Amherst for Music Marketing & Management and with each class have only become more excited at my affinity for the industry.

As a creative individual with inspired ideas, strong language skills, I have a passion for thinking about artists and their cultural impact. I've slowly become obsessed with analyzing about how artists reach success. It's clear that those who are lasting are able to tap into a specific element of the human condition.

I've worked extensively with social media – Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Tumblr, Instagram, Youtube, and Soundcloud (and respective analytic tools) through two marketing internships. At my most recent internship at Iron Horse Entertainment Group in Northampton, I utilized social media to increase ticket sales/awareness.