More than 25 GRAMMY U students gathered at the historic Ryman Auditorium on March 3 for GRAMMY SoundChecks with Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds. Before the soundcheck started, students had the chance to meet Babyface's musical director and L.A. Chapter Board member Rob Lewis. Lewis is involved in many creative roles in the industry including musical director, arranger, composer and producer and has worked with artists such as Christina Aguilera, Fantasia, 50 Cent, Herbie Hancock, Patti LaBelle and Brian McKnight to name a few. Lewis conducted a question-and-answer session with the students and discussed his career path as a musician and music business professional.
Babyface joined the students following his concert soundcheck, which consisted of numerous No. 1 songs from throughout his career. "You never know what direction your career will take," Babyface explained. "If I kept some of the songs I wrote for myself and didn't pitch them to outside artists, they may have never been hits." Babyface gave the students great examples of how certain doors closed for him while others would open and ultimately turn out to be better options. He emphasized the notion of being open and aware of the opportunities that present themselves on your musical journey.