Meet Destiny Wilkey | Co-Founder & President

We had the good fortune of connecting with Destiny Wilkey and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Destiny, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Music United Scholars Innovating Change Society also known as MUSIC Society was founded in October 2021 by my friend, Caycee Stallworth, and me, Destiny Wilkey. During that time, the pandemic was at a high peak. It affected all students socially, emotionally, and physically changing our whole mindset of what the college experience is supposed to be like. We both realized with continuing our journey at Georgia State University in the heart of Atlanta as music management students that there were few opportunities to connect with fellow students interested in music. That is when we both decided that we were going to create a student organization at Georgia State University focused on providing connections, community, and change through music for all students. MUSIC Society became a music-appreciation organization utilizing workshops to help grow future music business innovators, an inclusive safe space for music lovers to have fun, and most importantly an advocate for all student artists to perform and have a voice on campus.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a full-time student at Georgia State University in my senior year majoring in music management/industry and my professional career began advancing when I started school. My past experience includes being a Studio Intern at Deaf Star Recording Studios, an A&R Intern/Music Assistant at a record label and artist development company called So Am I-Worthy geared towards elevating the music career of minority female singers and/ or songwriters, and a Record Label Administrative Intern at Heart Dance Records, a women-run record label with the goal of creating music to help with healing, relaxation, and meditation. Currently, I am a Campus Tour Guide and Housing Social Ambassador at Georgia State University providing guidance for students to explore the campus and I am a social media personality to help prospective students along their college journey. I have also advanced from an intern to an Administrative Assistant at Heart Dance Records presently. With all of the work experience I have previously mentioned, I feel like one thing they all have in common is the aspect of helping provide assistance in some way for an artist or student. Furthermore, my willingness to help others and advocate for underrepresented groups is what I believe sets me apart from others. Being a part of the creation of MUSIC Society is what I am most proud of. All of my past experiences have led me to this moment where I can now help student creatives and provide a platform for them. To me, nothing is truly easy, but it depends on if I have a positive outlook on what the future can be. I overcame challenges by visualizing the end goal of MUSIC Society and my professional life. Every time I felt like not enough people were at our events, I focused on the people who were there and thought of the student outreach we have sitting right in front of me and it will only continue to grow. Now we have 125 members currently. I learned that one person can really use their voice to change our society even if it is just a few students. I also learned not to be afraid and to believe in myself that I can be that person that changes the world. I want the world to be inspired by MUSIC Society and continue to change the world through music.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Some interesting places to visit in Atlanta are downtown near the Georgia State University campus. Sweet Stack is a great place to get ice cream with your friends. My favorite place to get bubble tea is Moge Tee. I also like to go to The Hub on Peachtree St which is an underground mall with various restaurants to eat inside. Underground Atlanta is a popular location many students like to go to for music and art-related events and live performances. The most exciting things in Atlanta to check out our the independent artists from Atlanta who perform at open mics at places like Kat’s Cafe and Apache XLR,

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would like to dedicate my shoutout to the MUSIC Society family and to all of the Georgia State Students who made MUSIC Society possible by participating in our events, sharing their thoughts and opinions about music from a student perspective, and for all of the positive interactions and life-long connections I have been able to make at Georgia State. I want to shoutout the leadership team, Co-founder, Caycee Stallworth, Vice President- Nia Carter, Secretary- Gianna Mcleggan, and Tresearuer- Jada Young for being amazing friends and supporting the goals of MUSIC Society. I honestly cannot thank you enough for always believing in me and having the best interest of our organization at heart. Last but not least, I want to thank our advisor, professor, and friend, Scott Keniley, for advocating for the existence of our student organization at Georgia State on our behalf and on behalf of students in the music industry program. Thank you all for making my years at Georgia State University the best four years of my life. I have grown so much because of you all and will never forget all of the musical moments we have made together.

Website: https://pin.gsu.edu/organization/musicsociety

Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsociety_gsu?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/destiny-wilkey-b85044203