By Andrew Hampp @ahampp

VH1 president Tom Calderone and legendary rapper Darryl “DMC” McDaniels will help give 20 current and former NFL players a crash course in the music industry as part of the NFL Business of Music Boot Camp at New York University’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music in New York. Returning for a second year, the program runs from March 18 to 21. In addition to new members Calderone and McDaniels, the Boot Camp will also welcome returning faculty Jonathan Daniel, founder and partner at Crush Management; Michael “Blue” Wiliams, CEO of Family Tree Entertainment and Michael Solomon, co-founder of Musicians On Call.

The four-day boot camp will include interactive workshops detailing music production, artist development and management, digital music, publishing, marketing and touring. Participating NFL players are Alex Bannister (former SEA, BLT) Tyvon Branch (OAK), Joshua Bush (NYJ), Sammy Davis Former (SD, SF, TB), Quintin Demps (STL), Justin Durant (DET), Jermichael Finley (GB), Oliver Gibson (former PIT, CIN), Eric Heitmann (former SF), Brian Holloway (former NE, LAR), Antonio Johnson (IND), Bryant McKinnie (BALT), William Moore (ATL), Joshua Norman (former SD), Nathan Palmer (IND), Julian Posey (MIA), Michael Preston (TEN), Jonathan Scott (CHI), Stephen Spach (former PHI, NE, ARZ, SL, JAX) and Leon Williams (KC.)

“We are excited to again offer our players a program with NYU’s Clive Davis Institute, which counts some of the biggest names in the music industry as faculty,” Troy Vincent, the NFL’s senior VP of player engagement, said in a statement.

“Succeeding in the recorded music industry requires many of the same attributes found in successful athletes — focus, commitment and passion — so the participants in the Boot Camp are starting out ahead,” added Jeff Rhaban, Chair of the Clive Davis Institute at NYU. “What we provide the players with is expert coaching in a new field, and they leave with a much tighter grasp of how the industry works and how best they can compete in it.”

Article Source:billboard.com