By Ben Yonas, Music Production & Audio Recording at the School of Music, Georgia State University
Nestled in the vibrant core of downtown Atlanta, the School of Music at Georgia State University is perfectly positioned at the crossroads of the world’s music production capital and the rapidly growing film industry. This prime location offers unparalleled opportunities to educate and nurture the next generation of artists, musicians, and industry leaders. With Atlanta’s rich history as a cultural hub and a global trendsetter in music and entertainment, the University stands at the forefront, shaping the future of the music industry and beyond.
Georgia State University (GSU) has long been a leader in music industry education, with a program that has recently evolved into an experiential incubator for producers, artists, and aspiring executives. This transformation gained momentum in 2022 through the support of a Research Innovation & Scholarly Excellence (RISE) grant from GSU’s President Blake. With this backing, MTM Standard LLC was established as a student-run music company, focusing on three main areas: record label services (MTM Distribution), event production (MTM Presents), and music licensing (MTM Sync).
MTM Standard offers students a unique opportunity to kickstart their careers in the entertainment industry while still in school. Founded by Professors of Practice Al Thrash and Ben Yonas—both seasoned music industry veterans who continue to work with award-winning artists—MTM Standard empowers students to create, produce, and market their music, all while retaining rights to their recordings. The sync division, MTM Sync, is particularly groundbreaking; while many universities have student-led record labels, GSU may be the first to establish a student-led sync agency, helping students place their songs in TV shows, movies, and commercials.
As Yonas explains, “MTM’s mission is to empower a diverse community of exceptional students as next-generation transformational thinkers in the music industry. We are so excited about our Sync initiative, which is already helping students discover new pathways to success in a competitive industry.”
The Importance of Synchronization Licensing
The rise of video streaming and gaming services has led to a surge in the demand for music across a diverse range of media, including movies, television shows, video games, and advertisements. This trend was particularly evident in 2022 when synchronization revenue experienced impressive growth of 24.8%, according to the Recording Industry Association of America’s Year-End Revenue Statistics. Even in 2023, a year in which film and TV production was shut down for a significant portion of the year due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, Sync Revenue grew 4.7%.
MTM Sync
Launched in April 2023, the MTM Standard Sync division hosted a Sync Meetup at GSU, welcoming students and the public to engage with industry professionals. Five of the top music supervisors were flown in for a weekend dedicated to all things sync. During this event, over 20 of MTM Standard’s student artists showcased their original music in an exclusive listening session. The weekend also featured panels and workshops on music supervision, licensing, and publishing.
The success of this initial meetup paved the way for a repeat event in Spring 2024, which saw an even larger turnout, with ten music supervisors in attendance and nearly double the number of participants. Among the success stories emerging from these meetups was Nigerian-born student-artist Arize, who secured a sync placement for his original recording “Blood Diamond” in the Paramount Network series Black Ink Crew. Arize remarked, “MTM Sync has done a phenomenal job of not only educating me about the game of publishing as it relates to sync but also giving me real-world experience by creating the framework to land me my first placement on network TV.” Additionally, fellow MTM Standard artist John Yesha landed a sync placement for his original recording “365” in the student-led feature film Rejuvenation under the guidance of industry veteran Tom Luse.
Today’s artists face significant challenges in cutting through the noise and navigating algorithms for success on streaming platforms and social media. As Professor Thrash shared “sync licensing offers one of the last truly equitable opportunities in the music industry. Independent artists with few followers and streams can compete on the same level as established musicians with millions of followers when it comes to securing sync placements.”
This article appeared in the 2025 edition of the Creative Economy Journal. See more from the Journal here.
