Emory students selected for internship with Jermaine Dupri and So So Def Records

ATLANTA - Four Emory University students are getting a first-hand look at how some of the biggest names in music make it happen. Grammy Award-winning producer Jermaine Dupri and So So Def Records welcomed the students as part of a new internship program.

Luccas Perez and David Qiu have a passion for music. Both had been working for years on their music dreams, producing songs and performing. When the Emory University students heard about a new six-week internship program with Dupri and So So Def, they jumped at it.
 
"Honestly, when I saw this internship in an email, I’ve never clicked a button so quickly. I applied right away," Qiu said.

What we know:

Qiu and Perrez were selected along with Ella Ferguson and Emmett Roth. Dupri says he has always tried to have interns in his business, but this was the first time he's had a program with Emory University. He sees the partnership with the school as a new connection for him.
 
"I like to sit around and listen to them just to be like, 'Oh, this is what y’all think. This is what people think is going to happen.' I believe that all CEO should have interns - at least college interns - because you’ll definitely hear something that you weren’t thinking about your business," Dupri told Good Day's Lindsay Tuman.

Luccas Perez and David Qiu at So So Def Studios (FOX 5)

The students say the experience has already been incredible.
 
"But then on a different day, you might be in the studio working with Brian Michael Cox or Drew - those are Usher’s engineers - and they'll ask you for your opinions on this record they’re cutting, and then all of a sudden you’re very important. They want your opinion, they want your thoughts on things so that they can send it to other artists and all that," Perez said.

The other side:

Dupri says he wants the students to be in the action, and get a first-hand look at what it takes to put together a hit.
 
"They’re going to get first-hand training. A first-hand look at, you know, life in the fast lane as far as the music goes. Like people making records, people talking about records, people doing things, people pushing the envelope in the music business. They’re gonna see that all day here. That’s what happens," Dupri said.

Grammy Award-winning producer Jermaine Dupri (FOX 5)

 
While the students see how the team behind artists like Usher and Bow Wow produce new music, Dupri says he is also learning from the students. He says he hopes the partnership with the school will open a door and bring new talent to his record label.
 
"I hope I get something out of it. I hope I gain an employee, like a real person who actually wants to do this," he said.
 
One thing the students say they've already learned through this opportunity is to chase their dreams.
 
"I feel like no dream is too big. You just ... you don’t dream crazy enough if I’ve learned anything," Qiu said.