On May 10, more than 200 members of Berklee Online’s class of 2025 will come together in Boston to take part in this year’s Commencement ceremony. This moment celebrates not only the completion of their bachelor’s programs, but also the connections they’ve built, the obstacles they’ve overcome, and the music and meaning they’ve created along the way. We’re shining a spotlight on five standout graduates whose stories exemplify where determination can take you.

​In this excerpt from Anthony Vitti and Lenny Stallworth’s Slap Bass course, you’ll learn to craft dynamic bass grooves using a method called the question-and-answer technique.​

Gabrielle Goodman, a former backing vocalist for Chaka Khan and Roberta Flack, shares stories from the stage and studio, including the time she opened for Miles Davis, wrote a song Chaka recorded, and taught herself to harmonize on the fly. She also reflects on teaching, improvisation, and what it means to sing every single day.

On May 30-31, Berklee Online will hold its eighth annual Berklee Onsite conference at the Berklee College of Music campus in Boston. Berklee Onsite 2024 is two days of workshops, panels, performances, and networking events, open to Berklee Online students and the music community at large.

Have a question? Register for the next Berklee Online live Q&A, and meet the folks who advise, teach, and lead at the world’s largest online music college.

Debbie Cavalier has led Berklee Online from an ambitious idea to the world’s largest online music school—and she did it with kindness at the core. Now, as she receives a top leadership honor, she reflects on her journey, from MIDI in the ’80s to AI in the classroom.

Gaining more than 7 million monthly listeners on Spotify did not happen overnight, so the question that many are asking is: how did Sabrina Carpenter become famous? The answer is that it has been a long journey, with a lot of work that has yielded four albums, two EPs, and multiple singles, features, and collaborations. Add to that her consistency throughout all these years and her strong belief in herself and her artistry.

Adriana Balic has been a member of P!NK’s band since 2003. In this Q&A, she talks about what it’s like to write a course about live keyboard performance while simultaneously performing for thousands of P!NK fans across the globe.

Thomas Ferreira, a 17-year-old drummer whose artist name is Thomas Thunder, talks about his accelerated musical journey, from graduating high school early and studying at Berklee Online, to collaborating with rock legends from the supergroup Sons of Apollo—and he’s just getting started.