Passion, Purpose, and Multi-Hyphenate Careers: Exploring the Music Industry with Julian Davis Reid ’13 & Kersten Stevens ’06

Schwarzman Sessions are peer-led gatherings where conversations generate collaborations and move ideas into action. Because seats are limited, registrants will be automatically placed on the waitlist and will be notified via email if they are selected to participate. 

Many musicians set out on a singular path—practice, perform, repeat—but what happens when your passions pull you in multiple directions? How do you balance artistry with purpose, career with calling?

Join Kersten Stevens ’06 (Saybrook) and Julian Davis Reid ’13 (Morse) for an engaging conversation on the realities of building a multi-hyphenate career. Their musical journeys have taken them across genres, industries, and creative disciplines.

Stevens, a jazz violinist celebrated as the “Queen of the Violin,” has won Amateur Night and Showtime at the Apollo six times, performed for Barack Obama and Usher, and recently released her fifth album, Queen Rising, in collaboration with nine-time Grammy-winning bassist Christian McBride. Reid, an acclaimed pianist, speaker, and writer, has performed at Montreal Jazz Fest and Lollapalooza, collaborated with Jennifer Hudson and Tank and the Bangas, and was featured in The New York Times for his work blending jazz, faith, and rest through his ministry Notes of Rest®. His recent single, “When Souls Cry Out,” was released on Inauguration Day 2025,

Their stories began at Yale, where they honed their craft and learned to navigate the complexities of being artists in an academic space. Now, they’ll share how they carved out careers beyond the traditional mold, embracing music as both vocation and mission. This event is open to all who are interested in the music industry, creative entrepreneurship, and the art of weaving multiple passions into a purposeful career.

Kersten Stevens, "Queen of The Violin", is a graduate of Yale University with a BA in Music and African American Studies. She began studying the violin at the age of three and began professional performance and gospel ministry at age fourteen. Kersten has been blessed to open for President Barack Obama, the legendary Ray Charles, Dionne Warwick, Denzel Washington, Richard Smallwood, Kim Burrell and Tye Tribbett. Kersten is a six-time winner of the historic Amateur Night at Showtime at The Apollo; She now is blessed to celebrate her highly anticipated new album, QUEEN RISING, co-produced and featuring performances by 9x Grammy Award-winning bassist Christian McBride. 

Julian Davis Reid (M.Div., Candler School of Theology) is a musician, speaker, writer, and the founder of the ministry Notes of Rest®. Julian has released numerous records, including with his own ensemble Circle of Trust and the jazz-electronic fusion group The JuJu Exchange. Some of his most recent releases are When Souls Cry Out, released on Inauguration Day 2025, and Beside Still Waters, released on Election Day 2024. Julian has performed at the Montreal Jazz Fest, The Cleveland Orchestra’s Severance Hall, Lollapalooza, and the Berlin Jazz Fest. He has worked or performed with Jennifer Hudson, Chance the Rapper, and Abiodun Oyewole from The Last Poets. An award-winning writer, Julian has contributed chapters on Notes of Rest to forthcoming books from Candler School of Theology at Emory University, Duke Divinity School, and Princeton Theological Seminary respectively. His work has been covered in The New York Times, Forbes, Sojourners, Billboard, and Downbeat.