Daniels alumna Emma Glendenning lands music marketing role through SXSW experience
By the time Emma Glendenning arrived at the South by Southwest (SXSW) conference and festival in Austin, Texas, in March 2026, she had already completed two interviews for a job in the music industry. Rather than waiting to hear back, the DJ and Daniels College of Business marketing student decided to introduce herself in person.
She learned that Jason Beukema, the founder of Whet Travel, was speaking at SXSW. So, while Glendenning was at the annual tech, film and music event through a Daniels class, she attended Beukema’s session on culture and community. She sat next to company leaders, introduced herself to Beukema and met with Whet Travel’s social media manager over coffee.
“I’d say that was my third and final interview with the company,” Glendenning said.
She flew home Sunday evening and by Monday morning, an offer letter was waiting in her inbox. Now a marketing and executive assistant for the 14-person company, Glendenning credits the confidence she gained at Daniels with helping her turn a conference conversation into a career opportunity.
Emma Glendenning
“I was on a relentless job pursuit. I was not going to take no for an answer,” she said. “Being able to go to South by Southwest through DU really helped me get my foot in the door.”
Since launching the SXSW: Marketing, Technology and Innovation experiential learning travel course in 2016, Daniels Teaching Professor Michael Myers has taken 364 Daniels students to the annual conference, where they explore emerging trends in business, marketing, technology, entertainment and culture. Rather than following a pre-determined itinerary, students are encouraged to lean into the spirit of The Daniels Effect. They build personalized session schedules around their own interests, allowing them to learn from industry leaders while expanding their professional networks.
Glendenning has known what she wanted since her undergraduate years at Arizona State University, where she led a student organization that competed to bring DJ headliners to campus. Seeing an audience enjoy an event she helped create cemented her desire to work in music and event marketing.
After graduating with her bachelor’s degree from the large university, Glendenning felt she still had more to learn. The University of Denver’s smaller class sizes appealed to her, so she relocated and enrolled in the Daniels Master of Science in Marketing program.
Receiving more direct feedback and one-on-one time with professors helped Glendenning develop the confidence to pursue her music marketing career more proactively.
By recognizing that serendipitous SXSW opportunity—and, most importantly, acting on it—Glendenning landed her dream role. She now works full time marketing the company’s Groove Cruise—a 96-hour continuous electronic music festival at sea.
Her advice to current students is: “Put yourself out there, even if it’s scary. Show up to the events where people in your industry are gathering, make your presence known and don’t be afraid to take that extra step,” she said. “You don’t know unless you try.”