Raised in Anchorage, Alaska, Recording Arts graduate Jarrett Dyson always had a very specific career path in mind – even if it meant moving over 4000 miles from home to pursue it. While speaking with Jarrett about his long trip to becoming an A&R coordinator at EMI Christian Music Group in Nashville, there’s a natural determination that goes a long way in explaining how a kid growing up near the Arctic Circle has become a staple in the southern music capitol’s gospel scene.

“Since I was 14 I dreamed about doing A&R for EMI,” he says. “I didn’t know how I was going to do it at the time, but I never stopped wanting to get there, and managed to find a way. I’ve always tried to be the best at what I do, and it seems to be paying off for me. I feel truly blessed.”

Jarrett applied to EMI while still at Full Sail, and joined the company in 2008 as an unpaid intern. He threw himself into the opportunity, and after only four months managed to move up the ranks to a full-fledged member of their A&R team. Since joining the department, Jarrett has acted as a liaison between new artists and the label, as well as assisting with the creative and commercial development of their current roster of clients.

“A lot of people ask ‘How do I get into the music industry,’ and it really starts with someone like me, I’m kind of like the front door,” he says. “Artists come to me, and I filter through them and pitch the best candidates to the president of the label to approve. Then they go to our marketing director to see if she can market the project, and then to our sales general manager who sees who their audience will be. From there, we start actually developing them as musicians.”

Jarrett grew up active in the church, with both his parents as ministers, and has enjoyed being able to work with a range of gospel legends and newcomers, which includes artists like Heather Headley, Smokie Norful, Vashawn Mitchell, and Forever JONES. He also helped produce the compilation album Oh Happy Day, which won the GRAMMY for Best Traditional Gospel Album in 2009. It’s an impressive credit list, and the quality of these performers continues to inspire him in his search for new talent.

“I have a contagious curiousness when it comes to music,” he says. “You have to be forward-thinking in this business because great artists can come from anywhere. I guess what stands out to me is uniqueness, and if I think there’s a market for your uniqueness then I’m drawn to you. Knowing that I can make a difference in somebody’s life like that is the best part of what I do.”

Jarrett’s approach to his job at EMI comes back to his love of music, and the sense of discovery in finding that next great artist who will inspire him as much as a fan as a representative of the label. Not everyone grows up to get everything they want professionally, and his work in A&R seems like the perfect creative and professional marriage – helping to develop artists he loves while also doing the same for his own career.

“I do what I do because I love it personally,” he says. “I know my family loves it too, and that really means a lot to me. They’ve gone to award shows with me and seen how much I’ve grown from being this boy from Anchorage, Alaska to now. I think one of the coolest things for me every day is I’ll look through my contacts on my cell phone, and think ‘wow I have the numbers of all these big name people from the music industry in my hand.’ That’s when it really hits me how far I’ve come.”