Karen Pearson

CEO and Founder, Folded Wing

In September 2022 at RADFEST22 I was awarded the huge honour of a Radio Academy Fellowship for services to the industry. This is a huge accolade, and the highest honour the Academy can give to a person within the sector.

Why I chose to attend Leeds Trinity

I’d never planned to go to university. I thought I’d have to go straight into work, mostly for financial reasons. My Media Studies A-Level teacher Steve Jeffries (Seevic in Essex where I grew up) told me that I had to pursue media. I had written lots of letters to record labels and stations, trying to get work but didn’t know anyone and didn’t have much experience, so it didn’t lead anywhere.

Leeds Trinity had a business management side to the course that appealed to me and they offered work experience, and that was mainly the reason I went. A lot of the other universities required you to work in the summer holidays, which was not an option for me because I had to work to earn money. At Leeds Trinity it formed part of the course itself.

Photo courtesy of Jon Wan

What I enjoyed most about the course and my time on campus

Being in Leeds was phenomenal. I hadn’t travelled round the UK or been that far away from home before. Being in halls of residence, right next to the Yorkshire Dales, was brilliant. I got myself a job in a coffee shop and made friends really quickly. The lessons were really engaging and like I already mentioned, the work experience was such a draw.

Valuable placements

After many more letters I landed a placement at Virgin Records for two months in the promotions department in 1996/97. The year after, after being lucky enough to meet someone at Radio 1, I went on to do a placement there which was a real launchpad for my career.

Photo courtesy of Folded Wing

My career

I developed my production skills at BBC Radio 1, including seven years with Gilles Peterson’s legendary Worldwide show. I’m the Founder and CEO of Folded Wing, which I formed in 2005. Our tagline is ‘where sound takes flight’ - we make radio, branded content, podcasts and multi-platform music events, we’ve won loads of awards and we’re all about nurturing talent on and off the mic. I launched the Radio 2 Jazz Show with Jamie Cullum and fulfilled a lifetime dream of getting hip hop onto Radio 2 when we launched Romesh Ronganathan’s weekly Love of Hip Hop show.

Career highlights

In September 2022 at RADFEST22 I was awarded the huge honour of a Radio Academy Fellowship for services to the industry. This is a huge accolade, and the highest honour the Academy can give to a person within the sector.

Photo courtesy of Folded Wing

My advice for current students

Just try and get as much work experience as possible and make use of the endless opportunities in Leeds. Galaxy Radio was a great outlet when I was there. Look for local radio stations and student radio stations (SRAs). We’ve done a lot of work with SRAs and most of our staff started out on student radio. Immerse yourself in everything Leeds based, get to know the tutors who work in the industry, and really enjoy the fact that you are in one of the most cultural cities in the UK.