To many, summer means hot days, tasty BBQs, and time spent with friends, but for three Full Sail grads working as interns on the Vans Warped Tour this summer, it means this and so much more.

The Vans Warped Tour is one of the biggest traveling music festivals in the United States, stopping at over 40 cities around the country and featuring over 70 bands during a seven-week stretch.

Full Sail has increased its involvement with the tour, and is now sponsoring the Full Sail Stage (formally known as the Kevin Says Stage), and is providing exciting internship opportunities for three hardworking graduates.

Andrew Cass, a 2015 Music Business grad, is working as a production office intern where his responsibilities include providing bands with beer and water, distributing towels to the production team, and making sure that the day runs smoothly in the production office. As for the most exciting part of his job on the road, Andrew says that it all comes down to networking. “Being in the production office gives you the chance to make connections with a lot of band members as well as other people on the tour who could potentially find me another job once Warped is over. Networking is big out here!”

2015 Show Production grad Skylar Mann also falls under the production umbrella and is working in the Warped guest list tent. Skylar shares, “The most challenging part of the summer is working outside in the heat, but I also get to wake up in a new city every day and meet some really cool people.” This is the first time Skylar has worked on tour, but she believes that working hard and being someone people want to work with is the best advice she can provide to someone looking to get into this industry.

John Peter Añon graduated from the Show Production program in 2016, and stayed in contact with a former Full Sail instructor who recommended him for his current job on Warped as the backline and stage intern for the Full Sail Stage. “I work closely with the backline manager and the stage manager and my primary job is to set up the stage every day.” When it comes to advice for people hoping to work on Warped Tour, his biggest recommendation is to stay humble. “If you’re coming to something that is already established like Warped Tour, people already have a certain way of doing things, so don’t try to force things or do things your own way. Just do what you can, and try to do it better.”

The days may be long, hot, and filled with sweat, but each of these interns are eager to prove themselves, implement the skills they learned while in school, and see what the summer has in store for them.