Starbucks Chooses OCC Grad for Holiday Video

There's a saying about overnight success taking 10 years. If it's true, then Janae Price '14 is right on schedule. The Onondaga Community College Alumna is a Video Producer and Host at Thrillist, an online media website which specializes in reviewing food, drink, travel, and entertainment. And she was recently the star attraction in a Starbucks video about their Holiday Cold Foams which you can view below:

"I love the way this came out," she said. "It’s definitely a feather in my cap and it’s a proud moment for me. It highlights a possible new direction in my career and piques my interest. It was a great experience."

Price's willingness to put herself out there and always be open to conversations with people led her to this moment. As a student at Cicero-North Syracuse High School, she was extremely active in extracurricular activities. Her counselor was also in charge of the Suicide Prevention Club which Price was a member of. "I would go to classes and talk to students about counseling. She noticed me and said I should do 'Teen Talks CNY' which I had been listening to since I was in middle school. I immediately said 'oh my God yes!'"

Teen Talks CNY was a weekly radio show on Syracuse station Hot 107.9 FM. It was for teens, hosted by teens, and focused on topics important to teens. The show  is no longer on the radio, but still exists in an online format. Price loved being a part of Teen Talks CNY, but never considered it as a possible career.

During her senior year of high school, Price's parents encouraged her to visit Onondaga Community College. "I was completely clueless about what to study. A  counselor asked me what I liked doing. I told her about the radio show and she said ‘Electronic Media Communications would be a good fit for you.’ I wound up falling totally in love with the program.”

Price graduated from C-NS in 2012 and came to OCC that fall. The Electronic Media Communications program (now called Broadcast Media Communications) immediately became her home on campus. "I remember our first project recording our audio and making a commercial. It was so fun and sparked so much joy in me that I didn’t even frankly know would be something I would like or be interested in."

New experiences and the excitement which accompanied them were a constant in her coursework. "It was a great hands-on program. Everyone was so close and we were close with the professors too. Thinking back on that time it was all happy, new, and exciting. It was such a fun time in my college career."

The professor who had the greatest impact on her success was Mark Ballard. "I owe where I am to him. I felt such a closeness and ease with him, and I loved his teaching style."

Professor Ballard remembers seeing something special in her as well. "When I met Janae she had the confidence and poise needed to be a content creator on some level. She didn't just light up the room when she walked in, she set it on fire. When she was on camera, the other students were quiet to hear what she had to say. When students worked as a group, she was the catalyst for any progress. Some students come to us as a 'diamond in the rough.' Janae was already full of sparkle and shine," he said.

When Price was considering where to continue her education, Professor Ballard recommended Hofstra University on Long Island. She would transfer there after completing her OCC degree in 2014.

In December of 2016 she completed her bachelor's degree in Journalism and Rhetoric. Despite not having a firm job offer, she decided to stay close to employment opportunities in the New York City area rather than move back home. Three months later, her gamble paid off and she began working at Vice Media in New York City as an Editorial Assistant. “I learned so much about being a journalist and writing. I was wearing a lot of hats and doing a lot of different things. I also started my own podcast with two of my friends.”

Three years later, she got laid off due to the pandemic and did free lance work. By the end of 2020 she had a new full-time job with Thrillist as an Editorial Assistant. When people there heard her podcast, she started doing talent-facing work. She was promoted to Staff Writer, and after a year of that she became a Producer. As she did more on-camera work, she realized it was what she enjoyed most.

The opportunity to shoot the Holiday Cold Foam video came out of a conversation between Starbucks and Vox Media which owns Thrillist. Unbeknownst to Price, Vox Media pitched her for the shoot. It led to Price getting a call from a Starbucks representative, and a short time later she was selected.

The shoot happened at a Vox Media studio in Los Angeles. ”It was amazing to be on the talent side and and see so many people working so hard on the production end. I’m a producer as well and know what goes into it both ends of it. There were a million script changes. I was very proud of how it came out."

The experience left her wanting more on-camera opportunities. “I’d like to have my own show that focuses on culture through travel and talk to people in niche communities about the things that are important to them and that they love.”

As she reflects on her journey, she feels fortunate to be where she is. “You have one conversation which steers you in one direction, and 10 years later you wonder ‘if I didn’t have that conversation, would I be where I am right now?’” It feels like God’s divine timing and planning to me. I’m turning 30 this month and I ask myself 'where am I going to be when I’m 40? Where am I going to be where I’m 50?' When I was graduating from Hofstra I was very stressed about where I was going to be when I was 25. And now I look back and say ‘it all worked out!’”

Her advice to those who follow her; talk, listen, and take chances. “Always take time to have conversations with people. Be really inquisitive and ask a lot of questions. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there because you never know what can happen. And don’t stress out too much!”