At a time when so many college graduates are unsure of the future, worried about landing a job, 23-year-old trumpet player and bandleader Johnny Graham seems to have his feet firmly planted on the ground. His goals are solid and priorities straight. Performing is No. 1 — and the concert with his band, the Groove, at Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage is an honor.

“The music is what I love to do,” said Graham, a Baltimore native and MBA candidate at the University of Maryland, College Park, who plans on a Ph.D. and a teaching position at a local college. But it won’t be music. With hard work and a bit of luck, he’ll be lecturing to students on business.