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Rapper Turned Mogul - Drew James
An exclusive interview where Drew gives advice to the next generation of rappers trying to get their first record label deal.
Being the first Canadian rapper to sign to Ruff Ryders gave Drew exposure and access to a network that helped him kickstart various ventures, including but not limited to a jewelry wholesaling and manufacturing company, as well as a luxury accessories line called Andrew Bank.
How Did You Monetize Your Passion For Music?
After ‘8 Mile’ came out, nightclubs were hosting rap battles with cash prizes. I was able to make some money off of that. Also, back then, people were buying CDs for $10 a pop. Imagine selling 1000 of those at the time. That’d be $10,000. That’s what really opened my eyes to the business side of this music game.
How Did Music Help You Start Your Businesses?
Music was my “cool card.” It’s what got me in the room. It’s what helped me build my network. I may not have had the same audience size as Drake, but I knew that if I had a dedicated fanbase, I could sell them something. And so I started with items that the people around me were already spending money on.
How Did You Get Signed To The Ruff Ryders Record Label?
I was doing a show back in the day, and this guy came up to me. He told me he really liked my music. He then explained who he was and to this day has been my best friend ever since. At the time, he gave me his card, and told me he couldn’t make any promises, but that if I sent him my music, he’d forward it to the CEO. I didn’t hear anything for a year after that. But then I got a call in 2008. The CEO had liked my music. Then I had to go down to New York, and show up to their studio for years, to show them that I was serious. By 2015, they offered me a recording contract. From there I was going on press tours, meeting other execs, and I started to see just how much influence Ruff Ryders had as a network.
Money Buys Happiness - Anthony Sorella
In this interview (YouTube & Spotify), Anthony walks us through how he built a 7-figure marketing agency, signed to the Nelk Boys, and established one of the fastest-growing, independent media networks in the country.
How Did You Get Your Agency To 7 Figures In Revenue?
We started with a lot of free work. In the early days, we even lost money working with new clients. But that helped us build our reputation as people got to see the results they’d get working with us. What really helped us though was our podcast. We double-downed on the show during the pandemic and went viral because of our controversial takes. We figured that this was the perfect time to be online as everyone was stuck inside on their phones. Once the world reset itself, people remembered us from those clips, and that’s how we started getting even more clients who would reach out for our services. From there, not only did we have the agency, but then we had a successful podcast, and that led to the Nelk deal.
What Inspired You Guys To Start MBH TV, And What’s The Vision?
I always looked up to Dave Portnoy because of what he’s built. So I told Ernesto (my business partner) four years ago that we needed to start our own version of Barstool Sports.
At the time, one of their shows, the ‘Call Her Daddy’ podcast, was going crazy and I knew this was where the world was headed.
Now, our vision is to grow MBH TV into one of the largest independent media networks, to then get acquired for hundreds of millions of dollars.
Any Advice For People Starting Their Own Podcast?
Don’t judge yourself until you’ve at least recorded 100 episodes. That’s how many it took for us to finally monetize our podcast.
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