In the middle of everything else that seems to be going wrong in America, Bloomberg decided to inform everyone that more than half of the U.S. millennials that own a credit card are having trouble meeting payments.
In a report published yesterday, the finance publication reported that the charge-off rate or the amount of debt a creditor has decided is unlikely to be collected divided by the average outstanding credit card balances owed. Additionally, the first quarter increased to the highest level in almost seven years.
The culprit is arguably the last group of individuals we need in debt: the generation that’s got next.
Furthermore, 8.05 percent of outstanding credit card debt among Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 was delinquent by at least 90 days. Those are the highest level since early 2011, according to data released this week by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
But why?
According to a report by CNBC, four in 10 millennials say day-to-day expenses such as groceries, child care and utilities are their biggest reasons for carrying a credit card balance. And about 20 percent cite emergency situations like medical bills and car repairs.
“The inability to get over that debt hurdle can be a pervasive problem,” Rossman says. That’s because millennials tend to have other debts, such as student loans, as well as high housing costs. About three out of four millennials say they’re juggling some type of debt, according to a recent LightStream Survey conducted by the Harris Poll.
The danger of these late and failed payments is not immediate per se but lies in the future. The average credit card APR is at a record-breaking 17.57 percent, thanks to creditors using compound interest, which works against you in a hurry.
Not to mention, other debts, like student loans and high housing costs, make payments even tougher. When you realize that repayment takes the majority of you to check and you still have other responsibilities, a tricky game of priorities ensues.
About three out of four millennials say they’re juggling some type of debt, according to a recent LightStream Survey conducted by the Harris Poll.
It’s why politicians like Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders are calling for new legislation that caps credit card interest rates at 15% and it’s why millennials, as opposed to Gen-Xers, are fretting.
So what can and should millennials do?
Well, most experts advise having an emergency savings fund equivalent to three-to-six months of living expenses set aside in an account. This creates a buffer between credit card users and high-cost credit card debt. Other ways are to consistently save a small percentage of your paycheck by setting up automatic transfers.
As we enter shakier financial times, credit card holders have to be intentional about methods of slowing down, making a dent or some kind of action to help themselves in the very near future.
“If you were an early investor … this may be an opportunity which may only come around once in a lifetime,” Deirdre Bosa of CNBC said in a statement to the entertainment site Inside Edition. It just so happened that Beyoncé was one of them.
The $8.1 billion IPO (Initial Public Offering) went for $45 each. Thus, making it one of the biggest tech IPOs in recent history.
Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong who invested an early $100,000 experienced a glow up also. He said the investment “saved” his family after his doping scandal single-handedly left him for broke. Armstrong’s Uber investment could now be worth north of $30 million.
“A lot of the people you are talking about, Lance Armstrong, Jay-Z, Jeff Bezos, even Jeff Schmidt of Google, they got in early through word of mouth really,” Bosa said.
When it comes to Beyoncé, it always feels like there aren’t enough words in the English dictionary to fully describe her essence or what she’s accomplished.
In 2019 alone, Houston’s finest dropped an album, the live audio of her Coachella set titled Homecoming. As well as, a complimentary doc on Netflix and she has a major role in the heavily anticipated live action film, Lion King to boot.
It’s no longer just music for Beyoncé. She has become an icon in every way and in many regards, her investment in Uber is just another testament to that.
The rich may be getting richer but there’s no reason why we can’t peep how they do it. Seeking compensation through equity is business savvy. Especially when you find yourself working for a start-up.
Yes, celebs have the top financial advisors money can buy as well as the resources to risk. Still, it should still get us thinking about how to make our money work smarter and not harder.
Beyoncé joins Rick Ross, Rihanna, Akon and many others who used their status and fortune earned in music to venture into larger means. They’re laying the blueprint. It’s just a matter of picking up the game and making it happen for yourself.
This past week, news broke that Rihanna’s Fenty line is now officially part of Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), the largest luxury group in the world.
According to the New York Times, Rihanna will become the first woman to create an original brand at LVMH, the first woman of color at the top of an LVMH Maison, and her line will be the first new house created by the group since Christian Lacroix in 1987.
Just to put into context how big of a deal this is for Rihanna, hip-hop, and people of color in general, Fenty now joins a lineage of larger-than-life brands like Dior, Givenchy, Celine, and Fendi. Automatically making her a breakthrough designer in the highest regard.
Rihanna, born of Barbados, signed by Jay Z and who broke through to stardom through urban appreciation, now holds a seat at the table of fashion’s elite. With this move, we now have to group Rihanna with the likes of designers like Hedi Slimane and Nicolas Ghesquière.
The deal signifies that there aren’t limits in the luxury industry anymore and it’s the glass ceiling Kanye was so desperately trying to break. Remember how he ranted in his interviews back in 2013?
It’s an opportunity to reinvent old heritage names and it opens a door for many others after her. Yet, people are still badgering Rihanna and giving her a hard time about not releasing music.
It’s going on four years since Rihanna’s last album Anti and while that is a significant time for artists in this era, she has eight albums worth of music in her catalog. Besides, since when aren’t artists trying to become businessmen and women nowadays?
If anything, for a lot of these artists, rap is how to get your foot in other avenues you’d otherwise have no shot to break through. Will Smith started off as a rapper. The Fresh Prince of Bel Air is the play of Fresh Prince, the artist, and, although he did win a Grammy, Will is globally recognized as an actor.
Same goes for Ice Cube, Ice T, Joe Budden, and even Diddy in many regards. For years, hip-hop has been a vehicle to getting people of color the resources to explore the full extent of their ambitions. If singing was a longshot of a dream that came true, why wouldn’t we expect them to explore the other ones?
Surely you and I don’t have one singular aspiration.
This is not saying Rihanna has quit music. While withdraw symptoms are humanly understandable, she did confirm a 2019 album last year so we should be patient and let her plot out these billions. Because she’s definitely not sitting on her hands.
Her Fenty Beauty line which launched last year made over $100 million in the first 40 days and is recognized as one of the first cosmetic lines to include shades representing all girls of color.
She has dealt with Puma and Dior. She’s the official Global Ambassador for Barbados and her contributions to raising money for global education have reached a staggering $2.3 billion to date. That doesn’t include acting appearances in Oceans’s 8 and Donald Glover’s Guava Island.
According to a press release, the new luxury house “is centered on Rihanna, developed by her, and takes shape with her vision in terms of ready to wear, shoes and accessories, including commerciality and communication of the brand.”
“Designing a line like this with LVMH is an incredibly special moment for us,” Rihanna, 31, said in the statement. “Mr. Arnault has given me a unique opportunity to develop a fashion house in the luxury sector, with no artistic limits. I couldn’t imagine a better partner both creatively and business-wise, and I’m ready for the world to see what we have built together.”
With the first products from the new company to be unveiled in a few weeks, I think her fans should be proud of her. They shouldn’t be pressing her for music.
If it wasn’t for music, maybe Rihanna wouldn’t have the position and power to do what she’s doing outside of it. Still, that doesn’t mean she’s bound to ballads and recording.
We’ll get the Rihanna music when we get it. But for now, let’s appreciate the doors she continues to open and the inspiration she’s sparking in the minds of the ones who look up to her.
There’s a quote from a 2017 Sporting News interview with Damian Lillard that’s been getting a lot of attention since his 37-foot series-clinching buzzer-beater against OKC last week.
Although two years later, the quote has given everyone on the internet goosebumps. It has helped drag out the nostalgia of Dame’s now historic shot.
It read:
“Pressure, nah. Fam, this is just playing ball. Pressure is the homeless man, who doesn’t know where his next meal is coming from. Pressure is the single mom, who is trying to scuffle and pay her rent. We get paid a lot of money to play a game. Don’t get me wrong — there are challenges. But to call it pressure is almost an insult to regular people.”
While the quote matches the moment very well, with Dame hitting the decisive highly pressurized shot and all, that’s not the reason it found it’s way out of Twitter’s abyss and back into relevancy.
People aren’t clamoring over his, what now may seem, prophetic passage just because it’s “fitting.” Additionally, people aren’t pure enough for me to believe they were so moved by how in touch with the people Dame is.
What has people so hung up over this quote at this particular moment is the confirmation it gives. It’s the backstory — the prequel, if you will — to the game-winning bucket that broke the internet. Dame really isn’t phased by pressure and that shot proved it.
Damian Lillard just hit one of the coldest shots ever. It isn’t even the 37 feet. Nor even the moment, clinching against a OKC team that he got to silence. It’s the immediate wave goodbye. That look he gives while in the midst of that dogpile. Merciless. pic.twitter.com/WgPfi23QvH
Sports is sports and, like Dame said, at the end of the day there are real-life problems and issues that exist outside of basketball. However, what if Dame’s approach to the game was applied to our approach to life? What if we saw life’s pressures the way Dame sees the pressure of shooting a near 40-footer with the series on the line?
There’s a key aspect of the quote that seems to have gone viral that people are missing. Also, I think it would help us understand Dame’s approach to pressure a little more.
At first glance, one could interpret that Dame is saying he doesn’t experience pressure like he’s immune or has numbed senses toward hardship and trials. But I don’t think that’s the case.
What Dame’s saying is that he’s seen failure and it no longer haunts him. Which is why he can live a life and play a game where pressure no longer exists.
Damian Lillard is from Oakland, California — one of the most violence-ridden cities in the United States with the ninth-highest murder rate. He’s seen drugs, gangs, and sometimes unbearable living conditions. Just last year his then-20-year-old half brother, Jahrell Lillard, was shot and killed.
So what if he misses a shot?
It doesn’t take a traumatic experience or growing up in hard conditions to be unphased by pressure. Anyone who has failed, in any capacity, can possess these superpowers.
Is the pressure of asking for a raise greater than being underpaid? Is the pressure of not getting the answer you want greater than never finding out? Is the pressure of possibly starting over greater than never getting ahead?
There has to come a time in our lives when we no longer fear the fall. Only then can we take our greatest steps. All it takes is one perspective: Failure may befall you, but it won’t end you.
Despite his team getting swept out the playoffs the last two seasons, losing their star center, Jusuf Nurkić. Additionally, the “star power,” in Russell Westbrook and Paul George, on the other side of the ball, Dame felt no pressure hitting the game-clinching shot from nearly half court.
May we all one day be this unphased by failure that we only see winning.
That series is over. Dame and the Portland Trailblazers have advanced past the Oklahoma City Thunder and are now down a game to the higher-seeded Denver Nuggets.
Denver is the projected favorites; Portland’s back-up center, Enes Kanter, has a dislocated shoulder, and no one thinks Dame has a chance.
Yet, for some reason, I don’t think Dame’s scared at all.
In a recent interview with Elliot Wilson for the TIDAL CRWN series, Jennifer Lopez explains her work ethic and creative process in order to achieve all that she continues to do.
https://tidal.com/browse/video/107324776
How the Bronx Made Her
Being a Bronx-native, Jennifer Lopez recognizes the melting pot of sounds that informed her music throughout the years.
During the interview, Lopez listed hip-hop, rap and Latin music as influences to her songs. She described her latest single “Medicine” as James Brown + hip-hop = JLo Pop. Lopez emphasized that this is a formula that changes often because the star does not want to limit herself.
Jenny from the Block also gave props to the Bronx as a school for street smarts that has helped herself and other Bronx artists like French Montana and Cardi B achieve their goals.
https://giphy.com/gifs/jlo-gif-gifs-2xJNw3dTHzJjW
These are goals that are harder to achieve as a woman and even harder as a Latina or ethnic woman.
Leading the Next Gen of Creatives
“There’s only one you. And you get to be the best you you wanna be, so long as you work hard at it.”
For her CRWN interview, Lopez gave some advice to aspiring creatives. She charged them to power through jet lag when needed and to take risks.
Accepting criticism in order to better your craft, is the most crucial thing for JLo. Jenny from the Block said that listening to others’ criticism can lead to growth and that it should be met “without attitude.”
“I don’t think you can be an artist if you’re not painting outside the lines.”
JLo also advised artists to take risks, and go outside their comfort zones, as she’s done time and again. Lopez moved to L.A. to pursue her dancing career on In Living Color and more recently took on a different role as Ramona in Hustlers.
Hustlers centers on four women who are strippers. Lopez’s character, Ramona, is one that she’s never really done before. Ramona sees her remaining viable stripper years closing in and in the wake of the 2008 economic crash, she seeks to create financial stability for herself.
Lopez said, “you inevitably always learn something about yourself” when you take on a role as an actress. She shares that playing Selena was a blessing because she learned that “life is not promised,” and that you never know what is going to happen.
When asked why she felt like she never had to choose between film and music, JLo simply responds in her TIDAL CRWN interview, “cause I didn’t.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwDJBvig0Yp/
She also delved into her creative process. JLo advised that when creating music it’s important to take your time and let the creative process happen.
“You don’t wanna rush that process,” she said. But you don’t want to record for too many hours straight through either, because you’re performing and that’s an exhausting process.
The Future for JLo
Even though she’s had a successful career JLo still wants to keep creating.
“You know what that makes me wanna do? More.”
After building a legacy, Lopez believes in continuing her legacy rather than protecting it. But even though she has her eye on the prize in terms of her career as a performer, JLo doesn’t forget the important things. As a working mother, she said that making plans in order to spend time with family is essential.
“The more successful you are the more you realize that that’s not the key to happiness…Not things, it’s about love.”
We should be expecting an album to go along with JLo’s next movie Hustlers. JLo understands that we live in a “singles” culture.
This is probably why she’s been releasing tracks lately rather full bodies of work. But albums are what JLo really wants to work on. The Leo born performer wants to share her milestone birthday and will also be going on a Summer Tour starting in June.
Make sure to peep her latest video “Medicine,” too. It’s straight fire!
Big Sean is back and better than ever. If you’ve noticed, that the 31-year old Detriot rapper hasn’t been visible, and it’s all been by design.
In a series of three videosposted toInstagram on Monday, which was also his birthday, Sean explained how he’d been battling depression and anxiety, which forced him to take some much-needed time to himself in 2018.
According to Sean, sometime last year he found him emitting an energy he couldn’t shake. Normally a meditative guy, the fact that he couldn’t find a place where he could get comfortable with himself and find a happiness that once came easy, told him drastic measures had to be taken.
“I’m definitely seeing things different than how I used to see them,” he began. The star explained that around this time last year, “I wasn’t feeling like myself and I couldn’t figure out why.”
Big Sean continued,
“I stepped back from everything I was doing…because somewhere in the middle of it, I just felt lost and I don’t know how I got there.”
This process of self-reflection led Sean to hire a therapist as well as surround himself with spiritual individuals which helped him realize the things he was missing in his life.
Sean was so gracious to drop some of these via Instagram, which I think we all could adhere to.
When you think about Sean’s year, 2017 to 2018, when he took this self-reflection of his, you wouldn’t guess he was going through much of anything. His fourth retail album, I Decided, went platinum, his romance with singer Jhene Aiko seemed to be blossoming and he appeared to be in a good headspace.
Yet, because he was in tune with himself and because he knew what him operating at his best looked at, he was still able to notice his personal engine light.
“I felt like something wasn’t all the way connecting with my energy. I’m big on energy,” he said in the first video.
We all should be “big on energy.” We all should strive to know ourselves enough to the point where we too can step back, adjust and retune. That shows huge emotional maturity.
Sean speaks of “clarity” in his second video. With help from the spiritual mentors, he was able to realize the one thing he was missing in life was clarity.
“I needed clarity. Clarity about who was around me, what I was doing,” he explained. He went on to say how music began to feel like a burden and the relationships in his life were toxic or struggling, even the one he had with his mother.
These realizations, Sean said, helped him see that he needed to nurture the relationship he had with himself in order to fix the others.
In the third video, Sean speaks on unconditional love — the conclusion of his self-quest.
“I started realizing that you can’t give or depend on somebody for love or a good time and all that if you can’t give it to yourself. I started doing things by myself or just doing things I never thought I’d do, like going skydiving or just whatever I thought was fun, just doing it,” the star said. He later noted that he has since gotten back into music.
“In the midst of that, I definitely rediscovered myself and found a whole new energy, and me being a source of it and not somebody else.”
He went on further to distinguish the difference between the two loves, sharing his revelation on the subject in the process.
“Conditional love is cool, the money and instant gratification, but your foundation on which you stand on is the unconditional love,” he said. “Hey man, put the energy back into yourself, be clear about what you want to do, who you want to do it with. Just know that it all translates to happiness. It feels good to be back at a higher level.”
It’s good to see that Sean was able to spot himself out of alignment and fix it in a healthy matter. It’s something we can take away from as mental health is something we all face.
It was just three weeks ago when news broke that 21 Savage had been arrested by ICE and subject to deportation due to an overstayed visa from when he moved to the U.S. from the U.K. when he was seven
Now, he’s back enriching the community as if nothing happened at all.
As of yesterday, the 26-year-old announced the expansion of his Bank Account Campaign with an aim to put proper resources in place to teach financial literacy to teenage students across the United States.
In a statement, 21 explained what while he had a hit song called “Bank Account,” he in fact “knew almost nothing about bank accounts” while growing up. “As I have gotten smarter about financial management, I realize how empowering it is to control your money rather than be controlled by it,” 21 Savage said.
“I want to help kids with a background similar to mine to get smart about their money,” he continued.
Originally launched last year, Savage’s Bank Account Campaign partners with non-profit organization Get Schooled and promise 21 teenagers $1,000 each in a scholarship fund to help them take on the challenge of financial literacy.
With the expansion, the Slaughter Gang rapper will help recruit 150 at-risk youths who are disconnected from school and work and serve as an advisor — a role he’s dubbing the ‘Money Making Mentor’.
Each participant will receive financial capability support in the form of “21 Tips” and they will get training while employed at Juma’s social enterprise by working concessions at Suntrust Park and Mercedes Benz Stadium.
The Issa Album proves that there aren’t many schools that incorporate a curriculum that teaches students what do with money, how to save it, or how to spend it and where.
Between filing taxes, credit cards, and high-interest rate investments, for the marginalized and disenfranchised; the experience is the only teacher.
21 Savage has even gotten love from government officials because of his efforts. U.S. Congressman Hank Johnson, who wrote a Savage endorsement letter to ICE earlier this month, gave him props.
“It’s no surprise that 21 Savage is continuing his work in making financial literacy a priority with the youth of our community,” the Georgia representative says in the press release.
“I continue to applaud his efforts, and I look forward to working with him as we create new positive opportunities for our young people,”continued Johnson.
https://youtu.be/YBr-mlqaifo
Although 21 Savage saw the “aggravated felony” charges dropped, the U.S. Government agency is still seeking to deport him on the grounds that he illegally overstayed his visa after entering the country at age seven.
Following 21 Savage’s release two weeks ago, his lawyer Charles Kuck spoke to Buzz Feed about how the entire situation highlights what’s wrong with our immigration system and shows the reality of what’s happening around the country to thousands of immigrants who’ve spent their whole lives here can potentially face on the daily basis.
“I think this case is emblematic of a lot of cases where people are detained for not correct reasons, but they don’t always have resources to fight the system,” Kuck told Buzzfeed.
“This case is very emblematic of what happens in immigration court and detention,” he continued.
Either way, it’s good to see 21 keep the faith and continue to lift spirits, even when he is in jeopardy.
You can watch the Bank Account Campaign PSA above and also get more information on how to get involved at the official Get Schooled and Juma websites.
Reaching success in any industry requires dedication. Just ask Grammy-nominated hip-hop artist Nipsey Hussle who prophesied that the sum of dedication is simply hard work plus patience.
Much like rap, journalism is one of those fields that many view as fool’s gold — unattainable, not realistic, and out of reach, especially for a person of color. However, Chris Williamson has shown that through dedication, hard work, plus patience that it’s possible.
As a 27-year-old host for SNY, one of the leading sports networks in the world’s biggest market, he’s already been through the wringer and is well on his way to paving his own lane as a Black man in sports media.
Williamson, a native Washingtonian and a Newhouse School of Communication alum, has been cultivating his love for sports and reporting since he was 14. He’s always been passionate about sports, was an athlete himself, and played basketball, lacrosse, and football over the years. I had a chance to chop it up with Chris recently where he told me,
“When I couldn’t make the JV basketball team I had an epiphany. I realized I wasn’t going to the NBA. But I loved sports, memorizing the players and game stats, analyzing plays, etc. I’d been doing that for years. I decided I could report on what was happening on and off the fields and courts. I became involved in the student newspaper, got an internship at a local high school sports website where I did features and game recaps. I also made the varsity football team.”
After high school, Williamson wanted to attend the best school for broadcast journalism and have a chance to play Division I football, so he applied to Syracuse University. Accepted by the Newhouse School, Chris also made the football team. He was ecstatic. He was able to play as safety for the Orange as well as work for Citrus TV, the student station.
After a while, Chris was forced to choose between reporting for Citrus TV and playing football. He chose Citrus and credits his time there and classes at Newhouse with teaching him the skills and providing the foundation to strive to be the best in his profession.
However, honing one’s skills as a reporter requires work, patience and the ability to receive and respond to criticism. While Chris knew he wasn’t operating close to his potential, he thought his work was pretty good. His professor gave him the gut punch he needed. Williamson told me,
“One day I’m in a meeting with my advisor, Professor Nicholson. He looked at my reel and simply said ‘Yea, you’re not very good, you’re really not that good.’ I appreciated the honesty, but it was a hard pill to swallow. Looking back at my work, Professor Nicholson was right I wasn’t very good. However, his words motivated me to step up my game- to strive for excellence.”
After college Chris applied for numerous positions around the country as a sports reporter/anchor. Based back in D.C., he interned at Sports Entertainment Network, where he analyzed high school football players. That job allowed him to identify and interview the local high school football standouts, getting to know coaches and players. Here he began developing skills that would serve him well going forward.
Eventually, Williamson had to decide between two job offers, one in West Lafayette, Indiana and one as weekend sports anchor at WSAW in Wausau, Wisconsin. He took the Wisconsin position; it offered him the opportunity to report on professional, college and high school teams in the north and central parts of the state.
For two years he covered the Packers, Badgers, analyzed and reported on local high school and college games. He learned how to work under intense pressure when the station sent him to Los Angeles to cover the Badgers in the Sweet 16 after he had only been on the job four weeks. He increased his knowledge of curling, Ice Hockey, girls’ volleyball, PGA golf, and NASCAR.
Chris acknowledges it took him a while to find his voice as a sports reporter. Initially, he was criticized for sounding too much like an ESPN broadcaster or, as someone once described him, Stuart Stott 2.0. Once we got past that, his career went up, as he told me,
“Once I was able to find my balance and get comfortable letting my personality come through I was promoted to weekday sports anchor on our newly acquired Fox affiliate.”
In early 2017, towards the end of his time in Wisconsin, Chris lost his biggest fan when his father died from cancer. He found out just 15 minutes before his evening sportscast when he called his mother to see how his dad was doing and she told him the horrible news. It was one of the hardest things he’s ever had to do but he still found the strength to do his job that night. Still, it was a loss which unsettled him; left him unsure of his path.
With his contract up, Chris returned home to D.C. where he landed a job as a part-time sports reporter for a local CBS affiliate. After working there a few months he realized he had lost his passion and his drive for sports storytelling. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to continue as a sports reporter as he told me,
“I was mourning the loss of my Dad. I wasn’t doing what I needed to do in my work. It took me too long to complete stories and they lacked punch. I had a conversation with my Mom during which I shared that I was thinking about quitting both my job and the profession. She emphatically let me know that quitting wasn’t an option. She said, ‘You are a Williamson/Brazier; you do not give up because something is really tough. You have to figure it out. Rise to the challenge! Your dad would not want you to just walk away’”.
Over time, with his mother’s encouragement, a little tough love, and the support of his new boss, Darren Haynes, he started to feel that he was kicking back into gear. He was able to work on more stories to which he felt connected. But it was one assignment in particular that helped him get back on track.
He was able to work on more stories to which he felt connected. But it was one assignment
Williamson says he re-found his passion for storytelling while producing a video interview on local basketball phenom, Donavann Toatley, who battled depression before finding his ground and reaching his full potential. Chris told me,
“I did this story on a 5’7 high school basketball phenomenon who had no college offers at the end of his junior year. The kid became depressed. When he wasn’t working out he just slept. He told me that one day he read a quote in The Alchemist which said when you really want something the universe will conspire to help you get it. That idea flipped the switch for him and for me.”
Chris’ story was well-received and Toatley ended up getting a scholarship offer from Chattanooga the day after he read the book. The story gained traction on the internet and was even reposted by a sister station in Greensboro, N.C. After that, Chris found his stride and began to consistently produce high-quality work for the station.
This moment here is what can be defined as resiliency. Despite hitting his lowest of lows, he was able to crawl out of the dark and understand that there’s more to life.
His agent pushed to get an SNY executive to watch Chris’ reel. From there he had an audition. Then he had a second audition, and finally, he was offered the job of his dreams. Today, Chris is an anchor, host, and reporter for SNY.
“Being in New York is an amazing experience. There are endless opportunities and a substantial amount of visibility in this position. I am humbled to be given this chance. It’s a new challenge; I feel I’m ready for it and want to make the most of it. I keep striving for excellence!”
In a matter of a few years, Williamson went from Wausau, Wisconsin, the 134th ranked media market in the U.S., to New York City, the number one ranked media market in the world. But that didn’t just happen overnight or without adversity. Just when he was on the brink of giving up, Chris stepped up to the plate and created an opportunity for himself to do what he loves at a higher level than ever.
From his humble beginnings at Cuse to perfecting his craft in small markets around the country, Chris is in a position now that he always dreamed of. Luckily, he never gave up, and if there’s one thing we know now about Chris Williamson, it’s that he’s not going to stop anytime soon.
Nowadays, when you see a hip-hop artist, more than likely they’ve accompanied with jewelry, cash, cars, women and all the glitz and glamour you can imagine.
They come off as rebels and appear to walk with a sense of reckless abandon that’s just flat out inspiring. It looks cool to be a rapper — so who wouldn’t want to be one?
Little do many know, however, the life of a music artist is anything but a cakewalk, and send many who get on spiraling out of control broke.
https://giphy.com/gifs/d5pQ9txwpCzkKS67rB
MC Hammer infamously lost millions, Lauren Hill is the only hip-hop artist to win Album of The Year at the Grammy’s and was avoiding tax evasion, and I don’t need to remind you of the episode of MTV Cribs where Redman’s house looked like that of an entry-level car salesman well into his 50’s.
These are rappers of old who struggled to hold on to their initial big bag and it’s even harder to make a bag today.
According to an extensive report from Citigroup (via Pitchfork), out of the music industry’s $43 billion in revenue in 2017, only 12% actually went to artists. In layman’s terms, that’s $5 billion going to the people who are essentially the foundation of this entire business.
https://giphy.com/gifs/3YJ3TUPPZjciiljzXN
Ever since music became digital people went from buying CDs to getting it for free.
Honestly, streaming companies are lucky they get our little $9.99 and that hurts every time it comes out, too. I still be trying to switch up emails.
Well, now some rappers are coming together both young and old, to drop game on how best not to go broke thanks to a special that dropped on BET last week.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpUjBiB61gU
The doc features Too Short, Nipsey Hussle, Dreezy and many other rappers and has tons of personal stories as well and gems to apply to your life even if you’re not an aspiring artist.
Here are the three of the top ones.
Save more than you spend
According to Cousin Stizz, a Boston rapper who was featured on the BET piece, spending money on things you want is inevitable, it’s all about “getting to the point where you’re making money faster than you’re spending it.” And he’s right.
Artists or not, it’s easy to get caught up in ‘lifestyle’ and ‘culture’. We’ll see a way of life, get a taste, then think that’s the way it should always be — but that’s the trap.
Too Short said he didn’t ball out until his third check.
He’d received some nice-sized checks up until then but waited to enjoy them until he really got paid, which should be a model for all young artists today.
Invest in yourself
When a lot of these rappers get their first check they’re young, teenagers even, who blow it on everything but what they need. But if they want longevity, according to Jimmy Iovine, the first big purchase they should make is a studio.
An artist purchasing their own studio is akin to a painter getting the best utensils money can buy or an athlete investing in a chef — it’s protecting the machine that got them there. But most artists don’t think that way; at least not out the gate.
As early as possible it’s imperative music artists start viewing themselves as a brand and as operating self-sufficiently as possible. Not relying on others to make high-quality content not only makes them prolific but saves them money on the backend.
Music artists who invest in their abilities early are the ones who last until later.
Circle of accountability
One of the most repeated pieces of advice given by almost all the rappers featured in the doc is the importance of having a solid crew around you.
This might not seem applicable when it comes to monitoring your pockets seeing that they’d just be more mouths to feed but actually it’s quite to the opposite.
If and when you have legitimate genuine individuals around you who are interested in your best interest, they’ll intervene in times of folly and you’ll be able to trust them with and around your money. “In order to be a dynasty, you have to put the right personnel together,” rapper D Dot says on the doc.
There will be a lot of money coming in rappers inevitably will need help handling it, which is why the team must be trustworthy.
However, many rappers have ‘yes-men’ — or people around them who only affirm — and other leeches who appear to be for you but who are looking for a check. If your team is clear of those, you should be in good shape.
It seems like only beef and controversy gets shared in hip-hop so it’s good to see the elder statesmen in the game come together with the youth to shed knowledge.
To see the rest of the doc and peep more tips on how rappers can keep from going broke, peep the video above.
Drake’s team will be made up of much of the same cast that oversaw the unveiling of his whiskey, Virginia Black, of which includes award-winning spirits specialist Brent Hocking, who will assume a role as executive project manager.
In a recent interview with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, Drake spoke on the collaboration, saying:
“The product is great, the presentation is great, and hopefully the representation is great as well. We’ll enjoy this run. It should be a long one and a strong one.”
Say what you want about Drake but Canada’s very own knows how to stay ahead and on top. Music or not, the Scorpion artist knows how to dominate, stay relevant and win.
With the liquor experts manning the business side and Drake the marketing, there’s no reason why Mod Sélection wouldn’t at least see the success of Virginia Black.
Back in 2017, the company launched a series of teasers for the commercial titled, “The Realest Dude Ever,” that went viral after release on Drake’s Instagram receiving over 20 million in the blink of an eye.
Drake’s 110 million followers on social media now give Mod Sélection — like Virginia Black — the opportunity to cross-market segments, unlike any other spirit brand.
With bottles currently priced at $300 and $400 respectively, Drake is obviously catering to the more affluent crowd. The 750ml options in Reserve and Rosé accents just the type of vibe Drake is going for.
Drake now joins to likes of Jay-Z who is owner the champagne Ace of Spades Armand de Brignac Champagne, which he bought in November 2014. Like Jigga, he now owns a whiskey and a bubbly brand, and, like Hov, hopes to profit as well.
Other rappers like 50 Cent and Diddy have shown how partnerships with spirit brands can bring in a whole new realm of money and adds to the trend of rappers finding ways to make money outside of music sales.
Drake and Mod Sélection hopes to add magnums( 1.5L) and jeroboams(4.5L) to the assembly as well as additional flavor infusions, like single Vineyard, Vintage, and Blanc de Blanc. The champagne has not yet been made available but is expected to be released this year.
Drake may always find himself in the middle of things, but it clearly doesn’t keep him distracted from his pathway to mogul status.
Only 32-year of age and worth $100 million, he’s on his way to establishing an empire that will far outlive him. For all of the beef, rumors, and drama, that’s not to bad.
In 2019 we’ve already seen Drake on his business tip, maybe this is indicative of how his music will go this year, too. Only time will tell.
