Top 10 Ways To Succeed In Hip Hop (Without Rapping)
A3C Hip Hop Festival founder Brian Knott discusses the top 10 essential steps he has taken in his journey to founding the Southeast's largest Hip Hop gathering:
1.) Nerd out with a .com business…and then sell it. Most people don’t know that before A3C was even an idea, I started and sold a small internet business before the .com bubble burst. Since then, I've chased 600 jobs in the music business including hawking club flyers, starting my own record label and founding A3C. Hustling is the lost element of Hip Hop. Sometimes you just have to keep trying new paths to find something that sticks.
2.) Chase your record label dream…and then fail at it. Selling records might be the worst, most soul-sucking business ever. Somewhere along that ride I realized I had obligations to bring artists from all over the country to Atlanta who had hosted my busted label's artists on tour. So the first A3C was like a family reunion for all of our local and out of town friends. Needless to say, A3C has become the dream that the nightmare record label failed to be.
3.) Play Mr. Mom. What can I say? I have 3 kids and a home office in my basement. I do the carpool, help with homework and I spend a lot of time cleaning Legos and My Little Pony off my laptop before I can use it. I can change a diaper and book an artist at the same time. If I don’t answer the phone, it is probably because I am dealing with someone under 4-feet-tall who just pooped.
4.) Create your own entourage...and don't forget family. I’ve been lucky enough to surround myself with some of the most talented people in the industry over the years. From operations to public relations, the A3C team has been hand selected for their strengths and their love of the culture, including my Mom who handles hospitality. We get it done.
5.) Never let anyone see the top of your head. Ever. New Era caps are mandatory, I am partial to the ones with an A3C logo. I own over 100 different Atlanta Braves fitted caps alone. My kids don’t even know what color hair I have.
6.) Know your own backyard. If you don’t have eyes and ears all over your own community, how will you know who the up and coming talents are? A3C prides itself on recognizing rising artists on their way up including Yelawolf and B.o.B.
7.) Stay up on your social media game. The Internet has reset the game for the entire music industry. A3C spends less on marketing annually then we do on water because we believe that if we do our job and invest in your experience here you’ll share it with everyone you know on-line and they’ll be here next year. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and the blogs are our lifeblood. So much so that I still personally manage A3C's Twitter handle, @a3c.
8.) Don’t take yourself too seriously, but don’t play yourself either. I’m a large, goofy white (very white) guy in the world of Hip Hop. I am a square peg in a round hole. But every day for the last 8 years I have been the exact same large goofy white guy. I am authentic in a business and art form that demands authenticity along with a healthy sense of humor.
9.) Know how to dance. I really can’t, but in this case like most things in my life I make up for a lack of talent with a wealth of enthusiasm.
10.) Do work. If you do what you love it never feels like work. My work, my hobby, my passion and my art are all A3C. A3C is like my 4th child more than it has ever been a job.
