A couple of weeks ago I launched the red pill contest where i vowed to find some of the best unsigned talent in the world and give them a platform right here on the SKEE Live stage. This contest is a natural fit for this show since im all about showcasing whats next as well as doing things independently of others- whether thats without record labels, major backing, or cosigns- as i feel believe that true talent will always ultimately shine through.

Since then we’ve received a flood of entries on skee.co from new artists trying to get on- both good and bad. Even before I launched this initiative, my twitter timeline and email inbox have always been jammed with new artists trying to get noticed and attention.

The majority of these have good intentions, but many approach it wrong. Some take it to another level and don’t understand that success in music, or anything in life for that matter, doesn’t come over night. I wanted to break down the process to everyone tonight and hopefully share some lessons that will help you in whatever your doing.

First up, if you just started making music- great! Your not ready yet. I’m not saying you don’t have the talent or drive, but did Michael Jordan go straight to the NBA? He had raw talent but it took him not even making his high school varsity team when he first tried out, fine tuning his skills in the NCAA, and even learning for years in the NBA before he won a championship and hit his peak. The lesson is if you have talent- practice, practice, practice, in anything you do. Artists, I promise you your going to look back and laugh at how your records today sound one year later, as the most incremental improvement happens at the start.

Next up, learn how to network, and specifically don’t annoy others- especially those in positions of power. There is an approach to connecting with people. Sending me 500 messages or hounding me to give my opinion isn’t it. In fact, that’s a quick way for someone to ignore you altogehter. Also, if i took just “5 minutes to listen” for everyone that asked that, I literally wouldn’t have time to do anything else. Your first impression is everything and if you leave the wrong one, its going to be even tougher to get mine, or anyones again.

By the way, I don’t have all the power to blow an artist up like many think. If I did, I’d sign everyone and make billions of dollars doing it. People do trust me as a source for new music, artists and songs, but thats because I do my research and find out who’s hot, who people are talking about, and search out those instead of looking at those who come to me. When I played Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, Lorde, or Game first, it was because they were all on the brink of exploding and had put in the work over the years. I witnessed it first hand with people like Kendrick who I first saw as a raw talented youngster at 16- but he wasn’t ready then. After he’d gone back and mastered his craft and the timing was right, it clicked altogether. It doesn’t happen overnight.

The last thing that annoys me more is people looking for handouts and complaining along the way. Some even get mad when I don’t respond, pay attention, or criticized something as not being ready and say I don’t put on new artists because i don’t play them. There’s a huge difference between putting people on that are new which i do all the time- i mean tonight is Ab Soul’s TV debut- and people having to work their way up and looking for handouts. I encounter so many artists waste time complaining instead of working. Its also weak when you hear an artist complaining that no one is listening and they cant win contests like these that do reward those with followers since it pushes their music to the top. If u can’t do a basic thing like build a fan base- that by the way EVERY successful artist in the world started off doing themselves- what r u going to do later? I already know the answer- complain or quit when anything adverse happens- which will eventually happen sometime, and I don’t want to work with anyone like that.

I hope everyone out there trying to make it at anything in life can take lessons from what i just said. I haven’t always been perfect in my steps, but in general, all of those points I just made brought me to the place I am today. If you have what it takes, prove it! I didn’t get here by complaining. On the way up, I leap frogged loads of people who at the time were more successful than me. I had the same feelings we all do when looking at the top- the people there don’t always deserve it, have the knowledge or work ethic you do, and aren’t as talented. Guess what? I passed them all in the end.