How Hoodie Allen Went From Working at Google to a Successful Rapper
Maybe it’s time to leave that 9 to 5 and follow your dreams…
Born and raised in Plainview, New York, Hoodie Allen, or Steven Markowitz, is well-known for his astounding rap career. He recently released his fourth studio album, Whatever USA, yet, few are aware of the challenges he overcame to get there. One of them involves taking a leap of faith and leaving a secure job at Google to pursue his music full time. Talk about passion!
Hoodie was recently interviewed by Dan Gheesling, Twitch streamer and gaming YouTuber, where he told Dan how he got to where he is today, why he funds his music videos with his own money, and even went into fascinating detail about the business aspects of streaming platform royalties.
At the beginning of his rap career, Hoodie was in seventh grade and recording music with just a $10 microphone. He admits he started for fun, doing this entirely for himself. As his love for the genre grew, he became obsessed with internet forums solely dedicated to underground hip hop music. He would scour thread after thread searching for new artists, albums, and songs. In the interview, he mentions that among his favorite groups back in the day were Atmosphere and Living Legends.
Eventually, he began to post his own music on the forums to get feedback from fellow users before he was ready to share it with his friends and family. Once he gained more confidence, he started performing in school talent shows, but it wasn’t going to end there for Hoodie; he made sure of it.
While attending the University of Pennsylvania, Hoodie used Facebook and MySpace as his main social media outlets to help him reach a larger audience. During this time, he tells Dan that he also began booking shows; managing to get himself on a lineup with Big Sean and Mike Posner. This gig gave him a lot of credibility due to Posner’s popular song, “Cooler Than Me” ft. Big Sean, which was getting major radio exposure around this time.
Soon, he started doing more independent shows. The promotional aspects were done solely by random gig promoters, Hoodie himself on his social media, and by his agent, who was a recent college graduate.
Around this era, Marina and the Diamonds had put out a song in 2010 called “I Am Not A Robot” which became very popular. While in college, Hoodie and his friend had remixed the song and titled it “You Are Not A Robot”. Hoodie took the initiative to email several music blogs about the track in the hopes that they would write about it saying, “Hey, this is why I think you should post me. This song is kind of in this vein, if you like it, please check it out.” And somehow, it worked, making this his first song to gain extensive popularity.
After sending roughly two hundred emails, the remix became extremely successful for its time, receiving over one million streams in just two months.
Hoodie Allen’s unique coming up story shows his passion for the industry and his unmatchable work ethic that most people can only dream of. He proves to be a true inspiration for aspiring musicians that are new to the scene and maybe lacking the motivation to keep seeking the exposure they crave. All in all, Hoodie’s story is extremely motivating and proves that following your dreams is worthwhile.
Be sure to stream Whatever USA on Spotify or Apple Music and check to see if Hoodie Allen is coming to a city near you on his tour, Whatever USA Phase One.
To hear Hoodie Allen talk about how ILoveMakonnen was his first fan, playing shows with only a single ticket sold, and streaming platform royalties, check out his intriguing interview with Dan Gheesling on YouTube or listen to it online.
