9 Artist-Entrepreneurs Who Created their Own Economies
Check out some filmmakers, musicians, actors, and artists who inspire SingularDTV’s building of a decentralized entertainment economy.
A central tenet of SingularDTV’s decentralized entertainment economy is the empowerment of creators. By removing intermediaries from the fundraising, production, and distribution of creative works, blockchain platforms like SingularDTV allow artists to connect directly with their fans and share in the journey together. This allows creators to be their own economy, and can help unlock the inner entrepreneur in any artist, whether you’re at the grassroots level or headlining international festivals like Gramatik.
Over the history of music, art, and film, there have been scores of creators who took their career into their own hands and created a business empire that sprung forth from their own creativity and hard work. As the creators in this selection show, there are a lot of ways to build your own economy, and the road to success is littered with good ideas that didn’t quite make it. But the most important part of the process is the decision to grow into entrepreneurs and take their craft into their own hands.
Check out some of our favorite artist-entrepreneurs who grew their careers in their own way, from whom we can all learn what it takes to create your own economy…
Andy Warhol
“Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art,” are the famous words of the American artist Andy Warhol, who is perhaps the best place to begin a discussion of artist-entrepreneurs. In the 1960s, during the growth of an anti-capitalist, counterculture movement in the art world, Warhol managed to find a way to embrace capitalism while at the same time lampooning it in the process of his visual art.
Taking well known images, making them pop with bright colors, and then mass-producing via his own warehouse factory made Warhol a controversial figure, his work an iconic emblem of the period, and a whole lot of money in the process. At the time of his death, the value of his estate was over $200 million, and Warhol’s creative eye has left an indelible mark on pop culture.
Gwen Stefani
When Gwen Stefani first appeared in the public eye, it was as the spunky frontwoman for SoCal pop-punk band No Doubt. Stefani successfully transitioned from the independent rock scene to pop stardom and became a style icon in the process with imaginative music and videos for tracks like “What You Waiting For?,” a song that was in itself, an inspiring call to arms for aspiring young entrepreneurs and creatives to fulfill their potential.
Stefani built on that foundation by launching her own Japan-inspired clothing brand, L.A.M.B, which partnered with several department stores and flourished into a fashion and lifestyle movement. To top it all off, Stefani is a frequent host on The Voice, inspiring younger artists to find their path in music. No doubt, Stefani has definitely come a long way from playing in garages in Orange County!
Dr. Dre
From 50 Cent to Jay Z and P Diddy, the story of a rapper hustling his way to Wall St has captured imaginations and provided the subject matter for countless albums. Nobody in hip-hop, though, has taken their career as deep into enterprise as Dr. Dre. When NWA arose from Compton, the group were brash, presenting themselves as cultural outsiders. After founding Aftermath Records and leaving his imprint on hip-hop history — bringing the culture mainstream — Dre went on to found, the ubiquitous headphone-and-then-streaming platform brand, with Jimmy Iovine. After the brightly adorned headphones caught on as a worldwide trend, the duo then sold Beats to Apple for a whopping $3 billion.
Jay Z and Beyonce
There is no power couple in all of entertainment that fits the artist-entrepreneur bill more than Jay Z and Beyonce. Both ascended to pop music mega-stardom in their own right before launching into business endeavors that turned them into cultural leaders. Jay Z once stated: “I’m not a businessman. I’m a business, man,” and he’s proved that throughout his career by launching the iconic Rocawear line before selling it for a cool $204 million, expanding his Roc Nation label into an entertainment industry powerhouse, and taking an ownership stake in the Brooklyn Nets, his hometown team.
Beyonce’s business endeavors have featured a string of high-profile partnerships, but it’s her philanthropic work that shows her leadership qualities. After hurricane Katrina, Beyonce launched the Survivor Foundation to raise money for victims, and has grown into an outspoken advocate and fundraiser for political causes ranging from gun control to equal pay.
David Bowie
The legendary David Bowie pushed all sorts of creative and social boundaries during his epic and lengthy career. His experiments with the music industry and economics may be lesser known, however. In the 1990s, David Bowie created ‘Bowie Bonds,’ offering his fans a chance to share in the ownership of his intellectual property. A groundbreaking experiment, Bowie Bonds were part of the inspiration for SingularDTV, and was just one of Bowie’s imaginative entrepreneurial endeavors.
In 1996, David Bowie was the first artist to sell a song online, receiving more than 300,000 downloads of his tune “Telling Lies.” Bowie even launched his own Internet Service Provider in 1998 — BowieNet — which, although it wasn’t an enduring success, may win the award for most outrageously creative and ambitious business endeavor ever undertaken by a musician.
Jessica Alba
After successfully graduating from teen comedies like Idle Hands into a leading star in films like Sin City and Fantastic Four, Jessica Alba turned her attention to business. It was an allergic reaction to a laundry detergent that inspired Alba to launch The Honest Company, a startup that creates over 100 non-toxic products, from diapers to shampoo. Partnering with retailers like Whole Foods and Target, the company was given a $1.7 billion valuation in 2017, with revenues of $300 million. In the process, she’s become an outspoken leader in issues of social equality and an inspiration for young women creators and entrepreneurs alike.
George Lucas
There is perhaps no media empire more galactically glorious than Star Wars, and the whole universe began in the imagination of a plucky young George Lucas in the 1970s. It’s well-known lore now that when the low-budget, campy sci-fi flick Star Wars was in production, most thought thought that it would not amount to much. Lucas, the director and recent film school graduate, forged on nonetheless. When it was finally released, the movie struck a chord, and grew into a foundational element of the modern sci-fi canon. In the proceeding half century, the Star Wars universe has grown into the largest transmedia franchise in history. Now, the Star Wars story is told through blockbuster films that span generations, books, video games, and a whole world of merchandise. George Lucas sold LucasFilm to Disney for $4.6 billion in 2012, earning him enough money to perhaps actually build his own Death Star.
Justin Timberlake
When it comes to entrepreneurial endeavors, the former-N*SYNC star seems to favor quantity, but his sheer ubiquity and imagination is worth noting itself! Over his career, Timberlake has been singer, songwriter, actor, producer, record label exec, fashion designer, restaurateur, tequila distiller, eco-friendly golf course owner, NBA team part-owner, and has lent his image to products ranging from iPhones to Audis to Givenchy fragrances. Atop all of that, Timberlake has led some incredible philanthropic efforts, including raising $2 million for victims of the Manchester attacks of 2017, and hosting celebrity charity golf tournaments.
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