NEW YORKBOUND
Local rapper hoping to make connections in Big Apple
Local rapper hoping to make connections in Big Apple.
Glace Bay rapper Mitchell Bailey is all about working hard and capitalizing on opportunities.
That’s why he’s headed to New York City on Wednesday to meet with staff at VaynerMedia, a digital marketing company fronted by wellknown internet personality Gary Vee.
Vee, also known as Gary Vaynerchuk, is an American entrepreneur and bestselling author who founded VaynerMedia, a digital marketing agency that services Fortune 500 companies. Vee is an internet sensation with more than 2.8 million followers alone on Instagram.
Bailey learned about VaynerMedia last summer and soon became hooked on the way Vaynerchuk approaches businesses and entrepreneurship.
“He changed my perspective on everything,” said Bailey. “I always watch his stuff in the mornings before I do anything — he’s become an important inspiration for me.”
Bailey decided that while it might be nearly impossible to meet with Vaynerchuk, it might be more plausible to meet with members of his staff who record just about everything the personality does on a daily basis for his social media presence.
“I eventually got in touch with one of the guys who works very closely with Gary and I sent him my music and then he sent me a video of them listening to it in their office in New York which was pretty exciting,” said Bailey.
“Then I got in contact with another guy who works there and eventually, they said if you’re ever in New York, you have an invitation to come up here and meet everybody who works here at VaynerMedia and talk on different strategies and ways for me to break into the States and so on.
“And I was like, if we’re ever in — well, we’re going to New York.”
Bailey says he doesn’t have a specific meeting with Vaynerchuk but he’s hopeful he will get the opportunity when he’s in New York. Even if he doesn’t have a face-to-face meeting with the marketing guru, he’s already reaping some of the benefits through his own change in attitude.
“He made me really realize that if I wanted to achieve everything that I want, it’s realistic because all I have to do is put an insane amount of work into it, which I am totally prepared to do. He’s a workaholic and he preaches that.”
“He made me really realize that if I wanted to achieve everything that I want, it’s realistic because all I have to do is put an insane amount of work into it, which I am totally prepared to do. He’s a workaholic and he preaches that.” Mitchell Bailey
As well, Bailey says his music is now reaching a larger audience through inclusion on one of the company’s videos.
“The guy who shoots all his videos and stuff included one of my songs on one of his videos that came out three weeks ago — that video got a ton of views and I got credit in the video — he posted snippets of it on his Instagram and Facebook pages and the Instagram video got a half a million views and it had my song in the background,” said Bailey, adding he also plans to meet with music industry professionals while in New York.
“This is going to be a great opportunity — I think something crazy could come from it.”