Singer ‘T-Pain’s School of Business’ is now in session
Beginning with his 2005 debut hit single, “I’m Sprung,” which made it to the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, rapper-turned-singer T-Pain has almost single-handedly popularized the use of the pitch-altering technology Auto-Tune in hip-hop. His pole-routinefriendly singles like “I’m ‘n Luv (Wit a Stripper)” and his 2007 No.1 hit “Buy U a Drank” helped transform the once-furtive male-bonding strip club outing into a mainstream, all-genders-welcome Friday night routine.
So why is a Grammy award-winning artist better known for collaborations with the likes of Gucci Mane and Lil Wayne hosting a show about entrepreneurs? Turns out the man behind all those ‘dranks’ is uniquely qualified for the gig. At 33, T-Pain has owned his own Nappy Boy Entertainment label for more than a decade and has cultivated a passion for startup investing.
On “T-Pain’s School of Business” on the music-focused Fuse network, the music maker will visit small businesses whose owners make everything from marijuana-infused wine (Rebel Coast) to maggot-based chicken feed (Grubbly Farms) and examine the stories behind their innovations.
“I want entrepreneurs that are starting out to learn from these stories,” he says. “I’m asking questions like ‘How did you come up with this idea? How many times did you fail?’ I’m learning with the audience.”
T-Pain, born Faheem Rashad Najm in Tallahassee, doesn’t just enjoy pulling back the startup curtain on television. He often spends his free time searching for new products to get behind. “I’m about to back one now,” he says. “They’re already rich but the people that made Segways just came out with a go- kart. I’m about to go get one of those TODAY.”
Early in his career, T-Pain found ways to capitalize on his niche beyond record and concert sales. He had the highest-selling ringtone of 2007 with “Buy U a Drank” and was the face of a mobile app that mimicked Auto-Tune. Part of the reason he’s so enthusiastic about his new show is because he knows all too well the drive it takes to become a successful business owner.
“I’m an entrepreneur myself so I know how hard it is,” he says. “I”m always on Kickstarter and Indiegogo looking for new products. I don’t really talk about it publicly because I’m not doing it for credit or to make money, it’s just a passion. If I see something I like, I want to help people get it out into the world.”
His favorite product from the show, Vite Ramen is a protein-packed healthier take on packaged ramen noodles. TPain visited twin brothers Tim and Tom Zheng in Northern California and discussed their journey from below-average students to food innovators who raised nearly $250,000 on Kickstarter this summer.
“Those noodles have helped me out. I’ve been eating the hell out of those,” says T-Pain, who declares in the premiere of the six-episode season that he prefers ramen noodles at home to a fancy dinner out. “That was my favorite, for sure. I got a whole supply of those.”
But he concedes there is one product he couldn’t immediately wrap his head around – the pet chicken feed from Grubbly Farms, a Georgia-based company that turns maggots (specifically Black Soldier Fly larvae) into very earthy sustenance for backyard birds. “They’re actually very successful! If I was nervous, it’s only because I don’t know how many people have pet chickens. I had pet chickens once but when money got low, pet chickens became dinner,” he says with a laugh.
T-Pain’s main hope for the series is that it will inspire would-be entrepreneurs. “There will be people who watch this show and get motivated to get going with that product they’re secretly making in their basement,” he says.
“Maybe they’re embarrassed because people around them will say they’re making something crazy. But these products aren’t coming out of nowhere.
“The products you see on this show are from people putting in years and years of work and believing in them- selves even when no one understands.”
T-Pain, who on Oct. 10 surprised fans with the release of “Everything Must Go Vol. 2,” a follow-up to a well-received August mixtape, maintains that anyone can create something and start their own business.
“It’s really about your reasons for becoming an entrepreneur,” T-Pain says. “Do you have an idea that can really help people or do you just need money right now? Doing it just because you need money is how you lose. If you have a product that can help the world – you’re my favorite kind of entrepreneur.”