We recently connected with Carmelita Ceja and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Carmelita , thanks for joining us today. Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?

The first dollar I earned as a creative almost didn’t happen and it seems kind of cliche but it’s really true. It was just before the new year in 2021 around late November and I had received an email that was very suspicious and I say that because it was so dry in a sense. It stated it was coming from a big headquarters (I signed an NDA at the time so lets say it rhymes with Feta) and that to further discuss with me details they would need me to sign and NDA. The crazy thing is this almost never happened because I ignored the first email, I thought this has to be a scam. I had forgotten all about the email until two days later when they emailed again and it said don’t miss out on this great opportunity but you must sign this NDA, so I thought what’s the worst that can happen and signed it. As it would turn out this would be a catalyst for a lot of good things to come and some major aha moments for myself. I was asked to be apart of their initiative and to create content on a regular basis (they had some specific parameters like frequency of post per week) for a specific page I run for our business Chi-Native Entertainment. This opportunity was my fist payday as a creative and it was crazy to me that I was getting paid to create reels that just represented our lives and what we are doing in the music industry ourselves as an independent record label here in Chicago. Getting this opportunity and getting paid to continue to do what I had been doing was life changing because I may not be an artist performing on stage but I felt seen because someone, somewhere noticed my consistency, my post and thought our page was relevant enough to garnish attention and a payday for all my efforts.

Carmelita , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Carmen (ThrowEmC on all socials) and I have been in the music scene in Chicago for over (2) decades. It all started with my brother Chris (artist name I.Deal aka Idealraps on all socials) who has been making music for just as long as i can remember. I’ve been one of his biggest supporters and not just because I am his sister but because I believe in him and have always supported him in following his dreams. I have always been detailed oriented and when I want something or put my mind to something there is no stopping me, so in the earlier years I naturally started to take over bookings, reaching out throughout the Chicagoland area bar/venue scene landing bookings with venues such as Funky Buddha Lounge, The Cubby Bear, Sub-T, Getz Theatre, Flat Iron Building, Cherry Red, Fiesta Cantina in Wrigleyville, Valentino’s, Candela’s Nightclub, Reggies Music Club, to name a few. Now (2) decades ago social media wasn’t here like it is today but we always needed footage and photos from every event and you could say that’s really where this all started. It started from our need to document the performances and to catch a moment in time to relieve those memories and we have always been an in-house group so there wasn’t this huge team, it really was just myself, my brother and his crew that did music and I became out of need the videographer and camera girl throughout his career.

Today we are Chi-Native Entertainment, Chi-Native represents who we are to our core, we were born and raised in Chicago and we are half Diné/Navajo. I.Deal is the Owner/President of Chi-Native Entertainment and I manage the day to day of Chi-Native. I run all our social media accounts which means I create the content that people tune in daily to see. I create post, stories, and reels that relate to our audience and run throughout the day so that we continue to grow, connect and engage with our followers. Thinking of my younger self I would have never thought this is what I would be doing, I had zero clue what I was I doing years ago and I had no idea I was actually getting myself prepared for today, the now, nor could I have known the possibilities that await for myself just through constant perseverance. I have always been a go-getter in a sense that you want something done for instance, your own radio show – I will find a way to make it happen. Fast forward many years later and Chris had gone back to school and earned himself a degree in radio and broadcasting and he mentions to me I want my own radio show and as luck would have it, again I was contacted via email about whether I would be interested in getting into radio. Now again, I thought this can’t be and at first I ignored the email but not for long and I got all the details, presented the information to him and Chi-Native Radio was born. I had 0 media training in terms of radio, but again we have always been an in-house team and everything we learn we taught ourselves. We started out in Lisle, Illinois on 88.9 FM and I became a radio host and we did that for a full year until we decided why not go fully solo and take this truly in-house and so we did. We now stream Chi-Native Radio on (3) platforms: FB: Chi-Native Entertainment | Youtube: Idealraps | Twitter: ChiNativeRadio we are live every Tuesday 9pm-10pm CST and you can catch Chi-Native Radio on your favorite podcast format as well. Chi-Native is a brand that makes things happen we don’t wish – we find a way and that leads me to our next greatest accomplishment for ourselves. Everything starts with Chris, an idea he has, he grew tired of the need to pay to play (indie artist not getting their music on air without big record label push) so we created Chi-Native Radio and we’ve met and collaborated with some amazing talent along the way, he then mentioned he wanted to throw his own festival as an independent record label so I got to work and Music In The Woods was created. I handled every aspect of the festival, securing permits, contracts, creating the marketing, securing vendors, booking acts etc. Our first Music In the Woods with our partner an indie label as well, AO Music Records was just before the pandemic hit in August of 2017 and then we returned in August of 2022 on a much larger scale. It was truly amazing to see what had accomplished both times.

Chi-Native represents the underdog, we represent those that dream big, we have created a brand that many recognize not just throughout Chicagoland but worldwide. This path has not been easy, many doubts along the way and many people would have given up years ago but that is not me, that is not us, that is not Chi-Native. I am so proud of all we have done thus far – I mean it really is bits of everything, the music growth, the sounds growth, the quality of product I.Deal delivers with every album he drops. His latest being Feliz Y Guapo which is out now everywhere, this album is phenomenal, every song is a hit play on. It’s been incredible to see overall, the music growth, the brand growth and the opportunities that have come my way in terms of content creation.

Looking back when I first decided to take on the social media accounts and create content it’s insane to see how our pages look now versus then – it’s more focused, polished and branded. Again never would I have thought I would do half of what I have done to this day and I am proud of that. We don’t believe in no, we don’t believe there is nothing we can’t do if we decide we will. Many could never understand our commitment but that is what sets us apart from others, our perseverance is our greatest asset. We’ve been doing this for (2) decades and that isn’t an easy feat, adjusting and pivoting along the way through life and it’s obstacles, which there have been many in between. We haven’t reached our Mecca yet, maybe we never will but we continue to push through our own lane and stay real to what we value which is faith, family above all and staying true to ourselves.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

Being a creative is not as easy as just posting a pic, or applying a font and posting. The biggest struggle a creative will find is non-creatives often dismiss what we do. I have heard and been told that making a post is easy but I have yet to see those do half of what I create and with the consistency that I do. Non-creatives do not understand the time commitment it takes with each post taking an an average of 15 -60 min to edit and have ready to share, and now factor posting multiple times a day and to several accounts, they won’t understand the trial and error it takes to find your target audience and to find what engages them most to keep them coming back. Non-creatives also won’t understand that a creative is constantly thinking about what they need to post next, they are constantly thinking about what trend to follow or not follow, it is never ending because boring isn’t engaging folks. Being a creative isn’t find a pic and post – it is so much more – we have to tell a story or show who we are behind that post and that is something a non-creative isn’t understanding overall about our work and what we post.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

To create a thriving creative ecosystem is quite simple. Support your friends, family, local creative like you support those celebrities that don’t know your name. Like their post, leave a comment on their post, if they are asking you to engage with thoughts or discussions then do so instead of being silent and ignoring it, go to their shows, support their music efforts, go to their art show, stream their music, use their music on your reels, share their music with your friends, bring their names up in various circles for opportunities.. Others are so quick to champion for those they know nothing about instead of championing for those they know right in front of them. We have so many talented individuals here in Chicago from musicians, to artists, and performers but so many after years of trying either stop chasing their dreams or give up and that is the real tragedy because we miss out on some great talent the world should know.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.Idealraps.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/throwemc?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChiNativeEnt
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/throwemc
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@idealraps