We recently connected with DJ 4THE WIN and have shared our conversation below.
DJ 4THE WIN, appreciate you joining us today. We’ve love to hear an interesting investment story – what was one of the best or worst investments you’ve made? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)
The best investment I made was an investment in myself. I know that sounds cliche but it’s so true!
Investment in yourself covers many things in my opinion. It creates a compound effect. Investment in myself caused me to take a risk (bet on myself!) by making me believe I could achieve a music career full-time. From the moment I uploaded my first beat online, to the moment I got my first record deal, to the moment I went back to working a 9-5 full time and quit (again lol) there was always some sort of risk involved. As long as it’s calculated and purposeful & divinely driven, an investment in yourself is always going to pay off.
When I transitioned from only record producing to starting my DJ career, it was a risk to invest in new equipment. However, better equipment got me into better situations. Better situations got me into rooms where I was able to create meaningful relationships and get better opportunities. So now the cycle just continues! However, it would have never gotten started without taking that initial investment risk of believing in myself.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
My name is Win Crabtree, creatively known as DJ 4THE WIN, I’m from Wichita, KS by way of Los Angeles, CA (living in Texas and Colorado in between). I was introduced to music at a very early age. Growing up, I attended performing arts schools from the age of 5 through middle school. There, I was introduced to all of the arts. Ranging from acting, singing, painting, and ballet dancing, but the one thing that stuck with me throughout the years has always been the creation of music.
I was introduced to DJing and producing by Donovan “XV” Johnson at 16 years old. I had a little pirate radio setup where I would play songs for my neighborhood over a pirated signal. All the songs I would download from the internet. When he found out it was me, he gave me a shot to work with him, XV was like a mentor to me. I saw he was making a living off selling instrumentals online to fund his rap career and that is what got me into producing. He taught me the basics of making a beat and I kept going, and the rest is history.
Once I felt like my music was good enough, I uploaded it to the internet. The site was Soundclick.com which had charts for all the genres. My beats started creeping up the charts slowly but surely and the next thing you know, my beats are consistently at the top of the charts. That is what got eyes and ears on my music. (Again, taking a risk to even put my music out there.) From there, I got an email from an artist living in Tampa wanting to buy a beat for $500! I was sacking groceries at the local grocery store in Kansas getting like $80 a week on my check after taxes and all, so this seemed surreal! My mother couldn’t comprehend it, and neither could my friends, that’s how I knew I had something special.
From there I started my production company, Team Green Productions, we came up early in the online beatmaking world and the Atlanta trap scene, working with producer Shawty Redd. Our goal was to give independent artists industry-quality music at independent prices. At the time, the world was not as connected because social media was still in its infancy. Cultures and musical styles were very distinct, we prided ourselves on being diverse with our sound. You could get any type of sound from us. That led me to get a worldwide publishing deal with PULSE Recordings & through that, I was able to build connections to work with major artists and companies. Some past & current collaborators include Rick Ross, 50 Cent, Master P, Lil Jon, Bhad Bhabie, THEY, Maluma, Flo Rida, Lil Jon more. I even ended up co-writing Flo Rida’s singles “Hola,” and “Dancer” as well as Kevin Gates’ “Let It Sing”. These works brought me to RIAA Platinum status as a producer, amassing over 600,000,000 streams across platforms worldwide. I have to a special S/O to my guy Andrew Grant, he was an A&R at Warner Music group at the time. He put me in those rooms and pushed me to take risks in my life to be able to make these opportunities possible.
COVID-19 changed a lot of the scene and I ended up moving from LA back to Kansas. When we were all on lockdown in quarantine, I used that as a time to pick up the skill of DJing and that’s how DJ 4THE WIN was born. I would DJ for free any chance I got, just to get experience. Again, hat goes back to the first question of taking a risk. I had to bet on myself to make that pivot!
Fast forward to now, 4THE WIN has become one of the most sought-after DJs when it comes to delivering a live experience. Getting off the ground in early 2022, I was acknowledged by the ICT Black Out Awards as the area’s Best DJ of 2022. Since then, I’ve gone on to host/DJ events for established companies such as the MLB’s Home Run Derby X, AU Sports, NCAA March Madness, Nike EYBL/NIBC, Dillards, Nike, Koch Industries Old Navy, municipal entities that include The City of Wichita, USD 259 Schools, nonprofits like the Wichita Sports Commission and FestiveICT. I even have partnered with the United States Air Force to work with them consistently on different events. I’m currently the DJ for MiLB’s Wichita Wind Surge, Wichita State University Men’s Basketball, and a partnership with Chicken N’ Pickle Wichita where I work with their team to curate events and bring in local talent for onsite entertainment. (Wichita, Kansas’s #1 Voted Sports bar by the Wichita Eagle 2022 &2023)
DJing and Hosting have led me to create new ventures. I have partnered with my childhood friend Travis Hatfield, to establish our own bar/event space, Douglas Social. A lounge with retro vibes that we use as a hub to bring all walks of life together through socializing and music-themed events. HjTS Entertainment is a collective I’m a part of that puts on themed events targeted at young adults on a mass scale to bring diverse groups together to party in a safe, welcoming environment. Lastly, Winning Streak Media is my latest startup venture, Winning Streak Media works to maximize ROI while bridging the gap to connect the sports and entertainment communities. We do everything from consulting, gameday entertainment, and even create content with teams and athletes both on & off the field. It’s in the early stages but I’m excited to see where it goes!
What I’m most proud of throughout this journey is the fulfillment of my mission statement, which is to build community and memorable experiences through music. No matter whether I’m producing for a multi-platinum artist, DJing for a billion-dollar company or just an intimate private gathering, My principles are to glorify God through trust, reliability, respect, and value. Creating memories, and educating clients on how they can get the best experience!
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
Being a “millennial”, I remember life before social media. Social media until recently was always organic to me, I grew with it as it grew and became a global phenomenon. Early on, for me it was MySpace and Twitter, I would use both as a tool to forward traffic to my business website, where people could find the music that I had for sale. Social Media is all about being consistent. Find your lane, figure out the way you want to express yourself/business and be able to create a system where you can do it consistently. When it comes to the quality of content, the amount of content/posts, and interactions, it has to be consistent to see growth. High-quality photos/videos are a must, if you’re creating music then creating high-quality music is a must, cooking, doing reviews, etc it has to be high-quality. (Quality is subjective)
Nowadays everything is driven by algorithms, so it can get overwhelming. The thing that has helped me with the transitions of social media is just to find my niche to stand out. In my opinion, the easiest way to stand out on social media is by being your true authentic self! It will start to feel like work and will be difficult to be consistent when it’s not organic! I found that using social media as a tool to add value to others whether it’s teaching something you learned, or spreading a positive message, etc. helps a lot, those things get shared more and that helps grow your platform.
Another big thing that helped me grow especially on Instagram is collaborating on posts. You can now combine your following with another following and it’s like two communities that might not have known each other are now one. It’s been huge for me. Not only on social media but that has translated to new business leads in real life.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My mission is to always glorify The Most High with the gifts He gave me. God gave me the gift of bringing joy to people with my music. He gave me the gift to bring people together through my energy and a creative eye to build community through events. God didn’t give me these gifts to say “Look, I’m a dope DJ.” He gave me these abilities to spread love, hope and joy to others so the world we all are apart of can be a better place. That is what drives my creativity, is to lean into that. Taking a step on faith and seeking Him and living a life that’s full of LOVE is my purpose.
Life is a beautiful journey, and with so much going on it’s easy to get away from what we were simply put here to do. Which is to love and serve one another. That’s my goal, to pour love into whatever I’m doing Whether it’s rockin’ an arena of 10,000+ people or a small intimate wedding, the mission stays the same. ♥️🙏🏾🏁
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dj4thewin.com
- Instagram: beatsbywin
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/dj4thewin
- Twitter: beatsbywin
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@win6839
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-872662014
- Other: Company IG: @winningstreak.media
https://www.pulserecordings.com/clients/win-crabtree/
Image Credits
Katie Mack
Walter Brady
Baldormero Plata
Festive ICT/Shots By Jordan
Ed Bailey