We recently connected with Gabriella Martucci Jones and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Gabriella thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. One of the toughest things about progressing in your creative career is that there are almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?

The most unexpected problem I have faced so far in my journey as a creative who started a brick-and-mortar music school was getting married to an Air Force officer. That meant I would be moving out of state, changing time zones, and possibly even changing countries. It meant life would never be routine and lifestyle and life plans would be constantly changing and flexing. How was I going to run a brick-and-mortar when I couldn’t be physically present? How was I going to carry on with my dreams if I also want to marry into a military lifestyle?

But I did it. I married the perfect man for me AND kept my dreams moving forward.

My business has not only survived since I left, but it has thrived. The music school has grown a solid 50% every year because I have been able to work on the business and not in the business. I have been able to focus on creating systems for everything. I mean everything. Through these systems, I have been able to measure the quality of our service, measure all kinds of stats, know every dollar that comes in and out, see our growth, identify problems, solve problems and spend a lot of time coaching my managers and staff on how to run the business.

I don’t lead my business from the front, I lead from behind. I’m not the business, I’m a pillar to the business. It comes down to a lot of love for your employees, for your craft, and the desire to see others succeed beyond you.

Gabriella, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I grew up with a passion for playing music. Against my parent’s hopes, I chose to go to music school and developed my vocal and piano skills. But the real journey wasn’t learning to play music. The real journey was learning about myself and finding healing through the process. The tools that a music education gives you for how to identify and manage your mental health became my passion. I was in awe at my music professors who could read past anything I tried to hide from them.

Smack in the middle of my music degree, my father was diagnosed with a terminal illness and a slow death. I tried my best to hold it together and maintain my good grades but my professors could “hear” my tension in the music I produced when I sang or played piano. They would know right away when something wasn’t going right in my day. And sometimes those music lessons would turn into therapy sessions simply because we would have to identify the root of my mental state in order to choose the best musical exercises to do to help me work past the tension I was holding in my body that wasn’t allowing me to play at my usual technical level. I graduated magna cum laude but the real value I graduated with was having grieved our family tragedy well and being trained and equipped for healthily addressing anything life could throw at me from then on.

Fast forward, I start teaching private music lessons out of someone’s living room to help pay their rent while being in my ideal location. But I didn’t advertise just simple music lessons. I wanted to teach music lessons with an emphasis on self-awareness, confidence and creativity. That is the musician’s journey I experienced -it doesn’t start with an instrument, it starts with self-awareness and turns into true confidence and creativity. We eventually turned into an official small music school with 3 part time teachers, about 40 students, and a commercial brick-and-mortar space. In honor of my father and my last name, I called it Martucci Music and 7 years later, we now serve over 600 students.

At Martucci Music, we don’t see ourselves as teaching music first, we see ourselves as developing people first. That’s why we always say, “It’s not just about music here, it’s about a commitment to your ‘Self'”.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I met my husband, an Air Force Officer, after having just launched a brand new music school brick-and-mortar the year prior. You all know how much energy a brand new business takes and how long it takes to get it on its feet. Well, two years later we get married and have to move from California to South Carolina. I got pregnant right away too. I had to figure out how I would continue with my music school without being present to manage, teach, provide the main customer service. I had to pay one of my teachers to manage the space and if I was broke before, I was even more broke now. My new husband told me, “You don’t earn a dollar off of this project, why don’t you just teach music at a school instead and do that whenever we have to move every couple of years.” My response? “Absolutely not. I would be miserable. Just give me a year so I can prove to you that I WILL make this work.” And I did.

My business has not only survived since I left, but it has thrived. The music school has grown a solid 50% every year because I have been able to work on the business and not in the business. I have been able to focus on creating systems for everything. I mean everything. Through these systems, I have been able to measure the quality of our service, measure all kinds of stats, know every dollar that comes in and out, see our growth, identify problems, solve problems and spend a lot of time coaching my managers and staff on how to run the business.

I am not leading my business from the front, I am leading from behind. I’m not the business, I’m a pillar to the business. The secret sauce comes down to a lot of love for your employees, for your craft, and the desire to see others succeed beyond yourself.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I had known about SEO, Google Ads and Google Analytics earlier in my journey! I befriended a gal who did marketing and ended up paying her to do some basic SEO and ads for me but also to teach me as she went along. We had so many interesting walks and dinners just talking our heads off about this stuff! After learning the basics from her, I learned to do it on my own and to stay updated on Google’s frequent updates. It’s the cheapest marketing that gives the greatest ROI for us now and COVID-19 allowed me to get ahead of my local competition by building up my own SEO presence while others put a pause on theirs!

Contact Info:

• Website: martuccimusic.com
• Instagram: @martuccimusic

Image Credits
Gabriella Martucci Jones KNOW Women