We were lucky to catch up with Jackson Henderson recently and have shared our conversation below.
Jackson, appreciate you joining us today. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?
I think about being an employee of a large music label instead of being a label owner almost every day. It would be way less stressful and much less work for me to do. I am so proud of how far I’ve come with my business partner Ryan Olson, and I have to continuously have to remind myself of what I’ve done. I believe I have accomplished everything that most people only dream of in a very short period of time. For me to work a normal job for a label, instead of owning the company, would probably be extremely frustrating for me. I would want to be able to make the decisions that I want to make and make changes the way that I want to make. When you work for a company, it cripples your ability to have that decision-making mentality. You can only do what you have been given the power to do. If you struggle to make decisions then working a job for a company is probably the gig that you want to do. But if you’re the type of person who enjoys making decisions and can make them quick, then you can probably prevail at running a business. It isn’t easy to do it but it is very enjoyable.
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
As the President of Damage Media Group, I have an enormous impossible role… in my head. I’m always telling myself that there are people who are depending on me to be successful. I’m always working hard because I feel as if people need the knowledge and wisdom that I have in my head. And it’s up to me to get that information out of my head and into the minds of my peers and those who are willing to listen. I have always been the type of person to want help others. When I learn something new, I can’t wait to share it with someone. Whether it’s on social media, in person, or just writing an article on my site. I never knew I would be doing what I’m currently doing. I finished my studies as an undergrad in Business Management and then went into the Air Force. When I got out of the military I started learning audio production. That was very interesting but I knew I wanted to learn something more. I felt as if I had a bigger purpose in the music industry. I completed an audio production certification but then decided to get my undergrad in Music Business. Before I finished, I went into business with my good friend Ryan Olson and we started Damage Media Group. We went from associates to friends, to business partners pretty quickly. But that is the pace that I usually like to work with people. I genuinely enjoy working at a fast pace with people because I want to just keep going to see if they can keep up with me. Some people don’t like going into business with people that they can’t be great friends with but I feel like if I think you’re good to work with then I will like you as a person. DMG is founded on the principle of empowering creatives. We are a company created by creatives, for creatives. Our goal is to power creatives. It is important to establish a good rapport with people in the city because they will want to keep coming back to you for work. We have developed a community for recording and mixing music, producing top-quality music videos, interviewing artists on podcasts, and taking amazing headshots/portraits to get creatives the best content that they can find in the city. DMG is slowly becoming a staple in the city. I have been extremely happy with how things have gone so far and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for us. My slogan for the company is “Come to DMG”. I stole it from Suge Knight during his famous speech during an award show where he finished by saying “Come to Death Row”. But I thought it was such a simple message that creates an action item for our clients and for anyone paying attention to us. No matter what you need in the creative space, we have you covered. COME TO DMG 🦏
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Something that I have started to understand as a business owner is the ability to manage a full-time job and run my business. One day I started telling myself that the job I have is basically funding my business. I use most of the money I have to pay for marketing and equipment at my business. I love my job so I don’t want to stop working just to go full-time with my business. I will continue to do both until I feel like one is hurting the other. It is important for people to know that you can do both because some people don’t think it’s good to do but it is. I’m proud to say that I do both.
If you have multiple revenue streams in your business, would you mind opening up about what those streams are and how they fit together?
We are starting to become the premier place to buy snacks. Yes, that’s right. People love to buy snacks at our facility and we pride ourselves on having some of the best snacks around. We strive to provide our customers with whatever they ask for and we will continue to do so for as long as people ask. There is nothing more important than providing that extra value to our clients.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.damagemediagroup.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/damagemediagroup
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jackson.henderson.1992
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacksonhenderson/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/supahendo
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/JacksonHenderson
Image Credits
Damage Media Group, LLC