We recently connected with Jay Truble and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Jay, thanks for joining us today. What do you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry? Any stories or anecdotes that illustrate why this matters?
In the music entertainment industry, corporate America seems to shy away from individuality and originality. Its a negative because it creates an atmosphere where the TRUE special talents are MUCH HARDER to discover by consumers. The game is saturated with clones & knockoffs.
Jay, 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?
Veteran indie musician with 20+ years experience that i love sharing to the next generation of indie artists. Basically an advocate for underground indie hiphop. Ghostwriter, artist development, consultant. I saw an arena with players that didn’t understand the rules of the “game” they were playing. I watched indie artists be taken advantage of for lack of knowledge. I share my limited knowledge & experience to the next generation of artists. I still enjoy breaking down the basics and learning from the young generation as well.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
My hustle is relentless! I let my work ethic make up for what I lack financially. I believe marketing & promotion is HIGHLY UNDERRATED on the indie scene. In certain circles you will be judged by how much you’re willing to invest in your brand. Also… there’s NO SUBSTITUTE for investing MONEY! Time & talent will only get you so far! If you want serious people to take YOU seriously, they have to know you believe in yourself enough to invest in yourself WHATEVER you may be willing to ask a label/investors for. Stolen beats, unpaid producers, etc is a HORRIBLE LOOK and may have you unknowingly blacklisted before you get steam behind your movement. And WORD TRAVELS, so if you’re always begging it wont be long before your “community” knows. We talk. I’ve always been willing to invest MY OWN time & money into my brand.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
At the beginning of the pandemic i was in the last leg of my first tour and EVERYTHING got shutdown before my interview in Houston & SXSW performance next week in Austin (2019). I was mortified, especially considering their were NO PERFORMANCES AND TRAVEL WAS HEAVILY RESTRICTED! It made me learn ways to utilize social media promo & digital marketing. I put out more music & diversified my merch. Also, live performances never COMPLETELY stopped but individuals had to be willing to book rooms, rent cars, & take the risk! Many artists actually capitalized and made names for themselves and their brand DURING that transitional time (such as myself). The “hustlers” definitely HUSTLED,lol. I actually found two artists in Nigeria during that time. (They’ve currently fulfilled contractual obligations and no longer represent Hyena Gangg Entertainment)
Contact Info:
- Instagram: jay.trublehyenagangg
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jay.sosincere
- Twitter: jay.focker23
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCe1124ezJoMUmf87pg4t2bA
- Other: https://music.apple.com/us/album/da-siiife/1538362571?i=1538362572 https://youtu.be/7NDqza7NGXQ https://youtu.be/NUbidWkJkpg https://youtu.be/ORlqXP_Ay1o