We recently connected with Joseph Saner and have shared our conversation below.
Joseph, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
I grew up around music. Mainly the piano and organ, although, I was able to experience all genres, instruments, live performances, and none better than those we did ourselves, with our boom-boxes up, dubbed over instrumentals, tapes full of recorded radio plays, reworking everything we could, to express our own vibe. Looking back, I can appreciate being a military brat/dependent. I was able to travel to several different states, and even several different countries, right through my early childhood into my early adolescence. Culture, languages, barriers, and even prejudice / racism, were all very real growing up and my Mother did an excellent job teaching us children that all those things were personal choices, and we are all human, the same, no matter the differences. Being able to live in Riverside, California, Texas for most of my younger State Bound years, in the Dallas/Killeen/Fort Hood/Harker Heights, and traveling to Italy, Germany, and South Korea, I was able to understand the lessons that my parents were teaching us kids.
I fell in love with 2 things, basketball and hip hop, I started building my character or persona per say, who I was, who I wanted to be, and who I am today. Doing whatever it took to remain relevant in my area, I had a lot of trial and error, mistakes, poor choices, and as I became an adult, I made a very bad decision to get involved with large amounts of drugs and ended up being incarcerated in the penitentiary, for a period of time. Even more lessons learned through that experience, a completely different story all together.
When I was released from prison, through experience, programming, and a personal choice to change my life, I decided to get into a labor trade, Asphalt. I worked from Idaho, driving into Wyoming, to work for a company, West Valley Paving. I worked my way into being a Plant Operator, and had a new born child on the way. In the commotion of my new born daughter’s situation changing, I relocated to Rapid City, South Dakota. My home of now 17 years and counting.
When I moved here, it was on a whim, directly addressing the situation that had arisen with my new born daughter, direct pay from work, a few bags, a ride from a close friend, and I grabbed a job here at a local laundry mat, bought a 20″ bike, and started to build my personal foundation. It was that year, that the our low wages, combined with inflation, and anger at current money situations, the ” concept ” of Deeper Entertainment was born.
It was literally in the basement, of a friend mine’s parents home. 3 men. Discussion. Society. Brainstorm. That, is how this all started. Since that time, whether it be lack of education, lack of drive, lack of vision, or never really believed that we could achieve where we are at today, the other 2 men have fallen away from the Deeper Entertainment vision, mission statement, and business model. It was very difficult. It still is a very challenging sector that we have broken into, after right around 15-18 years.
The Deeper Entertainment beginning business model was for an Independent Music/Production Label. With the idea, the vision, the mission being to gain national, and even international exposure, on our area, in South Dakota. an untapped area, and clearly the opportunity to become the first licensed/registered, official label, and it took off very quickly. In June of 2006, after researching the available information at that time, I decided that I would take the chance, the risk, and apply for the DBA. I approached one of our local colleges, Western Dakota Tech., and set up an agreement between a Pre-Legal Student, and Deeper Entertainment to assist our goal of a proper business plan. A very successful business plan was built for our DBA/Production Label, our appointment with the IRS, through the interviewing process, was approved, accepted, and Deeper Entertainment, the Music/Production Label, was born, and Officially Licensed and Registered on August 08, 2008.
We began signing Artist’s to our Roster. Booking events, hosting concerts, building local shows, and also building our early social media presence through the older model of websites, for example, Reverbnation, Soundclick, SoundCloud, MySpace, etc. etc. The music distribution sector was completely different. Every single inch was earned, worked for, requirements in place. The education for these lanes were held like secrets. We found out as a Label, that distribution was very difficult to achieve, without a proper line-in, or connection, to the right people. I took this very personally. It seemed, that no matter who we were connected with, throughout music, internationally or nationally, every single thing we tried to accomplish, only later showed it’s true value. When I say later, I mean, 10 years, maybe longer. Our main line, was a direct connection to Select-O-Hits, and a possible distribution deal, for a very talented Artist we have worked with for over a decade, Nero The King. Once this fell through, for reasonings of improper production and conflict within the copyrights, We continued to adjust, Nero achieved the project, completed the album, with an amazing producer from India, and as we approached the situation again, with full confidence, the entire industry changed through digital distribution services, that implementation, and then the third party distribution services began to enter the sector. Our heads were spinning!
On a very fortunate day, I was discussing business, business models, and where we could actually go, now that third party distributors of audio/video have entered the sector. The emotions, the energy, the drive, for our Independent Music/Production Label, with alllll the support in the world, from everyone we could imagine, was just not enough, to keep it moving. We were just uneducated in the actual sector of the music industry. In 2018, Deeper Entertainment, made a decision, to move from an Independent Music/Production Label, based in Rapid City, South Dakota, to a Global Distributor of Audio/Video products, through a very good friend, mentor, leader, and brother, the late, Mr. Trevino and Dope House Records, Empire Distribution, and Mr. Sanchez with GT Digital Distribution. I made the decision to transition into a sub-label licensing agreement, and through this mentorship, I learned very quickly, exactly where we were, have been, and are, to say the least, uneducated, as creators, when it comes to success, monetization, and what it all means. The different avenues, routes, markets, success, and exactly what needs to happen, in order for an Independent Artist, Creator, Producer, DJ, and/or Band, to create success in this sector.
After several years working closely with GT Digital and Empire Distribution, Deeper Entertainment had decided that we are ready to stand on our own, appreciative of all the assistance, and move forward, continuing on our Original Mission Statement, and setting the foundation for our future children and children’s children, to have ample opportunity to succeed without misdirection and misguided leadership. We are now, as of 2024, A Global Distributor of Audio/Video Products, while assisting the Independent Creator, directly, with a network, tools, and education, through our unique set of services. We are Deeper Entertainment, located in the Black Hills of South Dakota, Rapid City. A great place for Foundational Growth, Independent Success, and Generational Wealth, with some of the lowest business taxes in the Nation.
Joseph, 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 Joseph Saner. Artist name, DiCE. Throughout life, I had a personal goal. I would some day, get my music, into a music store. Period. That was the goal. Before digital distribution, and digital marketing, gaining traction into music stores themselves, such as Hastings, Walmart, etc. took meetings, proper screenings, upfront money, product screenings, the works. A very difficult task, which forced creators, artists, to manually visit storefronts and go through the process, or remain local and deal with your local small business owners. I wasn’t always a business owner. I am an Artist. A Hip Hop Artist at that. I believe there is definite difference in genres, artforms, and creations. I really took the industry personal, wrote hundreds of Original Songs, and put them out for the world to judge. I love writing, all styles, all bodies of language.
When I first began on the mission to prove to my family, that in fact, I COULD be an Artist, I did sign my first deal, through a third party distribution service, Magroove. I learned a ton of valuable information from Nick, my amazing AR. We currently still have a very solid business relationship, and that EP, ” Hellz Ink ” has done very well across all platforms in the digital streaming realm. Want to learn more about me personally as a creator? I would suggest visiting my personal YouTube Channel, and have a listen to the music. Just search Joseph Saner and enjoy Original Music. Every single song, is original, relatable, and has plenty of musicianship. I apologize for the pitch, it’s just an excellent place to get to know me, DiCE, as an Artist.
I say all this, to bring awareness to the fact that before we became a business entity, almost 20 years ago now, I’ve always remained an Artist first. Artist first thinking, Artist first education, Artist first period. Even now and again, I perform Live, throughout the United States, during different events. As a business owner, that creator position, seems to have simmered down a bit, as I really delve into the sector, with our Team, and put most of this energy towards the success of our Global Distribution and it’s services, with our ” Artist First ” mission statement.
We want to make sure, that from the minute you’ve decided as a creator, to enter the digital monetization of your audio/video projects, that you are properly and officially ready for these decisions, and represented professionally, responsibly, and proudly. We, as a company, here at Deeper Entertainment, are continuously and diligently, assisting and educating creators. We consistently educate creators on branding, how branding works, how effective branding can assist in the success of the creations themselves.
Once a Creator has made the decision to research and begin our process, Creators, through our unique set of services provided only to those who chose to move forward with Deeper Entertainment, are aligned with opportunities, a global support network, one on one consultation, and live customer service for any issues that present themselves.
Our Team at Deeper Entertainment has over 30 years of music industry experience. We require NO upfront Fees, No uploading costs, No Annual Fees. We directly connect you with your Royalty Revenue Information and Payment Process, creating 100 percent transparency. Our Global Distribution Services are unmatched, creator driven, and remain consistent with our Mission Statement :
Our goal is to provide the most balanced global distribution model, giving artists larger ownership of their music, while adding value to the vendor, reseller, and distributed products, through timely availability, proper credentials, while assisting with our global foundation and network.
Deeper Entertainment provides tools, and a guide with assistance, for your journey, with support from our global network, as well as providing you with everything needed to expand your artistic portfolio, allowing you to free up more time to write, record, and spend time with your families. We are by far the company you need to represent your brands/products.
We believe the artist, record company/labels, and publishing should be shared equally, with the artist retaining the right to own their master recordings.
Any advice for managing a team?
T.E.A.M. – Together Everyone Achieves More –
Somewhere, in the early 2000’s or maybe the late 90’s, our society, in my humble opinions has shifted. The earth as a whole. Or maybe, it’s just my perspective, which is part of the reasoning we remain relevant. I remember the days when holding the door open for someone was respect, inner moral/value, kindness, and not an open invitation to for a relationship, or extra energies. Our education system has changed tremendously. Morals/Values are still being taught, although it seems that they are secondary to trends, social relationships, marketability. Losing steam with work ethic, responsibility, and respect.
Our Team knows and understands that Morals/Values, Work Ethic, Responsibilities, Respect, and Understanding of empathy, sympathy, and interactions are all under siege, with Our Teams understanding of these aspects resonating from the actual Education itself. We pride ourselves on this understanding, and move forward with excellent motivation, as we are also Family. We conduct our meetings, our plans, our decision, our strategies, visions, and future, through the minds, eyes, ears, and conduct as Family.
We believe in Group decisions, and although there are responsibilities for each position, we also know that without one another, our T.E.A.M. would not create the success, the story, and available options to the Global Retail/Market, of Deeper Entertainment.
Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?
This is a very interesting position that we at Deeper Entertainment hold. During the initial process of our business licensing, registration, and gaining an official business position, we approached a credit union with our business, model, and our 2-5 year business plan. As a brand new DBA, small business, and lack of proper education, our approach was very successful.
We were offered a $25k small business loan, with a monthly payment of $550. Ok, so, everyone always asks me, how come you never gained initial capital? Here is my short answer. I just had received a business license, for a label, a music/production label, with almost no monetization of digital products or movement quite yet, no education in true marketing, no education in touring/events/concerts, no real plan. I had just an official license, copyrighted and trademarked brand name, and a super amount of Free Music, Free Websites, other Artist with the same. We were all very uneducated at the time, and with a 7-4 job at the laundry facility for $8 an hour, I completely understood what it meant, when the bank stated, ” 3 consecutive missed payments ” and we could posses your business. !!
That in itself, was enough, to keep me from taking that initial loan. I knew at that time, I wouldn’t be able to make the proper payments on the loan itself, and before I knew it, the very first official business I ever owned, would be confiscated by the bank. Now, today, I understand that probably wouldn’t have happened quite like that.
As far as after that initial year, we decided that we didn’t need anyone else, claiming the work we were doing to put or foundation on the nation’s map. Especially since no one seemed to believe in Deeper Entertainment from South Dakota in the first place. Our 20+ years have been with no investment other than our own Team’s investment. All Organic.
Today, we are prepared to raise capital, speak with investors, create business relationships outside of our own local area, and continue to move forward nationally and internationally with full support. We are very excited for 2024
Contact Info:
- Website: deeperentertainment.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Official.Deeper.Entertainment
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deeperentertainment/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8LKhOdWji2vnzLcY0YsGFg
- Other: Business : SoundCloud – https://soundcloud.com/deeperdistribution Reverbnation – https://www.reverbnation.com/label/deeperentertainment Reverbnation Songs – https://www.reverbnation.com/DeeperDistribution Personal : SoundCloud – https://soundcloud.com/diceofdeeperentertainment Audius – https://audius.co/deiveva Reverbnation – https://www.reverbnation.com/diceworldwide YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWVtZkVlgiXwdU-0ZX8XTCg