We were lucky to catch up with Marcellus Mc Lean recently and have shared our conversation below.
Marcellus, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
I have fond memories of creating music whether it was creating a song on the piano or making a beat on the computer. I remember I would listen to the radio and play along to the music or I’d recreate the beat. At the time I never knew it was possible to have a career in music it was just something I spent hours doing. After graduating high school I wasn’t able to land a job for almost 2 years so my dad recommended I join the Navy. I met with a recruiter and began training for a few weeks believing this was my new beginning. When the day came to sign my contract I got cold feet. Everything in my body was telling me not to join so I turned off my cell phone and went around the corner to my friend Jangis’s house where he had a home studio. Jangis was the first person that inspired me to start producing. He introduced me to Ryan Leslie videos on YouTube and sold me my first piece of music equipment, a motif mo8, which I would sometimes walk with around the corner before I had a car. I told no one my whereabouts that day and had my recruiter looking for me in locations I had no idea he knew of. I decided not to join. In 2011, I ended up landing my first job at Southwest Airlines and before I knew it I was in the break room making beats on my laptop during down time. A coworker of mine recognized me always producing and told me I should move to Atlanta, Ga. He explained how popular the music scene is and how I could live like a king with how low the rent prices were. I gave it some thought but I couldn’t picture myself leaving the Bay Area. A year later Southwest Airlines opened a station in Atlanta so I signed up to transfer locations and within a month I had 2 weeks to relocate. This was the moment I took my biggest risk. Moving to a new city I knew nothing about, leaving my family, my hometown, and starting a new life for the first time was life changing and worrisome but I stepped out on faith and trusted God. Within my ten years of being in Atlanta I landed my first placement with Trouble ‘Buy Yo Traphouse’ which was a proud moment. I’ve also worked with artist such as Lil Baby, 4pf, Blanco Brown, Looni, Hitman Holla and had my music featured on MTV Wild N’ Out. My experiences made me who I am today and I have no regrets when it comes to the decisions I’ve made.
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
Veteran Beatz services includes music production, mixing & mastering, and consulting. I help clients meet their music goals and educate them on the business.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
The Alchemist, The Four Agreements, Cashflow Quadrant, Conversions with God and The One Thing are booked that’s changed my perspective on life drastically.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to unlearn that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side but the grass is greener where you water it. Moving to Atlanta was life changing and even tho I accomplished goals of mine it sometimes didn’t come with the feeling of success. The only thing that matters is if you’re loved where you’re at.
Contact Info:
- Website: Veteranbeatz.com
- Instagram: @veteranbeatz