Today we’d like to introduce you to Matthew Krane.
Hi Matthew, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
In college, at FAU I was a hype man and emcee for a friend of mine who was a rap artist. We became friends with local promoters and started throwing college parties both on and off-campus at some local bars and nightclubs in South Florida. Soon after college, I landed a job with the Miami HEAT selling season tickets and premium seating in the arena. I thrived at that and was infatuated and had a love of working in live sports and music entertainment. In my last semester in college, I interned with Sunrise Sports & Entertainment, the front office mgmt company responsible for the Florida Panthers and booking the major shows at the Bank Atlantic Center. I knew entertainment was where I belonged and where I wanted to be. Once the HEAT landed the Big 3 in 2010, we sold out of sales inventory for the next 5 years. There was no need for an entire sales division anymore, so most of the sales department was dissolved. At that time I made more money than I’ve ever had and had the freedom to invest and pursue my dream full time. That’s exactly what I did and launched MY.AM.I. Music. Everyone questioned the name and had difficulty pronouncing it. Not the best name from a branding standpoint I guess, but I stuck with it because of the underlying meaning it had. It reflected on my favorite city in the world Miami and represented the part of the country that I was from. It also embodied the deeper meaning of every music artist, music producer, and songwriter’s message. When you flip the name and read right to left it reads I AM MY Music. I first fell in love with the creative side of music in the recording studio while in college rapping on mixtapes and originals with friends who were songwriters, producers, and artists. The studio was my sanctuary and the place I felt most comfortable being myself with the least amount of judgment. A place where you could express yourself on the deepest level and instead of being scrutinized were praised by your peers. Getting sidetracked a little here, but I think you see what I’m getting to. Music filled me with love and energy that I continuously sought out and which has to lead me to some of the most amazing experiences in my life. I found myself loving to find new talent which lead me to produce my first music festival Black Friday. Black Friday took place in Boca Raton the day after Thanksgiving and featured the hottest hip-hop artists. At the time, I believe it was Kid Ink’s first concert in Florida and featured Pusha T and this young humble rapper from Compton that headlined the show. This would be the rapper’s first Headline festival and his name was Kendrick Lamar.
I ended up working with several music producers, an aspiring EDM DJ, and a really dope producer that dabbled into a little of everything but was mainly producing hip-hop joints at the time for Cash Money. Over the years I continued throwing events such as a monthly Art Walk series in Wynwood with the iconic Reggae group Inner Circle. I produced a music, tech, fashion, and art conference at UM which featured a mix of industry titans from their respective industries. DJ Khaled closed out the night with a Headline DJ performance. Also began booking and buying talent for nightclubs in Miami mainly. In 2018 I launched an R&B music festival, which featured H.E.R., Ella Mai, Summer Walker, and Snoh Aalegra. This was such a special time because there was so much talent and great music overflowing in the R&B space that I felt wasn’t getting its due justice. I’m so happy to see how contemporary R&B is getting its flowers and support over the last couple of years.
Today I’m programming and talent buying for Daer Nightclub at the Hard Rock (Guitar Hotel). It’s such a dope vibe and located inside the beautiful 2 billion dollar Hotel renovation that the Seminole Hard Rock built. I’m also working with the tech startup Nifter which is a music NFT Marketplace that I’m excited about.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been a Rocky road filled with valleys and peaks. More valleys then peak at times, but I told myself nothing worth having comes easy.
The biggest struggle for me was trying to keep a positive mindset when a project didn’t perform as well as expected or sustaining a business when no money was coming in. In early 2020 before Covid hit, business was expanding, and then boom, within a couple of days venues were mandated to close their doors indefinitely. This was devastating, but I knew I needed to hold on while finding a new avenue in the space to pursue.
I love producing large-scale concerts with premier talent, so another struggle I’ve encountered was securing the necessary funds needed to produce these events. That hasn’t been an easy ride either but if you genuinely believe in your idea and yourself, there’s rarely anything that can hold you back from getting there. Even if it’s money.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m an entrepreneur first and a trusted source in arts and culture. I’ve consulted and helped with marketing and promotional campaigns for international recording artists and music releases. Worked with global brands and activations in the event space. Negotiated sponsorship deals, booked artists for events, and created & produced events.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
NFT’s are changing the landscape of how music is consumed, marketed, and monetized.
Live events will hopefully still be here, but new technologies like VR and the Metaverse are changing and adding to the ecosystem of events.
I see more indie artists and labels continuing to disrupt the record industry and flourish through creativity, innovation, and technology. It’s a great time to be an innovator, artist, and creative.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Myamimusic
- Facebook: Myamimusic
- Twitter: Myamimusic
