will hustle W
entreprenuer profile
By Matt Sonzala
Will Hustle By Matt Sonzala
here’d you get the name Will Hustle? How’s it relate to who you are? When I came up with the name I told all my fam. Everybody was like, “Nigga, that fits you. Run with it.” I’m known all over the country for all my hustles. My motto is MASH: Maintain All Sorts of Hustles. I got that shit tatted on me. I don’t talk this shit, I live this shit. I will hustle. What’s your main hustle? I know you do DVDs and manage artists. My hustle is maintaining all sorts of hustles. I am a music mogul. Whether it’s music, media or fashion, this is my passion. I’m in this to be in the history books. The industry is shook right now. I plan on changing the game. I can show you better than I can tell you. Just keep watching me like Z-Ro and Trae say. Right now Will Hustle Multimedia is my bread winner. My DVDs are like cable in the hood. Boys be watching my shit over and over again. We are about to do some major branding through Will Hustle TV with major companies in ‘07. A lot of major people came and hollered at us after what we did for the Da Bomb Blunts. The DVDs, mixtape promotions, and marketing are all under Will Hustle Multimedia. I created it just so I could make my own lane for my record label Set For Life. It’s so many dead weight fuck niggas in the rap game taking up space I had to do something to stand out. This is chess not checkers. How is the independent rap scene in Austin? The indie game is wide open right now with all the Houston artists going major. The underground is wide open. All of Texas is looking for that new sound. It’s funny cause I saw this shit coming in 2001. I met T.I and Jason Geter, and Geter asked me what the Texas scene was like and ask about Paul, Flip, Slim, all the niggas making noise. I told him, “In about five years all y’all niggas will be major and y’all will leave the underground to a nigga like me.” Look at all them niggas now; they’re on top of the world. Set For Life, we don’t worry about just Austin that’s why we are so big outside of Austin. We are killing the underground. Next year at SXSW, we will have major deals on the table. You’ve got radio stations, retail outlets, a TV station, and newspapers that cover local rap artists. Do people in Austin listen to Austin rap? Hell yeah. Austin listens to Austin now more than ever. A couple of years ago if you weren’t from Houston, you weren’t selling shit. But that all has changed. Austin wants to see someone
from Austin blow just like Houston did. It’s really due to the talent down here. Boys got an original sound and it’s a nationwide sound that has the ability to crossover just like the ATL sound did. Robert Gabriel is holding down the movement with his articles in The Chronicle. Steve Savage and 88.7 has had our back since day one, but that’s only on the weekend. As far as corporate radio, the DJs help as much as they can, but the powers that be don’t give a fuck about us. I used to get mad about them not playing us, but it’s not going to stop our movement. We running the underground. Austin rap is popping all over Texas. We are ‘bout to blow, so soon they are going to have to play us. That’s just how radio works. Shout out to all the DJs. We got other options: clubs, mixtapes, they are holding us down. What releases have you put out? My nigga Dok Holiday is a legend around this bitch. He dropped a mixtape series called The Pre Season. Dok Holiday and PLA’s album will be out this summer. My Set For Life roster is crazy. We plan to drop albums like Master P in his prime. I hooked up with DJ Knowledge to do the Whata Hustla mixtape series. We flipped the Whattaburger Logo into Whata Hustla. It’s one of the hottest mixtapes out right now. Me and Ice Water put out the Kappa Bound DVD and Will Hustle TV Vol. 1 and 2 are in stores now. Will Hustle TV Vol. 3 will be out nationwide this April. When did you first come to SXSW? What does it mean to you as a man in the music business? I was raised in Austin so SXSW has always been around. It wraps up the end of the first quarter and gets you ready for Texas Relays and the summer. The panels are throwed; a lot of good game and education. Does it mean much to the Austin independent Hip Hop community? It helps a lot. I saw it come from barely no rap shows to having all Austin showcases. I would like to thank everybody who helps put these shows on. It’s a good look for the city.
For more info visit www.willhustle.com OZONE
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