Today we’d like to introduce you to Charlie Mac.
Hi Charlie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started out as a DJ, and all I wanted to do is scratch and mix like DJ Jazzy Jeff. I use to watch one of my childhood friends scratch and mix, and he was the best DJ in my city. I learned a lot watching him. I got pretty good at it, too, learning how to scratch behind my back, scratch with my elbows, and all other sorts of interesting turntable tricks. During that time, a cousin of mine invited me to his house to check out his new drum machine. He was a DJ, too, but once I heard that 808 beat playing on the Yamaha RX-7, I was hooked. I got my first drum machine when I was about 15. It was a Yamaha RX-17. It was very basic, but I thought I was really doing something and eventually started mixing records with the beats I created. 17 years old, I attended a college, studied music humanities, and other basic curriculum, but dropped out after 2 semesters, because I thought making money in the streets was more important. Not my finest hour, and after numerous run ins with the law, as it turns out, I was wrong! When I turned 18, I moved to Las Vegas, NV., to pursue a career in music. I had no idea what I was doing, and to be completely honest, I was totally lost. Clueless! I would play my beats and remix songs live at the little parties I booked. Most of the parties I did paid around $50.00 to $100.00 bucks, and I had to carry all of my equipment, records (vinyl), turntables, mixer, speakers, and amps, which always got hot and shut off during the party. Thinking back, it’s so funny, but at the time, it definitely was not. I ended up buying a new amp and a Yamaha MT-100 II 4-track recorder, so I could start recording my mixes. Those mixes started to take form as songs, and after dealing with a few rappers who stood me up for gigs, I eventually got the crazy idea that I wanted to be a rapper myself. I thought that I could be the next Dr. Dre, but I was always much better at making the music than I was at rapping. So, over the years I ended up more on the production side of things, and it has served me well. I’ve had a lot of help along the way, and all of it didn’t come from people who liked me. In fact, some of the best advice I got about my recordings came from people who did not like me at all and genuinely wanted to see me fail. I know this to be true because they told me so, but I took their advice and used it to elevate my work to the point where those very same people now call me for favors, as well as advice. I took all of those lemons and turned it into the sweetest lemonade factory ever. I am a man of many talents: a Music Entrepreneur, music publisher, music supervisor, music producer, composer, songwriter, recording engineer, public speaker, consultant, author, executive producer, and a highly sought-after A&R executive with years of experience in the music business. Don’t get me wrong, I will still bust a rhyme every now and again, but today, I am mostly a musician and businessman. Working in premiere recording studios and having access to the latest cutting-edge equipment helped me to develop my sound, and not just my production sound but my recording quality as well. It was hard, and it took a long time, but now, looking back, I wouldn’t have it any other way. The experiences that I’ve had have shaped me into the person I am today, and I am thankful for all of the good and all of the bad. To put everything into perspective, as a Music Entrepreneur, I took the information I had, monetized it, and turned it into multiple streams of revenue. 10s of thousands of placements later on film and TV, we have nearly a billion units sold, downloaded, and streamed!
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?
There’s always bumps in the road, so no, it has not been smooth. In fact, sometimes there was no road at all. While we are chasing our dreams, Life is Life-ing. Sometimes, we have to build things (bridges, elevators, ladders, spaceships, etc.) to overcome the obstacles we face. My biggest struggle along the way has been dealing with the non-believers and naysayers. People told me I was crazy, and that I would never make it, and then praised me after I did. They said things like, I always knew you would do it. Funny, because I distinctively remember those very same people telling me that I never would, and now they ask for favors and money. God bless them.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Mac A Million Dollar Man Musick, is essentially a publishing company that works with all genres of music, representing 80+ plus artists, bands, songwriters, producers, composers, etc. We consult labels and artists on how to brand their music via licensing and publishing. For the last 10 years, we have averaged around 3000 (song/track) placements per year in film and TV shows. Multiple franchises like Real Housewives, Love and Hip Hop, Growing Up Hip Hop, Basketball Wives, Black Ink Crew, Say Yes to the Dress, 90 Day Fiance, and so many more. Plus, music supervision for Hip Hop Family Christmas, Hip Hop Family Christmas Wedding, One Crazy Christmas, MY BFF, 5th Ward: The Series, and more.
Charlie Mac is a Music Entrepreneur, music publisher, music supervisor, music producer, composer, songwriter, recording engineer, distributor, public speaker, consultant, author, executive producer, filmmaker, and a highly sought-after A&R executive with years of experience in the music business. Charlie Mac is a voting member of the Grammys and has worked with a number of Grammy Award-Winning artists and producers, such as Jamie Foxx, Mali Music, H-Town, Public Enemy, Chuck D, Flavor Flav, Kool Moe Dee, Grammy-nominated, Diamond Platinum Producer, Keith Clizark, (Credits: Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Def Jam Recordings, Too Short, Master P, Kurupt, Mystikal, Tha Eastsidaz), Paul Anthony [Full Force] (Credits: Britney Spears, Rihanna, James Brown, Backstreet Boys, ‘N Sync, Nicki Mina), Raphael RJ2 of Grammy Award-Winning Beats How U WantEm (Credits: Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, Snoop Dogg, Flo Rida). Charlie Mac has also been involved with multiple genres of indie artists, receiving Grammy FYC accolades. Charlie Mac has produced and placed music on virtually every television network there is, involving brands like MTV, EPIC, VH1, GUNIT, SHADY, AFTERMATH, ATLANTIC, YMCMB, DEF JAM, NBC, ABC, CBS, CMT, CW, BRAVO, WETV, WB, INTERSCOPE, NBA, NFL, GOOGLE, TLC, ROCNATION, LIONSGATE, NIKE, VIACOM, etc. In 2023, his company MACAMILLION/Mac A Million Dollar Man Musick had a total of 3,563 placements and had over 233 million units sold, downloaded, and streamed! Since 2011, over 46k placements and now nearly a billion units (778 million) have been sold, downloaded, and streamed!
What do you like and dislike about the city?
Los Angeles, the city of Angels, is great for events, and all of the major award shows happen here, so that I love, but the traffic can be a nightmare, so I like that the least. I actually live in Las Vegas, and I love it because everyone comes here, and it’s a great hub for business. 1-hour flight to Los Angeles/Hollywood, 3.2 Hours to Houston/Dallas, 3.3 hours to Atlanta, so travel is convenient.
Pricing:
- Consulting can run anywhere $2,500.00 up to $5,000.00 per month or $250.00 per hr.
- Speaking Engagements, Conferences, Summits, and Workshops $4,000.00 per plus flight and hotel.
- Production is $10,000.00 per track, plus publishing.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.macamilliondollarman.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/macamilliondollarman/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/macamilliondollarmanmusick/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/whosthehottestrapper/
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/whosthehottest
- Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/CharlieMac1212
