Troy Carter
Renowned music manager, investor, and CEO of Atom Factory
Discussion
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
I'm Troy Carter, Founder of Atom Factory and Cross Culture Ventures. We live and breathe entertainment, technology, culture, and most of all, HUSTLE. We invest in artists and entrepreneurs. Our growing portfolio is over 75 startups including Uber, Lyft, Warby Parker, Spotify, Dropbox & Stance. Check out our platform SMASHD.co to learn more about tech, culture, and hustle.
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Erik Torenberg
@eriktorenberg · Former Product Hunt
Troy! Thanks for joining. What's one thing Silicon Valley doesn't get about Hollywood and vice versa?
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@eriktorenberg I think there are these stereotypes that Silicon Valley was full of pirates that don't respect content, and that Los Angeles was this litigious place that doesn't respect innovation. As we started getting past those stereotypes, we've seen tons of areas of innovation. Look at what HBO has become, Netflix, Spotify in partnership with the music labels, MCN's like Maker Studios & Machinima. These are all great examples of seamless partnerships between technology & content, and we're starting to speak the same language.
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@troycarterceo Thanks, Erik & Ryan and team Product Hunt. Gonna jet now, this was fun and your questions were great.
Erik Torenberg
@eriktorenberg · Former Product Hunt
@troycarterceo HUGE thanks to Troy for taking the time today.
For those who want more Troy, check out our podcast here: https://soundcloud.com/product-h...
Rob
@robgcarroll · VC at Oasis500
@troycarterceo If you had to start over, where/what would be your first step into the entertainment industry? In other words, where is the biggest, untapped opportunity?
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@robgcarroll If I was an 18-year old kid entering into the music business today, I'd be looking at how data is applicable to music. It's the most untapped area with lots of potential to build new businesses and revenue streams for artists. It's the first time in history we know exactly who the fans are, where they live, other artists that they're listening to & most importantly, their lifetime value. Fun times ahead :)
Adam Marx
@adammarx13 · CEO, Glipple, Inc.
@troycarterceo This to me is one of the keys: "exactly who the fans are, where they live." For independents, this is where the future is, even more so that hard data and statistics. The data numbers back up the dynamic of the interaction between artists and their prospective fanbases, such that know how and where to interact with who is key in gaining the exposure that was once only attainable through radio format (college radio, too, for many underground artists). The artists are interacting, but there will be better ways in which to do it which will then reflect back on the exposure that they themselves will be able to drive to their material, as opposed to sitting on their hands and waiting for some to "discover" them. Lotta cool things on the horizon :D \m/
arjun mehta
@arjunkmehta · cofounder // trakfire
What defines a company that understands culture, and how can a tech startup incorporate culture from the ground up?
Really excited to work with you on trakfire! :)
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@arjunkmehta Arjun! Excited as well. To answer your q, Beats by Dre is a great example of a company that understood the inner guts of culture. They had a great understanding of the influence of a guy like LeBron James walking off the team bus with a pair of headphones around his neck, and what that meant to kids around the world. This wasn't done through consumer research, but done by people who live and breathe culture everyday. As a founder, you have to hire diverse teams -- not just people who are behind computers all day, but explorers who are visiting museums, looking at street art, who are great at people-watching and can recognize shifts in consumer behavior in real-time.
Ryan Hoover
@rrhoover · Founder, Product Hunt
Hi, Troy! Looking forward to meeting the first batch of SMASHD Labs in a few weeks in LA. It seems like there are so many accelerators now days. Why did you start one?
For everyone else: read @bizcarson's Business Insider article for more details on SMASHD Labs and here's a video with great music (of course):
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@rrhoover Thanks man! I think there's a lack of internal innovation in the music and entertainment, and in culture in general. And I felt like this was a way we could really add value.
Nick Suell
@nikosoul · The Melrose Group + Melrose Digital Grp.
@jfeinblatt I'd be interested in knowing more.
[deleted user]
@deleted_user
@nikosoul Nicole. We'll get in touch, my email is feinblatt@gmail.com.
Christopher B.
@chrstphr_
@troycarterceo Hi Troy - What difficulties did you face, if any, when transitioning from the music to the tech industry? And what advice would you give for a professional doing the same? Thanks.
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@chrstphr_ I spent a year in the Valley before I made my first investment, and the same way I had mentors when I entered the music industry -- did the same in tech. Reached out to mentors in the tech industry as well. Joe Londsdale, Bill Maris, Ron Conway, and Shervin Pishevar have all served as incredible sounding boards as I was building out my investment thesis. The biggest mistake is when you approach it with the same cowboy style that the music industry normally takes -- The biggest lesson that I learned: learn to speak geek. :)
Edwin Espinosa
@edwinespinosa09 · Angularjobs
@troycarterceo tim ferriss likewise had a mentor and invested in small deals for about 1-2yrs along with his mentor. I think I heard this on a periscope
Melissa Joy Kong
@melissajoykong · Content, Product Hunt
Troy! Such an honor to have you here. You were very vocal about getting fired by Lady Gaga (http://www.fastcompany.com/30241...). It seemed like one of many life-shaping moments for you. What have been some of the other big ones in your life?
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@melissajoykong I think my mother passing away last year at age 63 was probably the biggest life-shaping moment that I've had thus far. It taught me that time is our most precious asset. Work with people you love and build projects you deeply care about.
Melissa Joy Kong
@melissajoykong · Content, Product Hunt
You've experienced very different worlds over the course of your life. You grew up in West Philadelphia, and now you are one of the most successful talent managers in Hollywood (which is a place that seems like an entirely separate reality, with a whole new set of rules). Given how much you've seen an experienced, what have you learned about what ultimately matters most in life?
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@melissajoykong What I've learned is the importance of enjoying the journey. My biggest flaw is that I'm never satisfied and I'm always striving for perfection. One of my biggest lessons is to appreciate perfection in the moment & that a final destination never really existed in the first place. I've seen a lot of young artists dream all of their lives about becoming the world's biggest superstars and when they get there, there's a sense of emptiness because not a lot has actually changed. I constantly remind them that it doesn't get better than this. Enjoy the fucking moment!
Emily Hodgins
@ems_hodge · Community and Marketing, Product Hunt
@troycarterceo Hey Troy thanks so much for doing this today! What is one moment in your career that you will never forget? Plus, same question but for life in general and why? Thanks!
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@ems_hodge The moment in my career that I'll never forget is the night that I met P. Diddy. I was promoting a concert in Philly, and Notorious B.I.G was a no show. I got into a heated argument with his manager on the telephone & he decided to put on the CEO of the label. The CEO drove down to Philly that night with B.I.G. even after they missed the gig, and promised to give me another show. But I saw that as an opportunity to get to know Diddy better, and asked him for a job at his new music label, Bad Boy Entertainment, on the spot.
I didn't get a chance to go to college, but that working for Bad Boy was my school in HUSTLE.
Eric Willis
@erictwillis · Working on something new
@troycarterceo Hey Troy. Thanks for doing this AMA. What has been the most unexpected challenge in starting SMASHD and how have you addressed that challenge?
Kiki Schirr / 史秀玉
@kikischirr · Founder, WeKiki Video Chat Platform
@erictwillis Can I piggyback off of Eric's question and ask how you ( @troycarterceo ) decided to start a content platform when so many companies (like Medium) are shying away from generation? The quality of writing SMASHD is providing is so high--I guess I'm asking how you've attracted and retained talent specifically.
Thanks, sorry for the convoluted question.
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Troy Carter
@troycarterceo · Atom Factory & Cross Culture Ventures
@kikischirr When we set out launch SMASHD.co, the idea was to create Forbes meets Fader. The intent of the platform was to look at tech through the lens of culture, and make tech a bit more down to earth and relatable -- less of an insider's game, but accessible to young hustlers. We hired Lori Kozlowski from Forbes, and the best attracts the best.