IAM264- Podcaster Creates a Network to Help People With Media Representation

Wize Grazette helps video creators and podcasters with the production, distribution and marketing of their content. His podcast network, ICN.DJ has grown into a media platform where shares content to provide a quick home for people who want to find podcasts.

This was a live recording at the PurpleCon event.

• CEO Hack: Writing
• CEO Nugget: Be confident, no one can be better than you
• CEO Defined: Being a leader who has the resources to excel

Website: http://icn.dj/

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Intro 0:02

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

Gresham Harkless 0:27

Hello, hello, hello. This is Gresham from the I AM CEO Podcast have a very special guest on the show today I have Wize of the Indie Creative Network. Wize, it's awesome to have you on the show.

Wize Grazette 0:36

Nice to meet you. I'm honored to be here.

Gresham Harkless 0:38

I'm honored to have you here. And I wanted to kick everything off to hear a little bit more about like how the conference is going for you had everything gone so far?

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Wize Grazette 0:44
You know, Conference I was I'm like, oh, wait a minute. I'm like, honestly surprised when I am supposed to do it. I think it was like December when she asked if I wanted to be a part of this. And I'll you know, of course, like I love people, I love to be a part of the community.

So I was 100 Stand down. But I did not expect it to be what it is right now. I just came off speaking on my panel. It was great. You know, people were very receptive to him. And we talked about we had an amazing moderator who really guided us through it. At the same time, each individual person's story was something that I could also resonate with, along the journeys that I had, that they've all had maybe had that shared those shared experiences. That's important for me.

Gresham Harkless 0:45

Right? Definitely. That makes sense. I wanted to hear I guess a little bit more about your story. So tell us a little bit more about what I call your CEO story.

Wize Grazette 1:06

Hmm, wow. So I am coming up on my 10th year as an entrepreneur.

Gresham Harkless 1:35

Just getting started?

Wize Grazette 1:36

Hmm?

Gresham Harkless 1:36

Just getting started.

Wize Grazette 1:37

Yeah. It feels like this is just the beginning of the path. Right? But yeah, I mean, I started any creative networks. For almost four years ago. Now I was home bedridden after having a terrible car accident. People, This is my PSA wear your seatbelt in the backseat regardless, anyway, recovering from that, like, you know what, like, I can create a space where if it was like, This is my life, utopia, what would I create?

Amen. At the time, I was also a podcaster. So I'm like, you know, whatnot, I like I want p I want a space where podcasters can correlate can be around each other can communicate with each other and share, like the struggles they might possibly be going through. But also to offer a place for people now to also find those podcasts for artists who are looking for interviews to find that space, like we want, I wanted to create that. So I did

Gresham Harkless 2:29

Nice, nice, nice. And now he's loving that central entrepreneurial form where you're like, I feel like something needs to be created. And rather than just say, I think something needs to be great, you actually start creating, it.

Wize Grazette 2:39

I'm sitting down here, I've got time to recover from spine surgery. So let's start writing. Let's start communicating to people and start reaching out to see exactly, you know, via you know, you know, you like you see, like, alright, well there's a need by how many people actually are looking for that. So a lot of my case study work, but at the same time, like it was a lot of community building as well, too. So that went along with

Gresham Harkless 2:59

Yeah, you know, it's funny, when I started doing a lot of the blogs and stuff. I did it because I tore my Achilles tendon playing or trying to play basketball. And the only reason I felt like I would have been able to create it was because I told him I can't even that couldn't get anywhere else to do he was able to kind of maybe if he hadn't that hadn't happened. You may not agree to what you had.

Wize Grazette 3:16

I really might not have like, honestly like I did my car today I'm out again like I said, I have already been I had on my show called The Uncle Radio show where I interviewed musicians in New York City area about their stories giving them like an opportunity to share that at bare minimum people when they put on projects. It was okay we Americans and Uncle Radio should talk about that. But I thought all my legacy after getting in a car accident and realizing that you're like really kind of died.

Yeah, yeah, that's like my journalism career was It is built around helping other people at the same time and how does that help my legacy? For what I want to do that I want 25 on the die, accomplish everything I want to accomplish. So yeah, it made me really rethink everything, and how was putting what like what type of impact on providing not just for myself and my family and for my community as well?

Gresham Harkless 4:01

Definitely, definitely. That makes perfect sense. So could you break down a little bit more about how you serve the clients? Are you serving this?

Wize Grazette 4:06

So integrative network is a bare minimum started as a podcast network. Since then, it has grown now into a media platform where we share other people's content through our website, and social media platforms, ICM DJ, or @icn.dj. Our website, it's a quick hub for people who want to find podcasts for people of color who are interested and have similar hobbies as them.

So we provide that service to our consumers to now our business partners, slash entrepreneurs. We provide distribution for your podcasts, we provide marketing for your podcast, and we provide help with production whether it is produced from the beginning, where like you don't have an idea of what I want when I want my podcasts to be, too. Oh, yeah, I've had a podcast for a few years now when I need to develop it.

Gresham Harkless 4:54

Right. That's awesome. So is it just is it's all different types of content, or is it just purely Podcast Network?

Wize Grazette 5:00

Unless it's no, so now it's actually more than just podcasts. It's also visuals as well, too. So if you have a kind of series, we help you with that. And just in general, like, I don't want people to take away that we only do podcasts and web series, if you create a video on Instagram, if you are created as an IGTV, we want to help you develop that process as well, too. Because at the end of the day, those are still stories that you're telling to people, and you're still crawling like the community around that.

Gresham Harkless 5:27

I love that. Because a lot of times people use different ways to kind of create content or create their platform or whatever. So it's great that you know, a lot of times when you're creating some sometimes you feel like you're by yourself, but you create a community that other people can tap into each other and encourage one another. It's things like

Wize Grazette 5:41

Absolutely

Gresham Harkless 5:42

Yeah, awesome. So I want to ask you for what I call your secret sauce, and it could be for you or for your organization. But what do you feel kind of sets you apart and makes you unique?

Wize Grazette 5:50

So I'm a first-generation American family from Barbados, what I on a panel actually mentioned this, you know, you got to differentiate yourself. And at the time, when I first started the brand, there were a lot of other people who were involved in the space of podcast discovery, and in the space of helping people with media representation.

So taking people of color and putting it in front of others saying, hey, look, these people are also a part of the media industry. But what I will say set me apart even from that perspective, the art will look, they have their perspectives, these people started their life in Denver started in life in Brooklyn, started in life and Florida or wherever, right? But that's not that's unique to them.

Oh, how do I make this unique to me, growing up in Brooklyn, we have a bunch of pirate stations that will play like Soka all the time, you have to just know to know where to find them. So I pulled inspiration from that, at the same time as well, like I pulled the inspiration from a music genre Calypso where you always Calypso, generally, historically has been used to like to speak out and speak out against things that you might not necessarily see in your community that you would like to see your community.

And I feel like pockets kind of similar in that space as well to where you can talk about whatever you want to talk about, um, as long as they can get to the right years.

Gresham Harkless 7:02

Yeah, absolutely. That's why I love about a lot of these platforms and things whether it be like you measure podcasting, blogging, Instagram, whatever. It's like, we all have the power to create and bet create content and creative voice, things that may not be popular things that may go against the grain people don't agree with, you can have a platform on which you can do that. Yeah, whenever you want.

Wize Grazette 7:20

Yes. And the main point of that was to just make sure that people didn't have to feel censored. We are when we started in 2015. And even now, we're still in a time where you speak out against certain people. And you know, it doesn't bode well for you moving forward. So you wanted to give people that space. It's okay, we know I can still say what I want to say and not feel like rhetoric. repercussions of that.

Gresham Harkless 7:20

Yeah, exactly, exactly. That makes perfect sense. So I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack and this might be an app or a book or a habit that you have, but it's something that makes you more effective and efficient.

Wize Grazette 7:47

My newest hack right now has been writing in this writing prom book I bought from Five Below Shots of Them. Basically, for me now I've spent a lot of time in my career helping other people through a new creative network and being a teaching artist. But my core has been being an artist myself being a writer, being a storyteller.

So my hack right now is, hey, I have a writing prompt book. Every day, I sit down, I write, I follow whatever the prompt is, right? I write out all the things as needed. So when I go to look back on or look for inspiration for stories, I can pull that from a writing prompt book

Gresham Harkless 8:27

I love so it has just different prompts that you should do every single day, just to kind of get those creative juices flowing.

Wize Grazette 8:32

Exactly.

Gresham Harkless 8:33

It's so funny like a lot of times when you're starting a business or running a business or especially creative, you put so much time and energy source helping somebody else out they it's hard to make sure you have the time to do it yourself. So that's why I love that hack.

Wize Grazette 8:43

It's very it is very complicated. It's been very difficult to navigate because it's like someone even accused me of my old Walker like going and doing this for yourself. I'm like, really I don't necessarily share all of the details. Oh, what we're doing, but I promise you. Different ways. And I can I can I can make the law wrong. But that's not with this.

Gresham Harkless 9:09

Right, that makes sense. So now I want to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. And this is a word of wisdom or a piece of advice. Or if you can happen to a time machine. What would you tell your younger business self?

Wize Grazette 9:18

Oh my god. I will tell you to know what? To Be confident. You know, it's very, and it's like, it's not cliche, because I don't feel like anyone has ever told me that but being confident is like one of those things was like okay, well yeah, you could say that. But how do you exhibit that? You just have to honestly be unapologetically you. What you bring to the table is the bet that no one can be better than you. No one No matter how many times they try, people don't have the same

Gresham Harkless 9:26

Uniqueness

Wize Grazette 9:27

They don't have that uniqueness. They don't have it. So be 100% you that confidence will shine through and people will see that and they will be inspired as well too.

Gresham Harkless 9:59

That makes perfect sense. So Wize, I truly appreciate your time, I want to ask you my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of being a CEO. So we're hoping to have different quote-unquote CEOs on this show. So Wize, what does being a CEO mean to you?

Wize Grazette 10:10

Being a CEO is being a leader, and the term CEO is very, like, vague because my passionate one definitely does. But not being that leader being a person that people can sell. We know and I don't I mean, I know this, but the CEO will, you know, those are the CEO doesn't know, they have the confidence to say, Oh, I don't know. But let me guide you to someone who does. They have the network and the resources also to say, You know what, well, this might not work. But this could work. And here's who can do that with us.

Gresham Harkless 10:38

Right. That makes perfect sense being able to kind of be that person to go to, or be that resourceful person that can find out where the answer is for that person. So it doesn't matter. So Wize, I truly appreciate your time. What I wanted to do is fashion the mic, just see if there's anything additional you can let the readers and listeners know, and then how best people can find you.

Wize Grazette 10:54

Sure. So, I will say this I want for all the storytellers out there. Whether you own a brick-and-mortar business, whether you have a T-Shirt Company, or whether you want to start a podcast, and start by don't take time thinking or hoping just start whether it's starting to Dawn by writing out notes.

Start something I feel like in my career, and in my life, I have my own. I've had my own issues with that. But please just start. You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and all the platforms, @realwize. Wise with a Z. And of course you can find a website look find out things about our company, our site @icn.dj and on Instagram and just Instagram @icndj

Gresham Harkless 11:47

Awesome, awesome, awesome glad those links are in the show notes as well just so that everybody can follow up with you. But I appreciate your time and I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Wize Grazette 11:53

Awesome. Thank you, you too!

Outro 11:55

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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