Blazo Talks Roc Nation, “Is He the Plug?” & the Independent Grind | Live From 20th S3 EP3

Blazo joins Live From 20th for an honest conversation about his journey from college basketball to the music industry, his experience with Roc Nation management, the success of “Is he the Plug” and the realities of being an independent artist. Representing Beloit, Wisconsin and Rockford, Illinois, Blazo explains how he started making music at 12 years old, toured at a young age and learned from both good and bad record deals. He also reveals how one of his biggest records generated millions while he initially received only show money. Blazo discusses working with Tory Lanez before his major breakthrough, meeting DJ Mustard, nearly touring with Rae Sremmurd and Wiz Khalifa, and realizing that the business side of music was beginning to overpower his creativity. The conversation also covers ownership, branding, community work, his charity basketball game, Encore Live, When It Was Fun Live and his upcoming music, documentary, merchandise and tour plans. CHAPTERS 00:00 – Introduction 02:12 – Blazo started making music at 12 03:23 – Touring young and learning the industry 05:37 – Who is Blazo outside of music? 08:04 – Beloit versus Rockford 10:50 – College basketball journey 14:00 – The night that changed his basketball career 17:44 – Eleven years of charity basketball 20:28 – “Progression forever” 23:10 – Stepping away from the music industry 24:24 – Finding his authentic sound 27:03 – Music and mental health 29:06 – What is lifestyle rap? 32:06 – Meeting Pierre and creating “Show Out” 34:24 – Record deals, Tory Lanez and “Is he the Plug” 37:54 – Keeping It 20 44:20 – Respecting Rockford’s musical foundation 48:54 – The independent artist business 52:40 – Creating your own opportunities 57:08 – The story behind “Is he the Plug” 58:56 – Meeting DaBaby during the early grind 1:00:19 – Label offers, millions generated and regaining his masters 1:03:17 – Blazo’s advice for upcoming artists 1:06:34 – Developing an identity through real life 1:10:28 – Encore Live and Blazo’s upcoming plans 1:14:08 – When the business made him stop loving music 1:20:30 – Final thoughts Follow Blazo:   / iamblazo815      / @blazo815     / encorelive608   Follow Live From 20th:   / livefrom20thpodcast     / sincerelygustavo     / _mindofeli   Subscribe, comment and share the episode. Let us know which part of Blazo’s story surprised you the most. #LiveFrom20th #Blazo #RockfordMusic #MidwestHipHop #IndependentArtist