During this pass week, I was given the opportunity to interview a young man name Rashad J. Smith. He is currently working in the entertainment industry as a first time manager. He is a manager for a company called “ETCH-A-SKETCH COMEDY”. This company consists of several types of artist, such as comedians, actors and singers. The soul purpose of the company is to give people an experience of a lifetime, while also being able to laugh and enjoy their selves. Through sketch comedy, the crew is able to reach their fans through their real life experiences. 
Rashad Smith is a native of Rochester, New York and a recent graduate from Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, North Carolina. Smith’s tenure in college consisted of him being heavily active with campus organizations including executive roles in Student Government Association, Residence Life, Student Affairs, Student Activities and serving as the President and Step-Master of his fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. In addition to his on campus involvement, Smith served as the Marketing Representative for Black Entertainment Television (internship) where he held responsibilities to uniquely promote BET’s programming and special events. Smith hosted a number of cultural events plus his own college blog spot radio show through his internship at www.swaggertv.com. Smith even tried entertainment in politics as a summer intern for C-SPAN in Washington, DC.
Interview
Me: How did you get started in the industry and how long have you been working in the industry?
Rashad: I have always been interested in Entertainment – since I can remember. It’s been a part of my life forever. When I was younger, my uncle would create talent shows every summer and would choreograph about 8 groups each year. At the end of the summer we would put on an extravaganza for the community either in our backyard or in the McDonalds parking lot. From then, I know I wanted to focus on being a mogul in entertainment. While in college, I made it a priority to involve myself in everything possible in order to work on my leadership skills. I never was afraid to meet people and talk about my vision. I challenged myself and applied to internships that countless persons applied for. I always got the job! Because of my acceptance into difficult problems and internships I knew that the entertainment business was definitely a GO for me!
Me: Since this is a new experience for you, have there been any major challenges you faced, including the artist you manage?
Rashad: While in undergrad, I learned that when dealing with performers of any genre there would be challenges. As a leader, I understand that not everyone has leadership skills and our not business minded. It’s my responsibility to take charge and assist. The challenges will never go away. The most challenging component is trying to get a bunch of talented individuals who are not so business savvy to be business savvy. For new artist who have not been exposed to different aspects of the business, you have to be firm with them and remind them that the business is as important as the talent. In many cases, the business is more important. The talent can always be replaced but once the business is disordered it can ruin relationships and become tragic.
ME: How do you work through these challenges to get the job done?
Rashad: Well, when you deal with a team, a group of people, of course it’s more complicated when dealing with just one artist. You have to make sure that everyone is on one accord and understand that business is business. For example, if we as a team made a commitment to participate in an event then I hold everyone responsible for keeping their commitments. You would think this is common sense right? Wrong. Again, when people are not as business savvy you have to re-iterate the importance of taking responsibility and how it can negatively affect the entire company if just one person is off. So being firm in dialect is key for me.
Me: Are there any other experiences that you would like to share?
Rashad: Not necessarily experiences. If I did that I’d be giving away all the business of the team. And that’s not cool. You have to be careful about the information you share because it can possibly ruin the image of you and your artist. Then again, we talked about the challenges. Now, if we spoke about what I enjoy the most, then I can speak forever. Some of the things that I do enjoy the most are being able to have a number of individuals put their trust in me and for them to understand that their careers are in my hands and I kind of hold the key to their success. Trust is important and I’m glad I have a team that can trust my managing skills and the decisions I make for them.
Me: Since I am interested in working in the industry, what kind of advice would you give me?
Rashad: Every day I have to encourage myself. I have to remind myself about an excerpt from a poem I learned while pledging that says: “success begins with a fellow’s will it’s all in the state of mind.” We all want to be the next Oprah, Diddy, and Bill Gates. But we have to know that they too struggled and made things happen. Their success came from a dream that they made into a vision. If we keep working towards our vision, without a doubt, it will soon blow up and then we will be the next best thing!
Me: What do you think are the important qualities you have to have to be successful in this field?
Rashad: Personality is everything to me. For me, it’s being excited about life. Excited about your vision. Excited about being excited. It’s about having good self-esteem and feeling good about your work. It’s about being personable. It’s about supporting others. It’s about being that IT factor in someone’s life. When you give off love it’ll come back to you in ways that you wouldn’t imagine. If you posses all of these things, then success awaits you.
Me: What would you consider the hardest thing about this field of work?
Rashad: Again, challenges will always be around. For the most part, there’s nothing too hard for any of us that we can’t handle. Just be persistent and all the puzzle pieces will form themselves. (Corny, but that’s a good way to be)
ME: What do you think about your experiences so far, and could you see yourself doing this for a few years?
Rashad: My experiences so far are cool. This is what I want to do forever. As time goes by, I’m sure my experiences will be more memorable. I’m living it day-by-day and working hard as well.
I have really enjoyed interviewing Rashad, he has giving me more insight on becoming a manager. If I have learned one thing from this interview, it would be the that there will always be challenges working in this industry. I will continue to follow Rashad through this journey and hopefully I am able to learn more from him.
Websites:
http://eascomedy.com/
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1372830031
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