Meet Antonio Reid, Jr.

We recently connected with Antonio Reid, Jr. and have shared our conversation below.

Antonio, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

The way I found my purpose is its own story. I actually started out on the creative side—singing, rapping, writing songs, producing. That was my world. Then, at 24, I got my first job in the music business at my father’s publishing company, Hitco. I spent countless hours in the studio with young, hungry writers who were insanely talented.

Back then, I was still writing too. I’d take home CDs full of beats from the producers we’d signed, stay up all night writing to the ones that inspired me, and walk in the next day feeling confident about what I’d done. But then I started noticing something: those same writers kept choosing the exact tracks I picked. So I’d sit back and watch—“let me see what they do with it.”

And in about 30 minutes, they’d create absolute magic. Meanwhile, I had spent all night working on something that suddenly felt… average. That’s when it hit me. They had a gift for creating. I didn’t. It stung—but it was real.

But in that same moment, I realized something else: I had a gift for recognizing greatness. I could see talent clearly, sometimes before the artist even saw it in themselves. And that became my purpose—using my eye, my instincts, and my experience to create opportunities for gifted people who just needed someone to bet on them.

That’s the moment everything changed for me.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

These days, I’m still doing what I love most—finding incredible talent and opening doors for them. My newest chapter is as Co-Founder and CEO of my own production company and label imprint, Zoo International. That’s where I came across JayDon, an 18-year-old singer who, in my honest opinion, is the most extraordinary young talent this industry has seen in the last twenty years. After signing him, I spent some time refining and developing his sound, then secured a partnership with Usher and my father’s new label venture, Mega.

We just dropped his first body of work, a mixtape called Me My Songs & I, and the response has been everything we hoped for—strong on radio, strong on streaming, and resonating with listeners in a real way. And now, with things moving in the right direction, my eyes are already on the horizon. I’m back on the hunt for the next great talent to champion and build a pathway for.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

When I look back at where I started and how far I’ve come, there are three qualities that have really carried me. First, I’ve always been willing to do whatever job needed to be done for the team to win. I’ve never been “too good” for anything—if it moves the mission forward, I’m in. Second, I’ve learned the power of building and maintaining real relationships. Everybody goes through peaks and valleys—nobody’s immune—and it was those relationships that helped pull me back up whenever I hit a valley.

And third, my integrity has stayed intact through it all. In this business, your name is everything, and there isn’t a single person who can say I took advantage of them, played dirty, or didn’t follow through on what I promised.

Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?

For me there are two…The people who’ve helped me the most—both in overcoming challenges and gaining the knowledge to succeed in life and in business—are my parents, my mother Ms. Pamela Jackson and my father Mr. Antonio “L.A.” Reid. I was blessed with two incredibly smart, hardworking parents who made sure I learned what I needed to know. They taught me directly, but just as importantly, they showed me through their own example what real work, real character, and real dedication look like.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @antonioreidjr
• Facebook: Antonio M. Reid, Jr.
• Twitter: @antonioreidjr