Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Vince Martellacci. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Vince, we are so deeply grateful to you for opening up about your journey with mental health in the hops that it can help someone who might be going through something similar. Can you talk to us about your mental health journey and how you overcame or persisted despite any issues? For readers, please note this is not medical advice, we are not doctors, you should always consult professionals for advice and that this is merely one person sharing their story and experience.
I’ve had mental health issues for as long as I can remember. After working in a traditional setting at the same time I was getting diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder when I was 21, I realized I never wanted to work traditionally again. So I took business classes, read books, and signed up for every marketing blog’s email list. I drove for Uber while I did all of this and became a traveling notary. I put my writing skills to work and added a blog to my notary website. It was discovered by a local realtor who hired me to write for him.
Then, the illness that had caused me to quit my job years earlier was suddenly giving me the courage to start something new. I dove in and became a blog content writer and marketer. Now, I’m a publiicist for independent musicians and I’ve found a happy home in the music industry.
Bipolar Disorder was a hard diagnosis to accept and it is harder to live through. I’m carried into mania simply through running my business. I have to watch out for certain things. My impulsivity, a characterizing symptom for many of us, has brought me into debt I didn’t need to be in. However, the flipside of impulsivity is courage. My courage to stick with my business, fight for my clients, and always improve and strive for more success and more skills is that flipside.
And because of that, I’m able to pay my debts with no problems and take what I’ve learned to improve myself as a person. I’m now fully bootstrapped. I spend very little on my business. Instead of money, I spend time. And that time and effort put into my business, 4AM Indie, has been the most therapeutic thing for my mental health. I’ve hit some extreme lows, but 4AM takes me to new heights–and the balance of the two keeps me even and steady.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
At 4AM Indie Publicity, I work to get the musicians on my roster into the media. This includes reaching out to and working with bloggers and journalists, radio, influencers, playlisters, and the occasional podcast.
What makes my job so special is that I am making a meaningful contribution to art that speaks to me. I am a key part of my clients’ “team”, and I usually have the honor of being the only one on that team who promotes music. They put a lot of faith in me, and I put a lot of faith in them. I love that I have clients who have been with me the entire time I’ve been doing this. To be on their journey with them has meant so much to me.
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?
I believe my love of learning is most important to my success. I have taught myself things that I started out just doing to support my own business and been able to sell that same service to others because I learn so much that I can perfect anything I put my mind to.
Another important value is how I treat the people I work with. I make sure to be a good and supportive employer to my contractors. I’m always flexible with when they have to have the work done, make sure to provide praise, and I also think its important that I pay them upfront to establish trust. No one’s quit taking jobs from me yet!
The final quality comes back to something I said earlier. I make sure to work with musicians I believe in, and I put my heart and soul into impacting their music careers. It has helped me improve at this business more than I have improved at any other business. The trust between me and my clients has allowed me to grow.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
I am always looking for anyone from the music world to collaborate with. I have found that there’s always some way we can collaborate or help each other when I come across someone else in the music industry. There are several ways to contact me on my website, 4amindiepublicity.com.
Or DM me on Instagram @Vince4AM
You can also connect on LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/forgevibe
Contact Info:
- Website: 4amindiepublicity.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/vince4am
- Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/forgevibe
Image Credits
Vince Martellacci
