We caught up with the brilliant and insightful William Alston Jr a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi William , appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?
Well since childhood I’ve always been told to never give it up if u start something see it through. Me & my siblings had the love of God installed in us at young ages thanks to my parents, so seeing the different trails & tribulations my parents went through but still pushing forward in spite of I believe that’s where I get it from. They say faith without works is dead so I have faith things will work in my favor but I also put my best foot forward to achieve whatever it is I put my mind to. I believe knowing that whatever it is we go through during our journey is only meant to help u become who it is you are meant to be, it can be challenging but the end result is greater than those struggles along the way.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
Well as some of you know by now I’m a A&R I go by the alias Willthecreatorr I was born in Livingston, New Jersey and raised in Akron, Ohio up until High School when I moved to Atlanta, GA. I grew up singing & dancing in youth ministry and singing in choir at school so music has always been a big part of my life I have a family filled with musical talents. I really didn’t start taking music serious until I met a childhood friend in Atlanta writing & creating songs together as time progressed and I got older of course life happened and I made a decision to step away from music for awhile. During this time I came across many independent artist around the country who I felt deserved more exposure than they were receiving. I always loved listening to underground artist/ independent artist because I felt u could connect with them more so than u could with mainstream artist because of the way labels controled their image & sound & I know that at a young age. With that being said when i decided to make my way back into music I found myself leaning more so to a role of being someone who pushed a artist which lead me to becoming a A&R. There are many A&Rs & Executives i look up to in the music industry, the best way to become successful in whatever it is u want to do is to study the ones who have done it and have had success doing so. This is when I created my platform called “Will2Creat3ntertainment” where I showcase artist from around the world giving them a platform to showcase their talents, the platform also pushes out local and world news, sports, and fashion. As the world began to change I started getting into investments & crypto currency I owe that to a hand full of Entrepreneurs who have paved the way in that field, but mostly I owe that to Nipsey Hussle ( Rip ) being one of my favorite artist I admired how he took something our people really didn’t have much knowledge on and spread that information and knowledge in black communities and to the world. I created a subsidiary to “Will2Creat3ntertainment” called “Wealth Visionary” which focuses on building wealth. Right now professionally I’m just focused on building my brand and connecting with like-minded people that can aid me and me then along this journey. Since starting this journey I have grown so much not only as a brand but as a man. I’m focused on bringing the world the best “Talent” there is, notice I said TALENT the industry has changed to be more about popularity & clout and has gotten away from the Essence of the culture it’s starting to change and become about talent again but we have to keep moving forward. I intend to help push the culture forward musically & in a way to help people think differently at a Higher Level as the good brotha “19 Keys” says. I am also focused on the kids, the kids are the Future giving back to inner cities where kids find themselves in situations where they feel they have no other way to make it out but by being in the streets, I intend to help the movement to change that narrative. If they control the youth they control the Future! I’m looking for the hottest talent worldwide to showcase what they can bring to the world although I mostly indulge in Hip-hop & R&B I don’t discriminate all music is welcome. For those who don’t know Im also very big on fashion, coming into Manhood I started to change the way I dressed to a more grown man look and influenced many of my peers to follow suit. I have my own clothing brand called “Creat3 Ur Vision” I intend on expanding the brand more to not only have streetwear but also High End Fashion. Be on the lookout for not only new music from artist I support but also from myself 👀 one project is titled “The Chosen Ones” which will release before the end of 2023
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Looking back at this experience and my journey I would have to say, for starters my knowledge on the power of investing in yourself was very impactful for me. Obviously these things have been around forever and as I stated before I was influenced to do so from a handful of people but most and alot of people at labels or entrepreneurs who also knew the knowledge where “gate keeping” the information until I blew on the scene my influence sparked people to share the information more freely than they were before, which leads me into a great quality of mine which is being genuine anything I do I do out of love I might not always get that back in return for what I do but that’s just how I am I want to see people win I enjoy helping others achieve and realize the greatness they have within. Last but not least I know how to market music well, I know how to come up with a marketing plan and execute it effectively to help a artist grow their audience I’ve done it multiple times already not only through getting there music more listeners but by creating creative content that helps bring there music to life, telling my own story through content that helps bring out their story. I’ve also been told I have a great ear for music that’s just God given. Advice I have for people who want to improve in these areas are as I said before getting around the people who have already done it and become successful doing so, if u hang around millionaires guess what? You will become a millionaire
We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?
This is a good question although I feel like if u know what you’re strengths are u should go all in with that because I feel what u are best at is what will make u successful the fastest and easiest way, I also feel it’s important to be well rounded, Because even though u might be really strong in a certain area there might be areas u could definitely improve in that would help you during you’re journey just as much as you’re strengths. So I’d say it would behove anyone to be well rounded. Think about it like this I started my musical journey as a artist myself, so I know how much time and energy goes into creating a EP or Album, the blood sweat & tears that’s put into it. I feel that experience helps me as a A&R because I understand the grind I know what it takes. Also now with me being in a A&R position I know the business side of the music industry obviously I don’t know it all I don’t think none of us do but I’m well rounded which I feel helps me stand out.
Contact Info:
- Website: Will2Creat3ntertainment.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/will2creat3ntertainment?igshid=NGExMmI2YTkyZg==
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/willthecreatorr?t=BtxmXlvHc_3xU5L-1lXlaA&s=09
Image Credits
Chuckyfoto on the Halo picture
