June is Black Music Month in the United States.
This episode of LESSONS from LEADERS actually offers a mini-lesson about the music industry from the perspective of a professional who has been able to experience it from two different views.
Frank Ski is the professional name of a radio personality who has been entertaining African-American audiences in major markets up and down the East coast for 20 years. In 2023, he is syndicated with morning shows airing in Washington, D.C. and Atlanta, GA.
But Frank Ski is also a musician. His first producing attempt actually earned him a minor hit. It also threw him into a maelstrom of learning about the pitfalls of producing music and making money. Frank, however, had a secret weapon in the form of a mentor, who was also an attorney. The legal advice he received at the beginning of his career set him up for a string of business successes. It did not prevent him from encountering other types of financial problems.
He is both gracious and blunt when explaining what he has encountered.
In this episode you learn about European royalties a distribution company never paid, a tax mistake that cost him a boatload of money and, on the positive side; a decision he made in 1997 that gave him a multi-million music payday in 2022.
There is still a lot of the Frank Ski story to tell. This podcast just gives listeners a sample of why this man has impacted so many lives. It also shows why he is giant in an industry that many people never learn to navigate.