Doing what you love

When I was graduating with my MBA, I desperately wanted to get into the music business. I was DJing, living in Los Angeles, and had taken a stab at a MP3 download startup called GrooveOn.com.

This was the early days of digital music, when Napster was big, and I got an internship with a digital music company. The CEO asked me why I wanted to be in the music industry, and I gushed on about how much I loved music.

“Joining the music industry is going to make you hate music,” he advised me.

And with that, my early music industry dalliance was over, and I opted to start a travel startup instead.

Well, music industry, I’m back!

The Tropic of Cancer Music & Arts Festival kicks off this week in Todos Santos, Mexico. Last year, my wife Anne and I partnered with the festival founders, the Cordovas, and jumped at the chance to put this year's festival together.

In the 20 years since my aborted attempt to join the music industry, I’ve spent my career in tech and entrepreneurship. I’m glad I did. Success in angel investing has made it possible for me to invest in a music festival. Starting businesses, and working with early-stage founders, equipped me to be in a position to help a music festival emerge from two years of Covid cancellations and drive new revenue streams.

My focus on building decentralized software development teams via Flow State Industries has brought me closer to creators in general and the democratizing economics that are possible in Web3. I’m eager to create intersection points between Flow State tech clients and our audience at the Tropic of Cancer music festival.

But most of all to me, this is a story of pursuing a passion.

Organizing this major music event hasn’t led to hating music, it's deepened my love for it. Sure, working with artists and producers might require a little more patience than most startup folks. But it's an incredible feeling to be on the inside of a music festival.

This week, we’re bringing more than 100 artists to the little beach town of Todos Santos. On Sunday night, I hung out with a lot of them, and it was a magical experience to down a shot of tequila and be part of a jam session with so many talented people.

I’m fortunate to be building something I really love. Whether it's a passion project or a full-blown career, I wish you the same good fortune to be doing something which inspires your journey.
​
If you want to follow along with the Tropic of Cancer music festival, I’ll be posting my experiences on Insta @cschultz this week.

- Chris