Get Paid To Be Yourself: The Business Of Being Mando Fresko

This story was originally published on Forbes.com

Freedom is the new American dream. While history provides a proper benchmark for measuring impact and influence, tradition no longer determines the framework of success. As countless studies suggest, today’s do-it-yourself generation no longer finds fulfillment in impressive titles, comfortable salaries or loaded benefits packages. Though these components still serve as attractive incentives for anyone with ambition, their allure alone rarely trumps the fear of being forced to consciously exert just a fraction of your potential.

In an era defined by access and information, there is no longer an inherent pressure to chase opportunity, nor rely on the strength of a resume to land the job of your dreams. Instead, that dependency has shifted to being proactive and diligent in the pursuit of creating the dream job. Profit is important, but passion is paramount. Waking up inspired each day means more than punching the clock for a steady paycheck. Millennials want to retain ownership of their ideas, navigate their own path, and receive a fair stake in the things they help to build. One dynamic creator who precisely exemplifies this attitude and approach is Mando Fresko.

Fueled by a relentless drive and determination, the 28-year-old has transformed a genuine passion for shaping culture, music and media into a thriving, multifaceted personal enterprise. As a longtime on-air radio personality for Power 106 FM, the South Gate native has become a prominent voice in Los Angeles, and is one of the key members of the LA Leakers. His popular entertainment site, MandoFresko.com, stays on the pulse of pop culture, interviewing and covering many of music’s biggest stars. Leveraging his expansive social following, the influencer continues crafting digital campaigns and experiences for brands like Nike, Pepsi, Hennessy, Kia, and several others. Taking his talents to television, Mando also serves as a regular host on MTV2, adding a fresh perspective to a vast variety of topics prevalent to today’s generation.

We spoke about his business model, guiding principles, journey through the industry, and the greater goal powering the Mando Fresko brand.

Every great brand has a message and a movement – how do you define the Mando Fresko brand and who you speak for?

The Mando Fresko brand is an influential outlet that provides inspiring original content. We hope to spark other like-minded creatives onto their own path to success. The rule we live by: Hard work pays off, it never goes unnoticed. The Mando Fresko brand speaks to the young creative, to millennials with big dreams. It speaks for those who believe their dreams are attainable, no matter where they came from. It’s about breaking up the status quo and always having the mentality of an underdog.

You could be described as many things — creator, curator, entrepreneur — how do you describe the work that you do? 

Being an entrepreneur nowadays entails wearing a lot of hats. Aside from the countless titles you can give me from being a TV personality to a business owner, I like to best describe my work as creative. One of the most beautiful things in life is creating something that didn’t exist. There is no better feeling than seeing an idea reach full fruition. Everything that I do is meant to either inspire, put a smile on someone’s face, or push someone to reach their goals. Whether it’s a radio bit, television segment or a social media post, there is lots of passion behind it. It’s like a fashion designer, when they cut and sew a quality piece you can see the effort and detail that was put into every thread.

When did you realize your POV was impactful and capable of influencing your generation? 

Social media definitely helped me realize the impact that I could have on others. In 2009, the early days of Twitter TWTR +4.17%, I would post random things and received tweets saying, “Hey, Mando, where can I buy your mixes?” “I like your style, where can I get those sneakers?” I took advantage of this and began strategically posting more original and personal content. The beautiful thing about social media is that it’s instant and you know right away if people like or dislike something. In the last 5 years, my content has received lots of great feedback and my following and engagement grew immensely because of that. Soon after, brands like Nike, Hennessy and Pepsi started taking notice.

What have been the key aspects of building your business and how have those factors transitioned throughout your career?

I am a firm believer of maximizing the most from what you have. As social media quickly began to evolve, so did I. I began using it to my own benefit. I was one of the first to embrace MySpace at Power 106 and started connecting with our listeners on a more personal level. This new media definitely changed my career from the start. It allowed me to interact with our listeners in a different way rather than our traditional phone call method. From then on social media allowed me to not only connect with people but to also open up and demonstrate my personality in many dimensions. It allowed me to show other qualities of myself aside from just my voice. As the years went on, my audience grew and they grew with me. I started noticing that and I used it to my advantage. I began creating content – mixtapes, podcasts, exclusive video interviews and from that came, MandoFresko.com. MandoFresko.com became home to not only me, but my team. I created a team of individuals with the same vision, which has also been a key aspect to my success.

How important is it to stay true and build your brand as a reflection of who you are? 

It’s very important to stay true to myself and be humble. The amazing thing about my followers is that they understand me, they have accepted me and see me as one of them. It is crucial to stay true to who you are for many reasons. Everyone’s already someone, but no one is you. Set the bar high for yourself. In today’s age with the power of mass media, people will look through you if you start being something you’re not. No one wants to look up to a copy-cat version of someone else. They want the real deal. They want to believe in the person who is so confident to be themselves, it inspires them to do better.

As a creator or content and experiences, there are now more ways than ever to monetize your value – what do you believe is the new business model for creators and how is success measured? 

Loyalty and engagement. Something I realized early on and try to advise young creatives is to not get caught up with numbers. One needs to focus on building their brand and to realize that engagement is far more important than the number of your social following. Companies are starting to realize that and they would rather go to someone who has a very loyal, 20K following with high engagement, than someone with 100K followers and very little engagement. Followers can be bought, loyalty can’t.

How has the relationship between influencer and brand evolved and how do you think creators should approach collaborating with brands and advertisers today?

When I started in radio in 2005, my endorsers just wanted me to read the commercial and host their event. Today, the digital experience is just as important as the physical experience. When talking to a brand about a project, they take care of the experience side and come to me for the digital and creative side. The experience today starts online, not when you walk through the door. Brands come to me for digital consulting because they want to know how to better connect with the young audience. Many brands have traditional ways of thinking, so when they contact me they want innovative ideas and they always want to be different. So my job is no longer that of only voicing a radio spot, my job is to come up with a different campaign for every brand. As the influencer, one should have something to offer and be confident. Walk into events, meetings, knowing yourself and your brand and recognize that you have just as much to offer to a brand as they do to you. Most companies today do not have a game plan so they come to you looking for one. Be ready, have everything laid out for them. Don’t ask what they can do for you, let them know what you can do for them.

What are some of the advantages you’ve gained from kicking off your career in radio? What were your plans before stepping into what you do now?

Fresh out of high school, I actually planned on going into the medical field. I wanted to make a difference. Now I feel like I have the opportunity to do that in a totally different way. I’ve always had an ear for music and a passion for discovering new acts. In college I had a radio show and it was then when I realized that was the career I wanted to pursue.  At 18 years old, I was an intern and worked for the street team at Power 106. That’s where I learned how to speak to clients, run an event and it allowed me to grow as a host and speak in front of large crowds. By 19, I was on air at Power 106, the youngest radio personality they’ve ever had. I learned from the best, working with some of my radio idols; that was my first experience creating original content. They showed me how to program a radio show, prep for an interview and network with artists and record labels.

As you’ve evolved into other endeavors as a creator and entrepreneur, radio has remained at the core — what role has that medium played in progressing your career?

Radio was my first love and most people I have met in the music industry have been through the radio medium. During my first year in radio, it was all about playing music, taking requests and having in-studio guests. Now, we have to capture not just audio, but provide visuals as well. We have to re-package the content and post it on our social media platforms to repurpose these interviews. Today, it’s all about capturing the moment. As radio has progressed, I’ve evolved with it. It was easy for me to adapt to new digital world because I was part of creating this new system that I continue to grow with.

You’re very passionate and prideful about your heritage and being an example of how big dreams manifest — how does that fuel your desire to create the career you want?

I was born in Los Angeles, grew up in South Gate where there is a large Latino community. I grew up in a traditional Mexican household, where we spoke Spanish at home and English at school. Being bilingual helped me a lot in the early stages of my career. It opened up the door to my first TV hosting position on live television at LATV and then transitioned to MTV Tr3s, which is Viacom's bilingual channel. There I realized that I wanted to represent the modern Latino. Many networks had Latino hosts/actors who had thick accents. Some were even forced to speak with thick accents. I wanted to change the stereotype; I was tired of networks exploiting our culture and made it a goal to change that. Today the Latino millennial speaks fluent English, likes pop music, hip-hop and is well educated – I represent that.

For so long, young people have been discouraged from taking on a multitude of things — how has that notion evolved and what is your advice for others who want to create dynamic careers?

At the beginning of my career I had many people telling me to stick to one thing. “Just do radio.” “Just be a DJ.” “Just be a TV host.” I could never do that because I loved so many things. We now live in a DIY-world and the more you know, the more skills you possess, the more you’re worth. As you get older, you begin to realize that you have to do what makes you happy. You are here to satisfy no one other than yourself.

What were some of the challenges or hurdles you had to overcome early on?

The biggest challenge I had wasn’t in the industry; it was getting the approval of my father to trust that this was a great career path. I grew up in a traditional Mexican household and my dad’s definition of success was wearing a suit and tie and working a 9 to 5. He didn’t understand that I was working 15 plus hour shifts and that I could actually earn a living DJ-ing and working in radio. It took him a good 5 years to finally realize that this was something I was truly passionate about. It took him some time to see my vision, dreams can pay the bills.

What was the turning point(s) that shaped the way you build your business?

Three years ago, more brands started reaching out to me directly. I became my own marketing team, sales team, my own boss. There was no longer a middle man or a point of contact between myself and the client. It was then that I realized the value of my brand and how I can monetize it. In other words, I found the formula to get paid to be myself.

With TV, digital and radio — you’re covering the spectrum of modern media. Would you consider yourself a voice for the culture?

I’ve always had a love and passion for traditional media (TV and radio), due to the fact that through traditional media you can reach millions of people. New media has given us the opportunity to connect with billions of people on a more personal level. I do consider myself a voice of the culture for the fact that my voice can be heard on all mediums.Being Latino also helps me relate to many other cultures, I understand where they come from and where they want to go. I speak with them and for them. I’m a millennial with big dreams with a vision to do things differently. As Kanye would say, I “listen to the kids, bro.” (Laughs)

You’re vocal about spreading positivity and living a life rooted in purpose — What mark do you wish you make with your movement?

My goal everyday is to inspire. I come from a community with a direct correlation to blue-collared jobs. We are force fed into careers that we may not want to pursue. I want to be that person who people can reference to when disagreeing with traditional views. I come from the same background, worked my way up the ladder and pursued my dream. If you follow my journey then you will see how reachable your dream is too. Nothing is impossible anymore, everything is attainable.

How important has mentorship been in your journey thus far and how are you paying it forward to those that look up to you?

I didn’t have any mentors through my journey. Surprisingly, that ended up working to my advantage because I had no glass ceiling to break, therefore I always kept working. I wish I would’ve had someone like myself to guide me through this road. It’s because of this that I made it a strong point to be the best mentor I can be to those on my team and those who come from a similar background as myself. I’ve become the person that I wish I would’ve had as a mentor at the start of my career.

Radio has gained a reputation for not having much money in it unless you’ve become a distinguished personality for years — how have you managed to maximize the platform and enterprise yourself?

Building my brand has been the most important thing that I have created. It’s easy to get caught up as just another radio personality, but what has made me stand out is that I branded myself early on. I’ve been in the radio industry for ten years and each one of those years was necessary to build a name for myself. I learned a lot and am now at the point of my life where I’m putting all those experiences together and using them for my new company, Hubwav Media that is set to launch in January 2016.

When did you know this is what you wanted to do for a living / when did you realize you could craft a career defined by who you are and what you care about?

In college I took a radio production class and had a radio show. Within those four months I realized I wanted to do this as a career. It was something that I loved since I was 14-years old; DJ-ing school dances, house parties, and it was in that class when I knew I was going to pursue this for the rest of my life. In the first five years of my career I did it because I loved it, the following five I did it wanting to make an impact on the culture. I wanted to influence my generation and leave my mark. I began to make a change without changing who I was but by changing the stereotype and breaking the status quo. The day that happened was the day I realized I was doing something right. The Mando Fresko brand was born.

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