#246: DJ Megan Ryte

Explicit content warning

03/18/19 • 130 min

This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome Hot 97 personality, Interscope recording artist and official member of the Heavy Hitters, DJ Megan Ryte to the Upper West Side! Megan, who escaped an abusive household as an early teen, went to college at age 16, and followed her passion for music and performance from Virginia to Florida to Texas and California before landing her dream job in New York, discusses for the first time in detail her significant health scares from last year. Megan talks about growing up in a household with no popular music, what led her to study pre-med, what it was like to discover hip-hop in college and how she dove head first into DJing. We get into her love of Eminem's music, going on the road with Amerie and K. Michelle, her big move down south, the creative ways she got on radio programmers' radars, living paycheck to paycheck, almost being cast on Love & Hip-Hop Miami, and what it felt like to have a radio vet tell her she wasn't cut out to be an on-air talent. Megan gets into her time as a jack-of-all-trades at a station in West Palm Beach, the opportunity that took her to Houston, how she fell in love with chopped and screwed music, finally finding acceptance and comfort in Texas, and when that same radio vet came back calling to have her audition for a spot at NYC's Hot97, the amazing words that Bun B spoke to send her on her way. We discuss Megan's transition to NYC life, how long it took to get used to being in that famed booth, building relationships with artists both young and established around the country, what she's aiming to bring to the clubs with her new music and everything that her Brooklyn brother DJ Enuff brings into her life. All that, plus meeting a new blood brother as adults, how she kept in shape in Miami, being around shootouts in the club, the quickest way to clear the dance floor (besides shootouts), learning to rely on others after a lifetime of handling everything on her own, and much, much more in this epic episode!

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#245: Roc Nation Manager Nelly Ortiz

This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome Roc Nation manager and marketing executive, Nelly Ortiz! Nelly, who is best known for her work alongside DJ Khaled, J. Cole and Big Sean, talks about growing up the daughter of two active members of the Army, what it was like to move cities a dozen times, how it became easier to leave as she got older, where she really considers home, the work she put into making new friends at each stop, and her role in the formative girl group, The Flower Girls. Nelly discusses her college dreams, her thoughts of following in the footsteps of her parents and joining the Armed Services, her passion for marketing, her love of learning and the heartbreak of being turned down for a Fulbright scholarship. We dive into her journey through the music industry, from securing an internship at Sony Music Latin in Miami to buying a one-way ticket to New York in the hopes of taking any position in the label system, why she showed up to work an hour early each day, how she kept relationships alive, and how Roc Nation came to bring her abroad to handle marketing and partnerships. We talk about her going to business school online while working on the rollout of Cole's 2014 Forest Hills Drive, working with DJ Khaled in Miami, being awarded a slot in Billboard Magazine's 40 Under 40 and - after all of these major moves - how it felt to move to Los Angeles to start this new chapter. All that plus: Shark Tank, Lenny S' gold couch, the perfect radio voice, what it means to be a coquito executive, what it was like to be in high school when Nelly Furtado and Nelly were popping when your name is Nelly and much, much more!

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#247: Manager Ramya Velury

This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal we welcome manager Ramya Velury to the Upper West Side! Known for her work with Ravie B, Goldlink, Tommy Genesis, Amrit and EQT, Ramya discusses growing up an only child in an Indian family in tiny Ashland, Kentucky, with big dreams, destined for the big city. Ramya talks about making the move and leaving her Kentucky roots and accent behind, her early days at New York University, designing her own major, studying in a class based around Diddy, customizing her own wardrobe, getting to know up-and-coming artists, befriending A$AP Rocky, A$AP Ferg and Action Bronson, and finding her place in the scene. We get into why she may have been a bad intern for Karlie Hustle, introducing herself to Funk Flex, working at Hot 97's Summer Jam, the importance of knowing what you don't want to do, working the door at Up & Down, the myths of club life, promoting shows, meeting Harry Bernstein of Agency88 and starting work in the agency world, and easing up on her studies so she could focus on having real New York City experiences. Ramya remembers her post-graduate life, moving to a fifth-floor walk-up at St. Mark's, how she and Goldlink connected and built trust, how she dove in the deep end on their first European tour, what value she brings to each of her clients, flying to Paris to pitch Tommy Genesis on building a business together, the subsequent album and tour rollout, the importance of building relationships horizontally, and the exciting future at EQT. All that, plus competitive tap dancing, #FutureHive, her friendship with David Amaya, Nur Ozdamar's skin care, the difference between a Southern accent and a country accent, hanging out at Walmart, the wrong way to dye your hair, putting your phone down and much, much more!

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