January 18, 2023
Entrepreneur Angela Yee Shares Lessons Learned Rising from Music Intern to Business Mogul
Media personality and entrepreneur Angela Yee is launching her own syndicated radio show, Way Up with Angela Yee, in partnership with iHeart Media. After 19 years in radio, including 12 as co-host of the legendary Breakfast Club, saying she earned it is an understatement.
Yee started her career 27 years ago as a music entertainment intern at MTV while attending Wesleyan University. Since then, she has climbed to the top in radio, being induced into the Radio Hall of Fame while also building a business empire.
Today, Yee owns multiple businesses, including coffee company, CUP (Coffee Uplifts People); healthy juice company, Drink Fresh Juice; credit building app, Stellar Fi; and hair extension company, Private Label.
She is also a real estate investor, with her latest purchase being a 30-unit building in Detroit. In a conversation with BLACK ENTERPRISE, Yee shared the key elements of her success and constant elevation as a professional and entrepreneur.
Networking
Networking has been at the core of Yee’s success. Yee, who landed her first two internships at MTV and Wu-Tang through good networking at 19 and 21 years old, emphasized the importance of building and maintaining relationships. She encourages getting out of your comfort zone, attending events you are interested in, and making connections to become a good networker.
“You never know who you’re going to meet. It could be one person that changes the trajectory of your career and life. So, you have to force yourself to be in those situations.” Yee told BLACK ENTERPRISE.
How do you become an effective networker? Do your research first. That will help you have meaningful conversations. Then have a positive attitude and follow up by providing value.
Yee also talked about leveraging one’s college experience to build relationships. “People often talk about the fact that they didn’t learn anything in college and took classes they didn’t care about. But college is a great networking tool, and people don’t take advantage of the alumni networks as well as they should,” Yee added.
“I interned at TVT Records through the Career Resource Center at my school. Also, my job has an alumni network. You can apply for internships there over the summer and you’ll have an edge over other people just because of that.”
(Image: Courtesy of Angela Yee)
Be strategic in how you brand yourself
Be mindful of how you present yourself to the world, whether it is your logo, website, or social media. Take the time to figure out who you are and what you want to be known for. Then, be clear on what you do.
“Figure out what your niche is. What is it that you are good at and care about? You should have a logo so that every time people see it, they know that it is you. You should have a website and your social media together. When people ask you what it is that you do, can you summarize that in one sentence?” she asked.
Have a solid work ethic
Yee highlighted how always doing her best work no matter how much she was getting paid positioned her for future opportunities. Taking pride in your work and not adjusting the quality of your deliverables based on your compensation is critical.
“Nothing beats hard work. You don’t work according to what you get paid. You work according to how you want to represent yourself. If I agree to do something, I want to make sure I do it well.”
This attitude has played a crucial role in Yee’s career expansion. It has helped her develop a stellar reputation as a professional, which has led to more opportunities within and outside the entertainment industry.
Make the best of the opportunities you are given
Yee shared the importance of being flexible and open to learning and trying new things, no matter how ready you may feel. “If somebody gives you an opportunity, take it. The only way you’ll get better is through experience. I’ve done many things in my life that I didn’t have experience in. I’d be trusted to jump into something and figure it out. I used to get petrified to get on stage and talk in front of people, like my heart racing. I used to be like that even when I first started in radio before getting in front of the mic. But because I’ve done it so much now, I’m a lot more comfortable with it.”
(Image Credit: Matthew Brown)
Continue to learn and take calculated risks
Yee believes in continuing to learn and educate yourself. She is an avid reader. She shared that she learned a lot from books and mentioned the book Mastery by Robert Greene. “Reading about other people who excelled in different fields, how they became masters of what they do, and how much time it takes for that to happen was very helpful. I love biographies and autobiographies. “
Continuing to learn helps you identify new opportunities. The more you take the time to learn about a field, the more educated decisions you can make. But Yee also highlighted the importance of taking calculated risks and being prepared because things don’t always work out. “You should evaluate where you are. I do whatever I can to minimize the chance of failure. But I also know it’s always a chance. So, you minimize the risk by learning and asking other people for help, and help can come in the form of just advice. But you have to understand that what you think will be a great investment isn’t always going to work out. So, account for some of those pitfalls.
There’s a wealth of knowledge in Angela Yee’s career and business elevation. But one thing is for sure, no matter what she does next, it’s only going to be way up with Yee.
About The Author
Anne-Lyse Wealth is a certified public accountant and communications strategist for business leaders. She is the founder of The ALW Communications Agency, which helps minority leaders amplify their brands through PR and storytelling, and the Plutus Awards-nominated Dreamoflegacy.com, a platform dedicated to inspiring millennials to build wealth with purpose.
Anne-Lyse Wealth is a freelance writer for Fortune Magazine, Business Insider, and Harvard Business Review Ascend, among other publications. She is the author of Dream of Legacy, Raising Strong and Financially Secure Black Kids, and the host of The Dreamers Podcast.