Stop for a minute and think about what it would be like to lose everything only 10 years into your career. Think about what it would be like to hit that wall and be ready to completely leave your industry in the name of self-preservation.
In that scenario, you’re likely imaging a career in the music industry, according to artist manager and publicist Loren Medina.
Medina lives a wild day-to-day life, managing major Latin duo COASTCITY, owning Guerrera PR, Marketing, and Management, acting as a Latin publicist to several major and developing artists, and teaching at the USC Thorton School of Music on the side. Her schedule has her flying around the world for photo and video shoots while having to arrange promo-days once she returns. She’s a major success working in the space she loves more than anything else.
But it wasn’t a direct path to where she is now.
After Medina graduated from Boston University, she reconnected with a friend who was starting her own label and management company. Despite being in the process of applying to business schools, she decided to take the leap.
“It sounded like such an amazing idea that I decided to become her business partner and forgo obtaining an MBA…and here I am.”
It was a dive into the deep end with no life preserver. The label and management company was named Too Savvy and was headed by Medina, her friend, and her friend’s college boyfriend. All three were fresh out of college and had no education or experience in business or in the music industry.
What did they do instead? They worked their asses off.
Medina and her partners found their own books and resources on what to do. They went out and networked with every person possible, doing this on a nightly business. It wasn’t easy, but it was thrilling.
In the end, it wasn’t a house built to last. Medina and her business partner split ways but Medina continues to manage a female rapper from her former company. The rapper was eventually signed to Sony Latin thanks to Medina, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t manage the rapper’s bad attitude and commitment issues, thus leading to Sony dropping her.
This was rock bottom. Medina was out of her business, out of clients, and by this point, out $13,000. So, she left the industry…
“Artists I have on repeat
Loren Medina
right now are Anderson Paak, Kehlani, Khalid, Pink Sweat$, Omar Apollo, J Cole, Bad Bunny,
Cuco, COASTCITY.”
…for about a year, until her former boss at Sony called and offered to have her run the Urban Department at Sony Latin.
Just as easy as it is to get sick of the music industry, it’s like a drug you can’t quit–and Medina returned once again.
From there, Medina continued to build her network and her own business empire. She later established her own company, acted as a publicist for several artists, and eventually signed on to manage COASTCITY.
After everything, what moments have made all the struggles and patience worth it?
“The day the artists I manage, artist-production duo COASTCITY, got nominated for a Latin Grammy,” Medina said. “And the day we received a Grammy nomination last year for our debut EP. I cried for hours both times.”
Despite her incredible peaks, Medina knows she’s had to fight twice as hard as a woman in the industry. Especially as a manager for an all-male duo, Medina notices other men choose to ignore her and try to talk and negotiate directly with her artists instead.
“Men tend to take other men more seriously unless the woman is in a very high position or manages a top-notch artist,” Medina said.
In terms of how she would advise young women entering the industry, Medina calls back to her younger self.
“Try not to date in the industry unless you’ve known that person for a long time and you’re working towards the same things,” Medina said. “It does, unfortunately, affect you from a business standpoint. Society hasn’t evolved enough to accept women acting the same as men while being respected.”
Above all, however, Medina is a music lover. The long nights and endless days of hard work are worth it when she sees clients succeed who produce music that she genuinely likes. Medina now feels comfortable enough in her career to not take on any artist as a client unless she believes in her music.
But it’s her success and history within the industry that enables her to make those choices.
Behind the Beats - Women in Music 