Apollo Fresh: You're going to be better than ever before after getting through this. Keep educating yourself. Keep applying yourself. Keep moving forward. Keep giving it your all and digging in yourself to be you and the best version of yourself, and you will see results far beyond what you can even imagine right now. 

Michael Walker: It's easy to get lost in today's music industry with constantly changing technology and where anyone with a computer can release their own music. I'm going to share with you why this is the best time to be an independent musician and it's only getting better. If you have high-quality music, but you just don't know the best way to promote yourself so that you can reach the right people and generate a sustainable income with your music, we're going to show you the best strategies that we're using right now to reach millions of new listeners every month without spending 10 hours a day on social media. We're creating a revolution in today's music industry and this is your invitation to join me. I'm your host, Michael Walker.

 I'm excited to be here today with my man Apollo Fresh. Apollo is a unique Haitian-American rapper. He has a distinctive style of merging his love for anime and rap. He had a viral hit, Jojo Pose, that reached over 100 million views on social media and showcased his wide ranging appeal and really tapped into this subculture of anime.

It was really awesome hearing your story at the Platinum Mastermind in LA. I think that your story is going to really inspire a lot of people who are here listening to this right now. Just because, the opportunities now with social media and with TikTok and hitting a trend, it can be such an amazing wave that you can catch. Apollo, thank you so much for taking the time to be here today.

Apollo Fresh: Thank you for having me here, Michael. 

Michael Walker: Of course, man. Grateful to have you here. So maybe to kick things off, could you share just a little bit of an introduction to yourself and your music and how did you get started and maybe share a little bit of an overview of your story.

Apollo Fresh: So how I got started. I started making music just as a kid. Playing instruments and stuff like that was something I was always passionate about. I remember in fifth grade, I was taking music class and we were trying out different instruments. I wanted to play the snare drum so bad and I ended up getting the bells. When I got the bells, I cried so much and I wasn't a kid that cried a lot like that, but I cried and he was like: what happened? I'm like, I wanna play the snare drum and he’s like: okay, I'll let you play snare if you play both instruments. So then I'm learning both instruments, every class and things like that. Then in middle school, I started playing the whole drum set. That's when I started freestyle rapping. Once I started freestyle rapping, when I got to high school, my friends were telling me that I should create music. At first, I thought it was silly. I was like, I'm not a rapper guy! Stop it! I was like, nah, that's not me. That's silly. Then they're like, no, you need to make a song. When I made a song, I fell in love instantly. And so it was like, okay, I was like, I need to make another song. And then I need to make another song. I was like, whoa, I need to make another song.

Once I made that third song, I had a vision of what was possible. And I was like, I knew this is exactly what I want. It was such a bright light. Every other option that I had seen for myself in my life just looked like darkness. And I was like, okay, I'm smart enough to recognize that this is what it is. This is what I want to do with my life.

And I was like, man, that's going to be hard though. And I was like, you know what? I can make it happen. I'll just have to give it my all. I can't slack. I was 15 at a time. I'm 26 now, and since then it's been just like a rollercoaster ride of growth and progress.

When it came to my first hit, which is Jojo Pose, my first song with Mili. But I still remember my first song with a thousand plays, my first song with a hundred thousand plays, as opposed to my first song with a million plays is now 83 million on Spotify alone. If you count the hashtag, #posesthis this on TikTok, the hashtag associated with it, that's over 2 billion views right now on TikTok.

That all stemmed from me being like: okay I've done my personal development, I've developed as an artist right now, so how do I market it? How do I connect with people? How do I use this internet thing? Oh, TikTok is something new. Okay, I'm going to start posting on TikTok every day. Doesn't matter what I post, I'm going to post everything. I'm still taking classes. I'm in school. I'm talking to mentors. My major is entrepreneurship. I'm talking to the entrepreneurship teachers and people that have actually built businesses. They're telling me about listening to my customers and responding to them, creating community and stuff like that. I'm like, okay, I'm going to do this thing and I'm going to apply that to this content I'm creating. I'm going to figure out TikTok.

As I'm doing that, I just post like a random anime video. I love anime. I've been watching it my whole life. It does well, it gets a little bit viral and I'm like, you know what? Let me keep feeding these people what they might like. So I post more anime content and I noticed there's a whole community of people that love anime on there. And I noticed they're copying poses from the anime Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. So I said, you know what? I'm going to create something like a song that's going to give them the opportunity to do these poses too. Cause I know, I just got this thought immediately

I just got excited. I was like, I know exactly what you guys want! You want a song to do these poses to. You want it to reference Jojo's Bizarre Adventure throughout the whole song. You want the hook to have a place for them to do it too. And you want this sample from Golden Wind Giorno's theme from part 5 of Jojo's. I know exactly what you want. I got you.

So I went and made it happen, put it on there, made a call to action: Yo, tag who you want to see do this challenge. Tag who you want to see do it. And then you just tag somebody. And then one of the influencers that got tagged did it. Another one did it. Another one did it. And it just kept growing and growing and growing and growing.

Then TikTok put it on the discovery page with the hashtag. And I was literally in class, I remember this, I was in class and I literally was like, oh snap! I just stood up in the middle of class when I found it on the discovery page. I was in a group chat. Someone's yo, congratulations, Apollo. You're officially super trending. I'm like, what the heck is a super trend? I look and I'm like, oh, and the teacher is like, what happened? And I see my mentor happens to be next to him. And he's like: oh, what's up, Apollo? You're in this class. I'm like, I'm super trending! And he's okay, that's cool. Sit down.

So I just sat down and I'm like, what does this mean? My whole life is about to change. I'm watching it go to 10 million, 15 million, 20 million, 25 million, like in minutes, by the millions, it's growing. And I'm just like, how am I supposed to act? How am I supposed to be right now? And I'm like, you know what? I'm in six different classes. I'm in an extracurricular entrepreneurship program that might allow me to pitch for investors, which I did end up pitching and getting $10k from. I’m in another program that's a civic engagement/civic design program, working with communities and learning design principles and stuff, which, by the way, I did use while doing that. I designed for collaboration while I made that trend, and I was like, you know what, let's just stay laser focused, keep waking up at 5am, keep doing my rituals and keep meditating, keep visualizing, just keep things going to get through the semester to keep the ball rolling since there were so many things on my plate. That's a short version. There are so many different things that happened in between there. So many ups and downs. So many amazing moments. So many synchronicities that developed into that explosive moment.

Michael Walker: So cool! I had a visualization as you're describing that moment where you were in class and you were watching the super trend happening and it was like the Tik Tok version of going Super Saiyan, it's like you're blowing up like everyone's like: ah, what's going on?

I imagine almost like sitting at a lottery and it's like $30,000 and it’s just comin up! It's crazy. Except this is the best kind of lottery because, like certainly there's a viral component of it, but it wasn't just random, right? It was based on a strategy. It was based on a really smart thing that you did, which was speaking directly to this community and creating something for them that they resonated with. And I love the fact that this is all about creating that moment that is something that people resonated with.

And, one big thing that we're working on, and you know this from our, from the Mastermind Retreat, but creating those moments and creating a strategy around it, similar to Erica Mason, how she created a moment per day is a really exciting strategy that I think everyone here should start creating more moments and then, publishing them.

One thing I want to ask you, and zoom back and reverse here a little bit, you're at this place now, which is amazing, where you've had the Super Saiyan moments and you've had that experience, which was a moment in and of itself, right? Of having the super trend. I know that, it took a lot of hard work and a lot of effort and a lot of belief in yourself and visualization and like the inner gain and the personal development that kind of led to that moment. That's something I think is easy to overlook because now you have the proof you've had that success. 

A lot of people who might be listening to this right now or might be attending, haven't had that breakthrough experience yet, or at that earlier stage where maybe, not everyone always has support around them from family and friends and people who believe in their vision. They might sometimes doubt their own worth and their own music. Maybe you can share a little bit about, before that happened, what were some of your biggest challenges and some of the things you had to work through to get to that moment? 

Apollo Fresh:  I love this question. I love this question so much. So I think that was early 2020 when that song blew up. I released it officially on streaming platforms, probably January 13th.  2019 is when I first started training myself in the art of visualization and started really finding the right research and finding the right information and tools to help reprogram my brain. It was very intentional. I remember in summer, I'm in the dorm and I've just had to make a big decision for myself. I told myself that in freshman year that I'm gonna make it. I'm gonna be huge. I'm gonna make it before I graduate. I don't want to go out into the world after school without having traction as an artist.

At this point, I'm like, okay, time is closing in. I'm about to be a senior. I'm learning this information, and from what I'm piecing together, the fastest way for me to reprogram my mind would be to isolate myself and get around people that are operating at that level that I want to operate at, and also feed my mind information, and cut out the things that are holding me back. So I did that and I cut everybody off for two months in college. In the summer, I remember telling my dad that I dropped my classes and he's like: what the heck are you doing? You're wasting your time. And I was like, Dad what if what I'm doing right now is going to be the thing that's going to make me able to pay my own college tuition without any scholarships?

I'm getting A's. First off, I'm not doing bad in school. But it's like: I know if I take this time, this could be the thing that changes my life that I won't even need any help. I could do this. I'll be able to pay for it. And he just like, pauses. I'm from South Florida, from Broward County. I'm eating like pollo tropicala every day. I'm eating rice, beans, and avocados every day. Just locked in. This is the healthiest thing I could whip up right now, and give it my all like that.

It was hard. It was a big decision, but it was like, man, it’s this or nothing. I'm not going to fold. I don't want to not succeed. If this is what is going to make me successful and I'm hearing this from people that have really made it, then I'm dumb if I don't actually do it. I educated myself so much so it’s like: I have to do this or I'm just giving up.

I applied that for two months and I saw myself become like a whole new person, like a whole different level of genius. I started applying that knowledge and that new self to my music, to the new programs I was in, like I was telling you: I was in the MIT program. I was in the entrepreneurship program. I knew exactly that when Jojo Pose happened, I knew exactly that the world was catching up to me. It was catching up to who I became. I became this whole new person that was operating at a whole another vibration. Just a whole nother level, like mentally, spiritually, physically, in every single way and iit just had to catch up to me.

Right now the same thing is happening again. I almost feel like right now, like this is 2023, it's 2019. And like 2024 is the next leap year and I'm going to make another leap in the next leap year. I'm seeing how I've evolved myself. I see who I've become. I'm seeing who I'm connecting with naturally, what rooms I'm getting into without me not even trying to make it happen. It's okay, it's happening again. Things are going to turn up on a whole nother level now because I'm becoming that person first. People overlook how important that is.

Nowadays I think a lot of people hear certain stuff like manifestation and different buzzwords within the field because I think the whole world is coming into a higher consciousness as a whole, as a collective. But I don't think people understand that it's a skill. It's like skateboarding. Anybody can hop on a board and ride a little bit, but if you want to do the big vert ramps, you better be on that board every day. You better be studying these skaters. You learn how to kickflip. Go through the stages. Learn how to get the parking spot you want. Show yourself what's possible, and grow. You have to master this skill. It's not gonna just pop up. I mean it can, anything's possible, but really it's about the mastery of this if you want to create your reality, you know what I mean? 

Michael Walker:  So good. Yeah, there's so much good stuff in there.  Yeah, I mean I know for myself personally, the vision map exercise, I think it's like module 1 in our program because it's so fundamental. It's really about creating that vision for yourself and for your goals and who do you want to be, getting clear on it. And then, like you're mentioning, literally reprogramming yourself to become that person. To do the things that are required for you to become that person.  For anyone that's listening to this right now, who's maybe struggling early on with getting themselves to that point where they're confident or they have that faith or that belief and their dream is they'd love to do music full time, but they haven't really seen the results yet for themselves. They're not making enough income or they haven't really seen much response from the stuff they've released or what they've posted. You know deep down either their passion or their dream that they want to be able to express themselves and reach more people they're just early on at that stage where they haven't experienced it yet. What are some of the most valuable exercises that you found for yourself that helped you early on to reprogram your mind and get yourself to the point that you're able to become that version of yourself?

Apollo Fresh:  Talking to people that have achieved those things humbly, like this, providing value how you can and getting around these people and listening, like closing your mouth and listening and maybe asking some questions and stuff like that can do so much to expand your brain and what's possible for you. The more traction that you gain for yourself, the easier it is to get to know people because you have more value to add. They say it's about who you know but it's easy to get to know people. It's not hard to just be a great person and meet people and see how you can provide value and just add value to yourself so that you could pour into other people. One of the best ways to be able to talk to people that are like at different levels is like just reading hella books. Like you read hella books and you can give great book recommendations and you can talk about these things that they don't get to have these conversations with the average person with? That is just a gift in itself. 

Tied to the story directly in my life: I have a friend that quit college. He stopped going to college to pursue business, and he ended up creating a seven figure business in California at the time. I want to talk to him to see if he understands these things because I've seen the success that he's created in his life. And so this is an example to me. I'm like: I'm gonna prioritize that. So I go talk to him. And talking to him like, yo, you understand these things about self image. You understand these things about the mind. He's yeah, of course! Yeah, you're putting things together. So I'm like, it's pretty formulaic. And he's yeah, literally: do these things. You're going to see results. And that just increased my belief because I could call it before I knew it. I didn't have any other six, seven figure business friends, but I'm just like, yo, there's no way he doesn't understand this stuff because he came from less like me. His family wasn't rich, so he had to create something for himself. He had to really educate himself on a different level to get there, and I figured he would know. So that was an example of me making sure that I got prioritizing, getting around that person, getting around somebody that's achieved something similar than what I'm going for. And right now, like that's the most valuable thing in my life right now.

It's so refreshing because I'm seeing who I'm becoming, so it's so refreshing to talk to people that are in that position cause I feel like I'm there right now. I really am in my mind. I really have platinum records right now in this moment. I really have a mansion in Hollywood Hills, like. I feel more comfortable with that idea of me being worthy of that, because I'm like: oh yeah it is so possible, and I do see myself that way already, I can relax with it.

Michael Walker:   So much good stuff in there. Thank you for sharing that. The book Think and Grow Rich I feel like it dives into a lot of these topics. It's one of my favorite books of all time. I think everyone should read that book, probably at least once a year. That was the first book that I read. I think it's one of the classics that really goes into the ideas of visualization and self-image and creating the vision first and then building into it. I'm sure everyone that's listening to this right now can also relate with. It's a tale as old as time. It's family or parents not really fully understanding, and really learning how to evolve, how to transform, and how to grow. One thing I really appreciate about the story that you just shared was that it was a real world example of what always happens whenever you're on a transformation path. Whenever you're becoming a new version of you, the old version of you has to die in order for you to become the new version of you. With that death of the old self, it makes people uncomfortable. The people who know who the old self is. Their minds have learned how to interact with that old self. They've learned how to push the buttons. That feels really uncomfortable. It's unsettling because they can't push those same buttons and they can't get the response. It's a new variable. So by design it makes people feel uncomfortable, unless they're the kind of people that understand that discomfort and that growth is part of the evolution process.

I appreciate you sharing that cause I think a lot of people here have probably either experienced that or they're in the midst of it right now feeling like: I'm becoming this new version of myself and it's uncomfortable.

 Apollo Fresh: Yeah. Don't try to change the people around you. Just evolve. Become that new person. If they love you enough, they'll evolve up with you or they'll just get out of your life. It will happen naturally. Don't try and change people. You change yourself and that's going to have a bigger impact.

Michael Walker: Absolutely. Yeah, they'll start to get comfortable with the new version of you. Like they'll start to understand. Oh, that's just Apollo. He's always doing crazy stuff and growing. That's just who he is. Awesome. One last question I want to ask, cause this is just a beautiful question and I feel like you're probably gonna have a really good answer to it. If you could  rewind back time and go back to yourself at the beginning before you had the success or before you had this experience; before you became who you are now, and you could just share one piece of advice for yourself. What would the advice be? 

Apollo Fresh: You will live through this. Everything is okay. You're going to be better than ever before after getting through this. Keep educating yourself. Keep applying yourself. Keep moving forward. Keep giving it your all and digging in yourself to be you, and the best version of yourself and you will see results far beyond what you can even imagine right now. It's completely worth it  and you're almost there. You may relax. It's okay to relax. It's okay to focus on your craft. It's okay to keep trying because it's going to be better than you even imagined. Even if you're not there, you will figure it out and it's okay to feel like you haven't figured it out either. As long as you keep focus on that vision and keep taking actions, you are going to see results and you're going to get what you asked for, so make sure you get better and better at asking. And keep going. 

Michael Walker: Boom. Mic drop. So for anyone that's listening or watching this right now who's interested in connecting more, or listening to some of your music, where's the best place for them to go to connect more?  

Apollo Fresh: You can follow me on Instagram @Apollo_Fresh, or TikTok @ApolloFresh. You can look up my music anywhere: Apollo Fresh. Just look that up and you'll find me. 

Michael Walker: Beautiful. Hey, Apollo, thank you so much, again, for taking the time to come on here and share a little bit about your story. I find it personally really inspiring hearing you share the ups and the downs and watching you catch that wave, and I'm excited to watch the next wave for you. Cause I could feel that coming as well

Apollo Fresh: Thank you for having me here, Michael. 

Michael Walker: Hey, it’s Michael here. I hope that you got a ton of value out of this episode. Make sure and check out the show notes to learn more about our guest today, and if you want to support the podcast then there’s a few ways to help us grow.

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