The tech wiz behind Weezy F.'s publicity team explains how he used Facebook to push the YMCMB brand while Wayne was in jail.
With the Internet having become the dominant form of publicity in music, having a presence on blogs and social media networks is paramount to an artist's success. Last year proved especially difficult for Lil Wayne's camp, as the Young Money honcho's incarceration largely kept Weezy out of the public eye. That is, until 21-year-old Mazy Kazerooni joined the YMCMB team as Weezy's Facebook page manager.
In a recent interview with NPR, Kazerooni reveal how he managed to keep up online presence despite being on lock-up. He explained that he utilized Facebook to reach out Wayne's 30 million-plus fans, from merchandising to music updates to even earning Weezy a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for the most "Likes" in a day.
"He had a million fans sitting on his page, and no one had access to it," he explained. "No one even really knew what Facebook was, on his team. I had to argue with them for like a month to give me the information I needed to get the access. Now, there's a lot of attention being paid to what's happening online."
Kazerooni also discussed how he used Wayne's incarceration to his advantage. He said he made sure to re-post fan letters sent to Wayne at Riker's Island and his written responses on Facebook, creating a sense of fan engagement and community among his fans
"While he was in jail, we had an address so people could send him letters," Kazerooni said. "He'd write back to some of these letters. I would post all that stuff on Facebook. We just kept everyone engaged throughout the whole process."
Check out the full article to read about Kazerooni's involvement in Ustream and how his work with the company prepared him for the big leagues in the rap game.
