With more ambition than a great majority of his peers and a resume longer than most anyone in his same situation, Brandon "Robo3k" Williams could best be described as a “young phenomenon in the making" If you heard his story, it would be easy to think Williams would range somewhere in his mid-to-late 20's. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Brandon isn't even old enough to legally drink yet and still years away from being able to rent a car. The 20 year old from one of America's finest cities - Seattle, Washington - is a veteran in brand marketing, management and digital media.
While most kids were worried about how to adjust to high school, Brandon began sharpening his skills through blogging which he would use as a gateway to explore and later find his passion in marketing, music, promotion and graphic design. "I was inspired by sites like Crunk & Disorderly and NahRight. I saw the work these sites put in and thought I could create something new with my own personal touch," said Williams. And that he did. Fueled passion for dreams he knew were growing bigger by the day and his own love for Hip-Hop culture, he ironically ended up meeting the person he dubs as his mentor, close friend and main source of motivation, Karen Civil. Their
working relationship and bond quickly progressed into him helping with the administrative duties
of WeezyThanxYou.com, the online diary started while Lil’ Wayne was in prison and the site he used to respond to his fans with his now famous, trendsetting letters. Brandon would transcribe letters as well as handle social media duties for the domain with over 12M fans on Facebook. He also contributes to KarenCivil.com, as well as assisting Civil in building and managing her personal and Live Civil brand. He leads his own movement StreetAnthem.com, a site dedicated to highlighting quality music from both mainstream and underground artists alike.
A lot of drive, passion and handwork fused with a small portion of blessings has Williams crossing items off his to-do list quicker than he could even imagine. "My ultimate goal was to get a job within the music industry by the time I was 22 and out of college," says Brandon. "But I have that now at the age of (then) 19. My next goal would have to be turning my name into a brand, work ethic and
lifestyle."
Even with all he has accomplished, and will in the future, Robo3K pinpoints one story which keeps him grounded, yet hungry. On the first day of his internship at Columbia Records, his sole intention was to be more than just the person “who made coffee and newspaper runs.” The Senior Vice
President of Urban Marketing, Liz Hausle, decided to pick his brain and see what he knew about the industry. Brandon proceeded to blow her mind with percentage numbers and even predicting what artists would perform from week to week based off SoundScan charts. He would leave her office, but Hausle then placed a phone call to the Executive of Marketing, Naima Cochrane, asking where she found him and exclaiming how impressed she was with his knowledge of the industry at such a young age.
The end result?
Williams was tapped for working on projects for artists ranging from J. Cole to Willow Smith to Sean Garrett and more. To even sweeten the deal, his office is two doors down from
Mathew Knowles. Not bad for a guy who hasn't even turned 21 yet.
"My success has nothing to do with luck. I want to let other young people know you can do what I did and be just as successful if, and only if, you set your mind to it and follow through. If you wait on luck to get you off the ground, you’ll fall twice as hard and never learn from your lessons and mistakes."