From France to the US. From the US to France

I've never followed all the rules and codes that society wanted me to follow. 

I'm French, I live in France. I created my company in 2021. I had zero knowledge of the French music industry and the French music market, and I barely knew any artist in France. On the other hand, I already had a solid community in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia. Even though I lived in France my whole life, I grew up listening to American artists and my biggest dream was to go there and see my favorite indie artists perform. I did that. And I did even more. I built my audience by myself since 2013 and I never stopped. It's doing pretty well today, I am known by the local scenes in LA, NY, Nashville and more. But no one really knows about me in France. I had to start it all over and build my network here. I'm still working on that. I know it sounds crazy and weird and not logical at all for a French girl - to have a community in the US and not in her own country. But this is how it worked for boy bands, so here I am hahaha 

One of my American friends once told me "I think it's incredible you know all these local pop Nashville artists as a French". And I am very proud of that. 

When I go to the US, everything is easy and smooth every time I meet new artists and music industry people in person, because we've already had a relationship thanks to the magical power of the internet and its social media. 

In France, the process is a bit different. I barely interviewed French artists. I have to start it all over, and that frightens me. But at the same time, I am still going for it because I want my company to be bigger.

I am now in the process of looking for more French artists to interview and I am also in the process of getting myself known from music professionals. It's about putting myself out there and sometimes forcing myself to meet new people I never knew of. This process is putting me out of my comfort zone for sure. It's a different struggle I am currently going through as an entrepreneur. I've been meeting more and more people, putting myself in front of different entrepreneurs and professionals around a big table and introducing myself to all these strangers. I say “no” to a lot of meetings and gatherings though because my mental health is not always ready for these meetings and long conversations. I met really cool people though. You know these types of people that get you and vice versa. Some of them have been truly helpful and kind, and it means the world to me to have them in my corner. It takes a lot of efforts for someone like me who's not used to do that. But as an entrepreneur, you gotta do what you gotta do. You have to go out there and show yourself. You can't stay hidden behind your phone or computer - even though the internet has been really key. Social media is important, this is where everybody is, this is how you connect. This is how I managed to create my amazing community. But sometimes, you have to do more. And this is what I'm doing. At least I’m trying, in my own terms.

I am not quite ready to give up. My work is my life. This is what truly makes me happy. Being an entrepreneur has a lot of challenges, especially when you're on your own, but this is the road I chose to take and I don't regret it. If you believe enough in yourself and your company then you know what you have to do.

- Virginie