“I gravitate towards listening to things that I can either sing along to or dance to. I love upbeat songs that put me in a happy mood.”

— Cherokee

Meet Cherokee, CultureHype’s new PR Assistant! The fashion-savvy Dallasite studied Marketing & Fashion Merchandising at Texas Woman’s University (TWU) in Denton! How did she find CultureHype? Our #girlboss Amber met Cherokee at our girl’s only pool party series at W Dallas - Victory through our partner, Dallas Girl Gang. Can we say, girl power?!

Cherokee’s taste in music is very dependent on her mood. One day she could be listening to Alternative Rock & Indie music & then switch to Hip-Hop and R&B in an instant. Some of her go-to favorite artists include Ariana Grande, Paramore, Frank Ocean &, most importantly these days, Meg thee Stallion.

Listen to Cherokee’s #MUSICMONDAY playlist below!

“This playlist is a few recent faves & some old classics. My taste is pretty all over the map, so hopefully this offers a taste of that!”

— Wendy

Meet Wendy - CultureHype's Creative Strategist. Wendy was born in San Antonio, Texas & went to school at TCU in Fort Worth where she studied Radio-TV-Film. She is a big music lover, having worked in artist development & venues for several years. She has worked at major venues including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts & Carnegie Hall. She is passionate about cultivating creative talent & enjoys live shows more than anything else.

“This playlist just reminds me of moments in my life. I listen to these songs to bring me joy or to help me through tough moments. Music has always been an integral part of my life & I couldn’t fathom living one day without it. In this playlist you can find really happy songs that make you want to dance & sad songs that make you reflect about love, life, & that might make you cry. You can clearly see my love for indie rock & reggaeton in my choice of songs. I hope you enjoy the soundtrack to my life!”

— Frida

Happy #MusicMonday everyone! Meet Frida, CultureHype’s new PR account executive. Frida graduated from UT in 2016 with a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations & has experience in the music, fashion, & lifestyle industries. Frida is from Fort Worth but she spent most of her childhood living in her parents’ hometown of Zacatecas, Mexico. As a result of splitting her time between Texas & Mexico, she speaks fluent Spanish & is very proud of her Mexican culture. Whenever she has time, she goes back to Mexico to visit family & her best friends. She cites Zacatecas, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico City, & Tulum as her favorite places in Mexico & encourages everyone to visit. Frida also has traveled to Europe, she says that her favorite city is Amsterdam because of the lifestyle & the stroopwafels! Frida loves music & dancing & her favorite genres are indie rock & reggaeton. Two very different styles of music but she says these two genres describe her perfectly as a person. Whenever she goes out you can find her in the dance floor with a good Gin & Tonic or at a rock concert in the pit!

“Music has shaped my life for as long as I can remember. While these artists vary greatly in their style of music & sound, they all hold a special place in my heart & contribute to some of my favorite memories. ”

— Heather

Happy #MUSICMONDAY from our fam to yours! This week’s playlist is a special one because we have BIG news to share! CultureHype has joined forces with ICON PR, a LA-based PR agency specializing in music & entertainment. Now we’re able to offer clients national exposure in not only the LA market, but Nashville & New York as well. Today’s #MUSICMONDAY playlist is brought to you by Heather Besignano, the founder & CEO of ICON PR!

Heather is not your average girl boss. Her love for music began as young as the age of 5 when her mother brought her to the David Bowie “Glass Spider” tour. She fell in love right then and there with him & the artistry of performing on a stage. The obsession grew as her great grandmother spoiled her with front row, season tickets to Theater Under the Stars – bringing a love for Broadway performance & acting into the mix. As she graduated from concert-goer & fan-girl to a young woman, she began her role in the industry in Houston, Texas working with music artists on street teams & eventually graduating to assistant tour management & management. Yearning for a larger-scale opportunity she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career with a record label. Life had other plans & she fell into the world of public relations & was excited to utilize her passion for music & the arts to help brand artists & actors and work with their teams to shape their careers. Her highlights include working on numerous Oscar, Grammy, Emmy, Golden Globe & SAG Award campaigns, seeing Prince perform live at Coachella in 2008, meeting Death Cab for Cutie at Letterman & expressing her undying love for their “Transatlanticism” album, seeing Paul McCartney at Dodger Stadium & working alongside the very talented Christina Grimmie transforming her career. Before opening the doors at ICON PR, Heather began her career as an assistant to the owner of Much & House Public Relations, where she ultimately became COO & helped transform the company with a re-brand in 2016 to East 2 West Collective.

Heather’s free time consists of watching any TV show that features Gordon Ramsay, re-runs of Friends, trying new restaurants, traveling & spending time with her infant daughter, husband & their 2 dogs. She could eat pasta for breakfast, lunch & dinner & fills any space she’s in with the sound of music. She has an insane (& always growing) vinyl collection that is frequently played at home and a multitude of Spotify playlists to fit every mood & situation she can encounter throughout the day. She finds inspiration in other bad-ass women in positions of power & in her daughter and is a staunch believer in ALWAYS doing the right thing & speaking up where it’s important (even if that means you aren’t well liked). She has only one regret in life – that David Bowie left this earth before she had the opportunity to meet him.

Our team is awesome. 'Nuff said. Now it's our time to spotlight former #TeamHype employees who are kicking some serious a** since spending time on our small but mighty team. Today, it's time to *air five* rockstar Abby Jones!

After interning for CultureHype last spring, Abby went on to write for the Dallas Observer & now lives in The Big Apple (NYC) as an editorial intern for Billboard Magazine. As a graduate of the University of North Texas, Abby makes the CultureHype fam proud as she continues to spread her love for creative writing.

How has working at CultureHype helped you in your career so far? 

"Working at CultureHype taught me a lot about how to effectively work with people at different authority levels. Prior to my internship, the only people I really had to work with were my peers or my professors. Working in PR helped me become more comfortable in how I worked with & addressed people in different positions."

Would you say interning at CultureHype was a beneficial experience? 

"Working at CultureHype helped me come to the conclusion that I wanted to work in the music industry, so I’d say it was pretty beneficial! Although I’m currently in music journalism, I had been applying for PR & marketing jobs related to music and I think I could have easily thrived in those, as well. CultureHype is unique in the way they foster clients in the local music scene & I’m thankful I got to work closely with that. I’ve always been interested in music, but CultureHype reinforced my decision to implement it into my career."

How was the transition from college into the workforce? 

"Honestly, rough at first! As plenty of graduates do, I moved back in with my parents while I continued a seemingly never-ending job search. The opportunity to intern at Billboard came suddenly—my life did a total 180 in one week. It was equal parts exciting & exhausting. I think when you’re in that post-grad limbo before employment comes around, you have to be prepared for something like that. Now that I’m settled in NYC, I feel like I’m supposed to be here. It’s very fulfilling."

What is your day-to-day life now working as an intern at Billboard?

"I have the early shift! I get to the office at 7 a.m. & pretty much immediately start plugging away at news stories from overnight. I get assigned articles throughout the day whenever news comes up, which is pretty often. If things get slow, an editor will likely have me transcribe an interview. I’ll probably end up working on longer feature articles as my internship goes on."

What do you love the most about working at Billboard?

"I love that I feel like I’m actually contributing to the digital component of Billboard. I was immediately thrown into writing on my first day & I’ve always felt productive & helpful. It’s a very positive work environment, & I feel like the editors really want me to grow & finish the internship with an impressive, varied portfolio. The only person I fetch coffee for is myself!"

How is it working for North Texas Daily and the Dallas Observer?

"I learned so much more from working at my school’s paper than I did in any of my classes. I got to explore Denton in such an immersive way by reporting on the things that make the city unique, all while improving my writing skills week after week. When I consequently became an editor for the Daily, I became a more confident leader but also a more careful, in-depth writer. Those are experiences you can get at any campus paper, not just UNT’s! Freelancing at the Observer was cool because that was the first time I was ever paid to write something. I got to interview some really cool creatives in Dallas & I felt extremely rewarded to see my byline in a major publication like that. It served as a good stepping stone for me between my schoolwork & what I do now."

What are some tips you can give readers to enter the job of their dreams?

"Apply, apply, apply. The pessimist in me comes out when I go job hunting. It’s silly, but I never feel qualified enough for any of the jobs I want! But just keep looking & applying—it never hurts. Do whatever you can to better yourself in the meantime. For me, that meant freelancing & contributing to music blogs on a volunteer basis."

What are some cool events you attend now because of Billboard?  

"So far, I’ve been able to watch bits of some in-office acoustic sets that Billboard live streams on Twitter. Sometimes, some pretty big names will come in, & I can take a break from staring at my computer screen to check out a super intimate performance! What else could I want?"

Happy #HumpDay! We're launching a new series highlighting local creatives from our fam who give us a serious dose of career inspo. As an intern for CultureHype in 2015, 23-year-old Justin Chavez went on to make some major moves after graduating from the University of North Texas. Now an on-air personality for the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show, Justin works for a nationally syndicated radio show on 106.1 KISS FM airing 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. From interviewing celebrities, attending lavish events, & traveling as perks of the job, he really is living his BEST life.

How has working at CultureHype helped you in your career so far?

"CultureHype gave me the experience I needed to understand how the media works. Public Relations is all about communication & relationships. Amber created an environment where you are meeting new people and networking. It was my first PR internship & made my resume stand out because of the skills I obtained through the CultureHype experience. Creating media lists & setting up events caught my employer’s interest!"

How was the transition from college into the workforce?

"I graduated with a full-time job! It was smooth as a butter. I knew from the start going into the workforce that employers are looking for experience NOT a GPA. I sought out as many internships as possible to build my experience. I had three PR internships & two jobs tailored to PR. For my last internship, I was a social media intern for the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show, tweeting out to 96 thousand people. Interning for the show turned into a part-time job and finally into a full-time salary!"

What is your day-to-day life now working at Kidd Kraddick Morning Show?  

"Day-to-day I am constantly thinking of ideas & content for the show. If I’m not planning a segment I’m thinking of something for the next one. It’s a lot of conversation, social media scrolling & people watching for this kind of job."

What are some cool events you attend now because of the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show?

"I’ve been to ACL, Jingle Ball, resorts in different countries, etc. The coolest experience of them all was Kanye’s concert when he was on his Saint Pablo Tour in Dallas. Also, our boss took us to Las Vegas for the weekend to celebrate new staff contracts & we stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel, saw Rihanna perform & I won $250 in Scrapps."

What are some of the weirdest interviews that you have done for the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show?

"My first celebrity interview was V Awk. It was Demi Lovato & I fanned girled all over the place. I touched her arm like thirteen thousand times, squealed & brought up old stuff she was trying to move past like her Disney Channel show, 'Sonny With A Chance.' All she did was smile & gave me fake compliments. It was the coolest & most stressful time of my life."

What do you love the most about working at Kidd Kraddick Morning Show?

"The thing I love most about working at the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show is working with the team. Everyone knows the cast: Kellie, Big Al, J-Si, & Jenna. They are just as lovable in person as they are on air. The support staff & my producers, Robert & Nick, are so supportive & encouraging. They are constantly giving me ideas & helping me up when I take a radio tumble. We’re a small team but we are a very close team. The love is there. I honestly could not ask for a better group."

What are some tips you can give readers to enter the job of their dreams?

"Britney Spears said it best 'You want a hot body? You want a Bugatti? You want a Maserati? You better work bitch.' Don’t wait until you graduate to find a job. Start looking now. Start gaining experience. Start building your resume. Get more than one internship under your belt that way you stand out from all the other candidates. If you show that you are capable of taking on the tasks of a job you are applying for you are more likely to picked over someone who doesn’t have any. Feed your resume! Get to work bitch."

As part of our #TeamHype Spotlight series, we introduce the incomparable Sarah Badran. From CultureHype intern to founder of Creative Currency, Sarah has truly hustled her way to the top & created a name for herself throughout the Dallas scene. Sarah Badran is the true epitome of a go-getter & a great story to boot!

We interviewed Sarah & got to touch base on what the creative mastermind is up to, how CultureHype helped hone her talent, obstacles she overcame & how she engraves self-care into her hectic routine.

What skills did you acquire or build upon while working at CultureHype?

"Amber is the ultimate girl boss & she instilled a lot of knowledge & confidence in me. She allowed me to learn by asking an infinite amount of questions & getting to see the world of PR first-hand. She taught me how to be relentless in going after what you want & how not to get discouraged by this business. A degree can give you a fundamental knowledge of what you need to know but experience is everything. She always encouraged me to get creative & empowered my ideas; it truly gave me the confidence to branch out on my own & create my own company."

What was your greatest hardship as you transitioned from college to a post-grad lifestyle? How did you overcome it?

"Figuring out how to channel my talents & skills was probably the toughest part. I had so much ambition & passion that I felt I could do anything but it was tough to focus on one thing & project & start to build from there. Also letting go of the stigma that I needed to get a job right out of college or I was a failure. I interned with CultureHype my last semester of college and I continued to learn & build with the company after graduating. I always find joy in forever being a student of life."

As a founder of Creative Currency, has this new journey changed your perspective of the world of public relations at all?

"It was hard & scary to branch out at first. My strength had always been in events & that’s what I chose to focus on. I also wanted to work with an underrepresented sector of the music industry & try to be as innovative as possible with how to brand an artist. It has definitely made me realize that you have to wear many hats & that the industry is constantly evolving. You need to stay on your toes & not get stuck or complacent in how you view PR strategy."

What has been your most rewarding moment in life, thus far?

"One of my most memorable events is getting to work with the local hip-hop community to plan a red carpet event at The Bomb Factory to honor it. Getting to learn how rich Dallas's history is & being in the forefront of getting to showcase it was such a dope experience. I got to work with Erykah Badu, The DOC & even Micheal Finley from the Dallas Mavericks. I think the most rewarding aspect is getting to see an idea come to life & become successful. I love getting to inspire & help people through it all."

What are three things you’d like to improve on this year?

"Improvement is always key. I always take every downfall as an opportunity to learn & grow. The main thing I seek to improve on is balance. I tend to take a lot on & sometimes I may disregard my personal relationships or taking time to work on myself in the midst of it. I'd also like to get a better understanding of the direction I'd like to take my company in & not fear that change. I also hope to empower women & mentor as many as possible."

Public relations tends to take a lot of energy out of one. Do you implement any self-care practices into your weekly routine, if so what are they?

"When I take the time to take care of myself it usually is in the form of massages or getting my hair or nails done. It's still important to take care of yourself & continue to be confident inside & out. I also love to go to concerts. It helps reaffirm why I love this business so much and helps to keep my creative juices flowing! I also love to travel, eat good food & experience as much culture as possible.

If you had the opportunity, what would you tell the 18-year-old Sarah Badran from the past?

"I would tell her to start early if you can to get as much experience as possible. To not be so hard on herself & to learn to enjoy the journey. Trust in the process & her ability to do anything she puts her mind to. Never doubt yourself & learn to appreciate all the special moments that life throws at you."

What are a couple of your favorite tracks, currently?

"Everything Cardi B, she is my spirit animal."

Current On Repeat: 

"Kings Dead" Kendrick Lamar
"The Weekend" SZA
"Say Something" Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton
"Stir Fry" Migos
"Icon" Jaden Smith
"The Middle" Zedd and Maren Morris
"Mine" Bazzi
"All Night" Steve Aoki

Jane grew up in Chicago & moved to Dallas four years ago after graduating college. She recently decided to take the plunge and pursue a career in music. Now, Jane earned her spot on #TeamHype working in artist booking/relations for CultureHype. In addition, she interns at Margin Walker & is an ambassador for Sofar Sounds.

Update: Jane now owns her own local booking agency called Axiom Music!

"I love songs that are groovy, vibey, sultry, sexy, jazzy, & funky. All the songs on this playlist represent these qualities in their own way & I can't seem to sit still when I listen to them."