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Prime Capitol:

A Social Media Company Helping the Next Big Social Media Stars

Kyle Godfrey, also known as “Stromedy,” went from an unknown YouTuber based in a small town in Canada to a rising social media celebrity brand. However, Godfrey’s career has only just begun.

Entering the YouTube space, the content creator realized that there were not many growth opportunities and resources for social media creatives to gain fame and influence within his small town. Having a successful online career requires strategic branding and good industry connections with others to get your name out there in the digital world. Leveraging this realization, Godfrey founded Prime Capitol, a social media incubator that signs on social media stars and allows them access to different opportunities and assets, including equipment for content creation and advice on growing their brand.

The rest is history. Godfrey moved him and his team to Los Angeles and has worked with notable social media celebrities, such as Austin McBroom from the Ace Family, Tanner Fox, and Lance Stewart, ever since launching Prime Capitol.

You’re still very young. What was the first social media platform you joined as an entertainment creator, and who are some social media stars you looked up to?

It was YouTube. I looked up to SMOSH - who were some of the OGs back in the day. They really were the ones who inspired me to do it.

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“People are adapting to that quick scroll-scroll-scroll and it’s making it more difficult for them to actually watch things that have effort in them.”

I’ve heard you’re not a big fan of TikTok. What bothers you about the app?

TikTok bothers me so much because it’s garbage! Basically on TikTok, you create second-long videos, and I just feel like TikTok is the reason why people’s attention spans have gone down. You can’t be as creative on TikTok. You hop in front of a camera, you do a few dance moves, and that’s it. You upload and get millions of views. Whereas YouTubers and people on other platforms actually have to get creative and put in work and effort. They have to film and edit their videos, and it takes hours and hours and hours. TikTokers think that their life is hard because they have to go and make a ten-second dance move.

I feel like it’s ruined content consumption for people. There isn’t much content for people to consume. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again. Back in 2016 and 2017, when it was all about YouTube and platforms with longer videos, people had a lot more to watch and engage.

With TikTok, you can’t develop a relationship with the creator as well as you can on YouTube because you’re seeing seconds of them, as op-

posed to seeing many minutes of them where you feel like you’ve developed a friendship with them.

Elaborating on your point about TikTok, how bad do you think TikTok is affecting people’s attention spans?

People are adapting to that quick scroll-scrollscroll and it’s making it more difficult for them to actually watch things that have effort in them. For instance, with movies - I feel that the film industry is slowly dying. Obviously, the big names will still hang on, but the idea of making films and movies is slowly dying because people don’t have the attention span to watch hour-long things.

Now, do you still think that YouTube still has that potential for success for creators it once did?

Yes, it still does. But I also think that YouTube is slowly evolving and adapting its platform to be more appealing to the newer generations. I don’t think YouTube will ever suffer, but it will evolve and adapt.

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Compare yourself to another YouTuber of your caliber? What’s the same and what’s different?

I don’t think I can compare myself to anyone. I just think that I am hella unique with the style I make my videos, as well as the content I create. I’m not the one to hop on trends like a lot of other people do. I don’t hop on what other YouTubers are doing either. I try to create my own trends. I try to create my own waves. Others follow me, but I don’t think I can compare myself to anyone.

People say that being an influencer is not a sustainable career. Does Prime Capitol hope to change this?

Yes, definitely. I want to change that for people. I think that the people who say that are not a hundred percent passion-driven and into it. Those are the kind of people who have a Plan B. But if you know that this is what you want to do and you put everything into it, you will succeed eventually. With Prime Capitol, I want to help people who are struggling and show them the way. I went through many years of figuring out what works and what doesn’t. I’ve gone through that phase of making mistakes on YouTube, and I feel that with Prime Capitol, I can make people skip over making the same mistakes I did.

Tell me more about your team. How has your time in LA been?

My team is doing really well. Everyone who started a little over six months ago with nothing is now making five figures, with some approaching six figures a month. They’ve all seen exponential growth of followers.

LA has been lit! We’ve only been here for three months, but we’ve already caused a huge storm in the boxing thing against Bryce with diss tracks and music videos. We’ve made a lot of crazy videos on the street and have had the police called on us. I don’t think the neighbors are very fond of us.

What’s next for Prime Capitol?

To keep growing. We’re always innovating and trying to create new trends. We’re also studying the YouTube algorithm. Everyone is going to keep filming and grow their platform and grow their numbers. Eventually, the end goal is to move into a traditional film route with movies.

Have you spoken to Bryce Hall since what went down with you two?

I’ve talked to him about a rematch very briefly, but he hasn’t been too responsive about that. I think he was surprised when we did that one round, and I think that he wasn’t expecting me to be as difficult to fight against. I think he’s scared to do a rematch right now because he doesn’t want to lose his fight against Austin McBroom if I were to beat him in a full five-round boxing match.

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MAY SERVES AS A MONTH WHERE WE CAN CELEBRATE MOMS IN A SPECIAL WAY. THIS MONTH IS NAMED AFTER THE GREEK GODDESS MAIA - SHE WAS THE GODDESS OF FERTILITY - SO WE CAN ALL SEE HOW THIS MAKES SENSE NOW. HERE AT CHIC SOPHISTIC HQ, H WE ARE ALL ABOUT CELEBRATING DIVERSITY AND SUPPORTING INCLUSION - EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. WE FELT IT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO CALL OUT HOW INCREDIBLE #ALL MOMS ARE BY CHOOSING TO SHARE A PHOTO TAKEN FROM A RECENT SHOOT THAT HAD A GREAT DEAL OF MEANING TO US. WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH THE WE SUPPORT YOU CAMPAIGN TO SERIOUSLY ACKNOWLEDGE THE IMPORTANCE OF 'ACCEPTANCE' AND 'LOVE' ON ALL FRONTS. THIS CAMPAIGN WAS DESIGNED TO FALL IN LINE WITH THE #STOPASIANHATE MESSAGING THAT HAS BEEN SPREADING THROUGH THE SOCIAL SPACE - IN RESPONSE TO THE UNFORTUNATE RECENT ASIAN HATE CRIMES - THE AIM HERE OF COURSE - TO CREATE AS MUCH ATTENTION AROUND THIS AS POSSIBLE - SO THAT WE CAN MAKE SOME REAL CHANGE. SOCIAL MEDIA HAS GIVEN US A VOICE AND WE HAVE DECIDED TO PUT OUR VOICE TO GOOD USE. WE CAN ALL HAVE TO TAKE THE MAKE A CHANGE - WE JUST H FIRST STEP TO INSPIRE THAT CHANGE AND THEN WATCH THOSE SEEDS GROW - GROW INTO A POSITIVE SPACE THAT WE CAN ALL LIVE IN PEACEFULLY. LET'S COME TOGETHER AND CELEBRATE MAY AND OUR MOMS DURING THIS IMPORTANT MONTH - BECAUSE #WEALLHAVEAMOM.

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HIS CEMENTING LEGACY

Too $hort: Stylist: @emily.alvrez Photographer: @xenapeterson Model: @tooshort @bjames.la @keithandjames @woolierltd

One of the most influential products of the Oakland music scene is veteran rapper Too $hort. With timeless hits that have become classics, such as “Blow the Whistle,” “Gettin’ It,” and “I’m a Player,” the rapper has no doubt had a profound rap career that has raised him to icon status. However, having turned 55 recently, Too $hort is far from finishing telling his story. By staying active with his own projects that include collaborations with other influential rappers and working on solidifying his legacy, Too $hort’s music will remain alive for generations to come. In the meantime, with his legendary career that has lasted 35 years, the rap icon is ready to make a new statement to the next chapter of his story.

ed going to public school, I got that mixture of what I needed to develop Too $hort. Being around different cultures - not just the Bay Area but with all the years I lived in LA, time spent in Atlanta, and my family being from New Orleans - all of that factored into the kind of music I ended up making. The music is influenced

by Oakland, but it also has influences from the music that my parents listened to and the places I went to and visited as a child. Oakland was the icing on the cake of what Too $hort is.

As a veteran rapper who has reached legendary status, can you sum up what your entire career experience has been?

As I said, I used to do it as a hobby. When I started in the early 80s, it was nothing more than a hobby, and there weren’t many people who rapped. You could go miles and miles, from city to city, and not find one rapper. Everyone knew about hip-hop coming out of New York, but if you weren’t in New York, there was a time where you weren’t experiencing hip-hop first hand. You could probably hear it, but you couldn’t see it. I was the first person to bring hip-hop visually and physically.

For me, in those days, it was my thing. People would say, ‘I know someone who can rap.’ That was a big deal.

I would have my radio and rap, and people would be fascinated by it. It was like they were seeing hip-hop.

I started off doing something that was a hobby, and it was fun to do. It turned into a job, and it was still fun to do it. At one point, I just said, ‘I’m just going to do this until the wheels fall off, and it’s not a job anymore. Until it’s not profitable and fun.’ The wheels haven’t fallen off yet.

You grew up in the Bay Area. Can you describe your upbringing and how it still affects who you are today?

I had a cool little mixture growing up. I lived in the hood, but my parents were college graduates. I hung out in the hood, but I spent most of my early years in private school. I remained in the hood, and when I start-

You started as an independent artist in the 80s.

What was that like, and what changes have you noticed since then?

Coming up in the early 80s, it worked for me because I was good at what I did, but at the same time, I didn’t have a lot of competition. In the early part of my career, I succeeded. No matter who followed me, they were still under me. They weren’t overachieving and going

oo $hor

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bunch of whack-ass people in the way trying to be artists.

I think that nowadays, you have the preference to like a certain type of hip-hop. Your ear might like autotune rappers more than people preaching and rapping and yelling at you. You might like some good dance music, and you’re not concerned about the lyrics because it’s got a good vibe. You might even be into rappers who make statements. You might like female rappers only. You have a choice to say, ‘I love hip-hop, but I don’t like this kind of hip-hop.’ I know young people who only like old hip-hop, and I know others who don’t want to hear old shit. Even when

beyond where I was at. For a long time, I was just the big homie, the one who did it. A lot of people came up in the Bay who did good, especially in the underground. I can name many rappers that became super popular from the Bay. But I pretty much established my status as the Originator, the Big Homie, Uncle Short, whatever you might want to call it, and that maintains.

By the time I went commercial, and my music went to the world, the competition was there. The competition is something you want if you’re really good. You want other people to be good.

You want things to push you to make you better. MC Hammer selling 20 million records made me better because that was the bar raising. E-40 making so many hit records over the years always kept me on my toes, so I can keep on making hot music because I didn’t want to get pushed to the side.

Nowadays, people like to bash the newer hip-hop. Older people like to call it ‘mumble rap,’ putting it into a box and saying it’s whack, and it’s not like the classics. I love today’s hip-hop. No, I don’t love every song that’s coming out, but I didn’t love every song back in the day either. I used to think that a lot of rappers back in the day were super whack. It’s not much different than it used to be - we got a bunch of dope-ass artists, and we got a Sweater: @furgod Jewerly: @joianajewerly, @by.barnett

you talk about it internationally, you have people all over the world making hip-hop the number one genre in music. That’s the beauty of hip-hop now. It’s global. It wasn’t always global, and it was only a dream we had back in the day doing a show on stage, hearing your song on the radio, rocking a crowd.

You get a hit record right now, your phone starts ringing. People want you to endorse products. People want to do big deals with you using your likeness. They want to put you in movies and be business partners. If you get hot right now,

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and you’re a smart businessman, you can make a lot more than any other artist in hip-hop has been able to make. Right now is the time that with one fucking hot record, you can milk the shit out of it.

body of work. I’m still trying to figure out what’s the next chapter of the story, and where does the Too $hort story end. But I continuously work to add to that story.

What’s the best part about leaving an impact and influence on the Bay Area?

I just started a group. It’s me, E-40, Ice Cube, and Snoop Dogg, and we’re adding another chapter to each of our stories. By joining forces, we get a whole new career. We’re going to go on tour together. We’re going to drop albums together.

Legacy means a lot to me. At some point in my career, I started realizing that my catalog of songs was growing. My fanbase was extremely loyal, and I had developed fans from 3 to 4 generations that have appreciated the music over the years. I think it’s important to leave that

I recently turned 55. I don’t feel 55, but I’m proud to be doing what I’m doing for as long as I’ve been doing it.

I was 15 years old, standing in front of a crowd, and everyone was loving it.

Forty years later, I’m doing the same thing. I could have never told you 40 years ago that this is what I want to

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do for the rest of my life. I couldn’t even dream that shit. To become legendary and make timeless music is another thing that is not a given.

You can make hit records, but timeless is something different. That’s a song that lasts throughout your entire lifetime. You liked this song the first time you heard it, and you still like the song ten years later. I have a field of songs, and some people are lucky to get one.

I’m working on that Too $hort legacy, and I’m trying to keep it intact and leave some behind that will have people say, ‘I was raised on Too $hort. A song by Too $hort changed my life.’ I love that about my music. It’s the stories that come back to me. I hear stories like, ‘I got my ass whooped listening to your music when I was little.’ I hear stories like, ‘I went far away from home to go to school, and the one piece of the Bay Area I had were Too $hort and E-40 records.’ I’ve heard people say, ‘I’ve never heard of you till I got to college, and my roommate was from the Bay.’ To be able to make an impact is amazing.

You bring up how you tell your story through your music. Can you describe the character and story you portray?

In my songs, I like to tell stories and teach lessons through stories. I like to be funny. I learned that you could get all that shit in there - the educational, the funny, the explicit - it all creeps into a story and makes it easier to digest.

If I told you something really raunchy that was happening, and I put it into a story that doesn’t involve you or me, it’s over there, and you’re listening to it like a movie. I write songs like that to sneak in all that shit that wouldn’t be easily digested. It’s a writing technique, and I like to tell a story to one person. When I’m writing a song, the song is talking to only you directly.

I’m not talking to the group of you guys, and I’m not talking to the audience. I’m only talking to one person - the person who has the headphones in, who’s sitting in front of the speaker and listening. I address it, but it’s very subtle. I can tell you a very explicit story about something very graphic and make you laugh, and you’re still not offended. Then I make the story about what I want to tell you, but it’s not about you.

Can you go more into detail about your upcoming project Mt. Westmore with E-40, Ice Cube, and Snoop Dogg?

It’s more like a company, Mt. Westmore LLC. It’s about doing business ventures. We all have established legendary careers, but the hip-hop artist in us still wants to live, to thrive, to exist.

We created our platform for our careers to expand and continue. It’s different, and it’s a move for hip hop. I think that no matter what age you are, if you can find a way to be successful in hip hop, it’s good for the culture. We’re trying to give you a new blueprint of what togetherness looks like, what comradery looks like. Hip hop has a lot of enemies with my crew vs. your crew.

We’re losing artists, and when I say losing artists, I mean burying them in the ground because of social media antics and hip-hop bravado of being the baddest badasses on the block. In this culture, when you keep telling everybody fuck y’all, somebody is going to shoot you. Rappers are getting fucked up left and right because of what they’re saying on social media and songs.

Mt. Westmore is trying to say that instead of me saying, ‘Fuck Snoop Dogg and fuck Tha Dogg Pound,’ if I get money with Snoop Dogg, it’s way better.

We saw when Gucci and Jeezy did Verzuz. 2 million people watched it live. Did they watch it because they wanted to see Gucci and Jeezy hug? I think they watched it because they wanted to watch motherfuckers fight. My point I’m making is, both of these guys have had phenomenal careers and are from the same city.

Fifteen years ago, if the Jeezy and Gucci fallout never happened, they would have been similar to E-40 and Too $hort, to Ice Cube and Snoop Dogg, to artists who grew and stayed affiliated and joined forces. Even before we did Mt. Westmore, I would do shows with E-40, Ice Cube, and Snoop Dogg. Every time I would do a show with those guys, the show would sell out with 30,000 people. What do we get if Gucci and Jeezy were friends when they weren’t? We get collaborations, we get hit records. Somebody died behind that feud. You get a life back.

That’s what Mt. Westmore is saying. Did you know that the guy who is your main competition can probably be your best ally? All the time E-40 was my number one competition, he was also my best friend. I said it to his face, ‘This is a competition. I’m trying to outdo you.’ And he said, ‘I know, I’m trying to outdo you too.’ We would make records, we would make songs, and we’d be so happy that the song was so good that one of us would call the other one and say,

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‘Oh guess what I got?’ He’ll play the song for me, and I’d be like, ‘Oh shit, that shit was hot.’ I’m going back to my guys and telling them, ‘Oh he did it again y’all. We can’t sit here, we got to go.’ And that keeps me going. The song that I’m trying to outdo him with, I’ll play it for him and he says, ‘I like everything except that one part.’ I’m like, ‘Damn, you’re right,’ and I go and change the song I’m competing with him even better, and he helped make it better.

What’s next for Too $hort? How do you plan on continuing your legacy?

All I’m doing now is, I’m making this statement in hiphop - whatever you thought was the expiration date of a rapper was or duration of what a rap career could be, I say that you’re wrong. I say that hip-hop is not old enough to answer that question yet. Jazz musicians play until they’re really old, and the blues is an old enough genre to let you know that B.B. King was on stage until he was 70. Rock ‘n roll has been around long enough to let you know that the Rolling Stones can tour when they’re old motherfuckers, and they can still sell out.

Hip-hop is growing up, and so far, if I do a show in 2021 after Snoop’s 50th birthday, and the show is Too $hort, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, and E-40, hip-hop can make a statement that 50-year-old hip-hop artists can still sell out arenas. That’s the point.

My mission is to just fucking kill all the -isms in hiphop. The sexism in hip-hop is being murdered right now because of how many female rappers there are - they’re hotter than the male rappers right now. They’re talking more shit, and I love it. We used to only let females in hip-hop in one at a time. We used to talk about who’s the hottest chick, and that’s the only one we’re checking for.

Now there are too many to name.

I’m trying to tear down the stereotypes that I heard when I was 30. They used to say, ‘Man, you’re 30 years old. You have to get out of the way.’ Ten years later, when I turned 40, they were like, ‘Shit- it’s gotta be over now. No one wants to be rapping in their 40s.’ Fuck all that. I made ‘Blow the Whistle’ when I was 40 years old - the hottest record of my career.

The foundation that I’m starting is also something I’m going to be paying close attention to in the future. I don’t know what direction I’m going to set the foundation in yet, but I feel that a major part of a legacy is how you give back. Throughout my career, I’ve been giving back to the city of Oakland and the youth in general, but not on the scale that I really want. That’s my next phase - to cement that legacy all the way.

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Photographer: Raul Ospina @raulshoots305 Glasses: Trade @tradinglooks Models: Veronica Suppa @vsuppa Yillian Atkinson @atkinsonyillian

Credits

Editor and Chief Irma Peñuñuri Shelley Chen Sofia Rivera Noor Abid

YouTube Takeover:

Meet Prime Capitol, Top Content Creators Redefining the Digital Era