Today we’d like to introduce you to Charisma Rosee.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Charisma. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was nineteen when I threw my first party. I was going to college at the time, a freshman at Texas State University. Valentine’s Day weekend was coming up and I decided to throw a Lingerie Party; I mean it was perfect for the upcoming holiday right? I had thrown together the best make-shift flyer that I could lol. I hired the hottest DJ on campus and I just blasted on Twitter and Snapchat. College party promoting and club promoting are two different ball games I learned that very quickly coming into this industry. Thanks to college twitter, It didn’t take long for my party to start trending which totally shocked me. I had no idea how to promote for real. I just knew college kids liked to party and it was a way for me to make some bread.
The day of my party, my bestfriends and I made over 250 Jell-O shots in my kitchen lol, we went to set up the place where I was having it, I had my DJ ready to go, I had my venue which I did not have permission to use lol but hey it was college who cared?! I had “security” which was really my homeboy Paco lol, collecting my entrance fee; everything like it was a whole operation going on at this point. When people started showing up, I was happy but at the same time I couldn’t believe I had actually pulled a whole event off by myself. Within minutes the clubhouse was packed! It was LIT!! Everybody was dancing having a good time til…BOOM!!! POLICE POLICE!! Lol nah, it wasn’t that crazy but they shut me down and I got a noise complaint ticket.
I had always thought about promoting and starting an all girls promo team. I thought about all the parties I had been to and paid to go just that one year in college alone. It was a fun and EASY hustle to me so I thought back then anyway. I started working when I was seventeen, I worked and went to school my senior year of high school. So when it was getting closer to the time for freshman year to end, I knew when I went back home, I wasn’t going to want to work over the summer. I kept telling myself I want a fun job; maybe a bartender or bottle girl. When I came back to Houston summer 2K16, that’s exactly what I did. I ended up getting a bottle girl gig under another female named Lo. In the midst of being a bottle girl, I ended up befriending these three girls that I worked with; Vikki, Kendall and Bre. One week Lo had called a bottle girl meeting at this club called Max’s at the time, Max’s was like 23+ I want to say and I was only nineteen. Anyway, Lo finessed my way in and we went ahead with the night.
That particular night really did change my life forever. After the club, Vikki Bre and I parted ways from the rest of the group. We ended up going to meet up with some of Vikki’s friends that were nearby. I ended up knowing one of the guys from high school and because he was a popular promoter. We got introduced to the rest of the crew who ironically became regular day to day people that I eventually got used to seeing and hanging around. There was one particular dude though, that kept talking to me throughout that night and the rest of that weekend. I don’t know what it was about him but strangely we found ourselves in a relationship very quickly. His name was Duke. Back then, they had their own promo team and some of them did music, so it made sense for it to feel like everything had been moving so fast. We literally partied with them that whole weekend I stayed up probably two days straight lol and this became a normal thing for us.
Like a month later, I had already basically moved in with Duke. It went from spending the night to spending a couple of days…days went to weeks and before you know it I had brought majority of my stuff to where he was. Me and Vikki ended up being around everyday. We started promoting with them as bottle girls. We did so much as a group from promoting clubs and parties, to going out of town on random trips, they did shows, we shot music videos the whole nine. I was in love. Duke and I were in a full-blown relationship living in the moment. 2016 was one of the best years of my life. I met some people that really played a big part in me becoming the woman I am today; Everything wasn’t always peaches and cream but at the end of the day, we had become like our own lil family. January 9th, 2017 I lost a piece of my heart, a piece of my family. Vikki had been killed that morning in a car crash. Nine days into the new year and she was gone. She was expecting almost four months pregnant and she already had young son. This day started what seemed like would be one of the worst years of my life. Soon as I thought the hard days were starting to become easier life took another blow. May 24th, 2017 I was at home cooking dinner when my phone rang; It was Aaron. Before I answered, I knew something was wrong and I knew it was Duke. I picked up and he said Rosee I got some bad news, my heart immediately dropped to my feet; Duke was gone. I never in my life experienced emotional pain like that. I thought it would never end, I thought I would never stop crying, it just felt like my whole world was falling apart right before my eyes.
I had lost my love and one of my best friends six months apart from each other that year. We laid her to rest January 25th, 2017 and laid him to rest June 10th, 2017. I met both of them doing this and I knew that no matter how much it hurt, losing them was the push I needed to really make me keep pushing forward and go after my dream. I had it made up in my heart that if I didn’t do it for myself, I at least had to do it for them. I officially started promoting solo June 13th, 2017 three days after Duke’s funeral. I had launched my first night at Skyline Hookah Lounge which was the first club we had all promoted together the year prior. I stayed at Skyline for two and a half years off and on. I built my brand and company from scratch and within the two years I’ve been promoting, I’ve learned so much about the nightlife industry; about myself as a person trying to branch out and create my own brand. I’ve noticed the growth within myself as well as my business. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting so many great people, building relationships, and receiving opportunities I would’ve never imagined. I’m still very new and young in the game and have sooooo much more learning and experiencing to do in my career but I couldn’t be any more thankful for the blessings and progress I’ve already made thus far!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Becoming and actively working as a promoter is not an easy job by any means. It definitely has not been a smooth road! I have experienced some tough times and lessons being a solo promoter but I can honestly say each obstacle has made me stronger and better at my craft. A lot of people look at this as a glamours job. They just see the light shows and the bottle poppin or the nice clothes, nice clubs; people don’t realize what it actually takes to make these things happen. People don’t know the type of hustle that goes into making nightlife what it’s known to be fun for. The even more crazy part though is that people don’t understand that as a promoter, We’re working hard to create a vibe for OTHERS to enjoy. It’s not just about the glitz and glam of throwing parties or being a special guest host at some event. Our REAL JOB is to create an element and energy for other people to have a good time and celebrate whatever it is they may be celebrating.
One of the biggest struggles I face as a young female promoter though is sexism. Nightlife promoting and the entertainment industry are male-dominated industries. I’ve never been personally disrespected or mistreated directly by any of my peers but as a female trying to grow and come up in the game, I have definitely noticed certain vibes and certain energies when it comes to doing business with male promoters. At the same time though, I do have a lot of male business associates and partners whom I have worked with or have introduced me to other opportunities that have been a benefit to me business-wise and vice versa. It’s just, in this type of industry women have to work one hundred times harder to get the same level respect as a male simply because when it comes to “business” we aren’t taken as seriously as a man. When we talk about business, society has already pre-categorized it as being a “Man’s occupation”, hence the correlation of the term “businessman” which is the term most used within that subject and expertise. But we’re at a time in the world and history where women are definitely making their mark in the business and entrepreneurial world and I am definitely here for it. Working under the pressure of male dominants doesn’t bother me though if anything, it gets me amped up and makes me go harder.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Charismatic Promotions – what should we know?
I have a promotions company. I specialize in event and nightlife promo. I also offer other promotional services for other small and personal brands and businesses. I also specialize in musical promotion because I have an entertainment company as well. I work closely with a lot of artists predominately underground and indie; So I do provide marketing and promotions services and teach the basic skills and fundamentals on how to effectively push and promote an artists as a marketable brand.
I’m most proud of the fact that I started off literally on my own. I jumped off the porch off mere faith; I had no idea what I was doing I just studied the game. I studied other promoters that inspired me, I studied other influencers, other entrepreneurs, other female business owners and bosses; I took all the things I learned and put it with my own common logic and built a brand. A brand that now is starting to become more and more familiar. I’ve done so many things in such a small amount of time. In just two years, I’ve already had my own nights at multiple clubs where I fully staffed and managed all by myself. I’ve met and bonded with so many people. So many cool people in this industry, I’ve built some pretty dope relationships with a lot of people, I’ve been given a lot of opportunities just because of how I’ve carried myself as a woman, a businesswoman since I’ve started and grown in the game. The thing that sets me apart from others is that I’m a firm believer in doing whatever you put your heart, mind, and soul to. I’m big on support and following your dreams and thats one of the things that I stress to anyone around me business or personal wise. I work hardest to build integrity, sincerity, and credibility. I rather have genuine love and support than the clout.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
I’ve met so many gems in this industry already its insane. The first person that I met that I actually collaborated with and still actively partner with is my girl Tasha Mack. She is also a female promoter out here in Houston, she’s been in the game a lil longer than me so she’s played the mentor role for me in certain aspects. Another one of my dearest friends Amber aka Miss Red Baby Five; She’s a celebrity photographer and entertainment manager and has played another big role in my career as far as support, mentoring and just being one of those people that’s always been in my corner. We talk to each other literally everyday and just bounce ideas and different business ideas off each other. We help motivate each other and just try to keep one another level headed in the game. One other person that really holds a special place in my heart is literally my day one support and that’s my DJ, DJ Lil Dallas. When Dallas asked me to be his manager, I totally thought he was joking but eventually I caught on to the fact that he was dead serious. Teaching myself how to promote was one thing but teaching myself how to manage…
That was a whole nother ball game! I appreciate Dallas so much though because he”s the first person that actually trusted me to play such a big role in his own career and because of that I’ve discovered another passion that I never even knew I had. He gave me such a huge responsibility and it pushed me to again take another leap of faith to do what it takes to play these roles. So many other doors and opportunities have opened up since and it’s just an overwhelming feeling of amazement when you actually have people reaching out to you wanting to work and do business with you, wanting to learn from you, wanting to become a client, become apart of something that you built from merely a vision. If I could talk about every single person that has been an inspiration, support, and mentor throughout my journey I would. I love all of my dear friends and family who understand and genuinely support what I do because not everyone understands.
Contact Info:
- Email: charismarosee@yahoo.com
- Instagram: @charismarosee @charismaticpromo
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charisma.rosee.5
- Twitter: @real_rose
Image Credit:
@Redbaby5
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