Camille Storm On Self Awareness, Contribution to Africa’s Music Industry

Angela Kariuki, popularly known to many as Camille Storm, an entrepreneur,  music executive and journalist, is bringing East African music to the forefront.

Her story begins when she was 15, obsessed with music, she started writing music reviews; music that she posted on her blog “The Camille Way” in 2011.

Back then, Camille, who studied Computer Science at the university and had a short stint working in IT and market research, had no idea that her passion would turn into a full-time job.

What does it take to put East African music out there? Taking the industry to the next level and starting to compete globally?

Khusoko.com had a sit-down and talked to Angela Kariuki, aka Camille. 

She is behind the incredible Camille & Co. and her new distribution service, C&C Distro, a record label and boutique creative agency whose goal is to represent groundbreaking African talent, fashion, and art scenes. 

She had no idea that her passion would turn into a full-time job.  She is creating a space like no other.

Using her connections in the streaming world with platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music, she is working to push African music to the world by building a sustainable structure that will benefit these artists in all facets of their careers. 

The mission has remained the same, whether through bylines in publications like The Fader, Boiler Room, and OkayAfrica. Here is what she had to say, and you definitely won’t want to miss any of it!

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“Music is the most important thing to me. Music, talent, fashion, and art scenes, all intertwine and when they intertwine, beautiful things happen.” 

So even for music and fashion, if it’s all intertwined, I need to be fashionable, and they need to work with other types of artists to bring out the best in their music.”

“In the music world, musicians have to work with a director, a stylist, and a graphic designer. So it’s all intertwined. For me, as much as I love music, there are so many other talents that could be presented and enabled in Africa to go to the next level.”

What are your top three priorities for your understanding of the region’s musical landscape combined with the inspiration to form C&C Distro? 

I would say that right now or the last couple of months have been spent creating structures within my company that I didn’t feel like I had before. So, I have been learning how to create systems within the company, even with the people I may have hired, so things can run even when I’m not constantly looking over them. That’s been one of my priorities. 

Another priority is making profits. I’m always networking and looking for new clients. You know, putting my business out there is creating value.

I want my company, Camille & Co, to be in a position where people go to consultants for me, not just artists but streaming companies and brands. My plans are to be one of the most sought-after PR and consulting companies in East Africa and Africa. 

If anyone wants to venture into music, business, or even just learn a little bit about music or the entertainment sphere in Africa, they should consult with me.

What do you find the best form of promotion for your business? 

I’m challenging myself to do something that I’ve never done before. Taking risks. When I get results, that, in a way, is a form of promotion already because the music industry is like word of mouth; people see your results, and they’re like, oh, I want to work with her. I want to work with him. 

It doesn’t matter. Even if you’re putting up people, they want to trust the person they’re working with. 

So if you did a good job for someone, they’re going to tell another person that I worked with her and that they brought results. That is what has been the best promotion for me, just organic. 

Do you have a wow moment?

I like getting all of my clients featured on platforms like Rolling Stone and The Fader, which are big entertainment publications in the US. 

Working with Rema will always be a top moment for me because, as everyone knows, I’m also his biggest fan! I’m passionate about it because I like doing things that other people haven’t been able to do. So those are like, wow! moments for me.

If you had the chance to start your career again, would you do anything differently, and why? 

Everything has happened the way it should have. I want to work in the music business and learn everything about it.

That’s the path I want to take, whether it is finding a great mentor or doing a course that is close to something to do with entertainment and music.

I’m learning every day.  Especially as an entrepreneur, you’re learning from experience.

I believe in myself and in my ability to create. That is what is real. I have to always be in this thought process that I can achieve great things because I already have. 

Breaking boundaries means you’re always trying to up yourself and do things that contribute to that culture and music.

It’s not for everyone, but I guess that’s why I always have to remind myself that I have the ability to create. 

I have the ability to make something out of nothing, to do what I’m passionate about, to create value in that, and to make money from that. 

What are your top three priorities?

Through Camille & Co., I plan to be one of the most sought-after PR and consulting companies in East Africa and Africa.

If anyone wants to venture into music, business, or Africa, or even if they want to know a little bit about music and the music entertainment sphere in Africa, they should consult with me. 

I want my company to be in that position.

Then, I have another business, C&C Distro, a fast and efficient digital music distribution and marketing platform for emerging and established acts in Africa.

I aim to build a very high-value, high-quality music roster for the next five years. 

What can you say about Kenya’s music industry?

Kenya is complicated because a lot is going on. There are so many different artists, all with different kinds of music.

It’s not like Tanzania, where people are in love with their Bongo or Nigeria, who are listening to Afrobeats. In Kenya, it is like we embrace everything.

Our artists must educate themselves more about the music business and start making more educated music. It would make the music scene more competitive and more high-quality stuff being put out. 

Unfortunately, right now, a lot of artists are not really putting in the work to try and keep up with what the rest of the continent and the world are doing in music. 

To build their capacity, they need to learn and see how competitive they can be within the same field.

How would you define your style? What makes you an incredible lady boss? 

I love my style right now because I’m going into it. My style is to wear a lot of black. It makes me feel powerful.

I think it’s a very powerful colour. And when I go to meetings and stuff, wearing all black, I feel like it intimidates people, which is what I want. I love black. I love leather jackets. I love blazers like turtlenecks. 

I look sophisticated and powerful and comfortable, but I’m also feminine. 

Are you humble? 

I think I’m very humbled to a fault. I think I never realized what I had achieved for a long time. So people were looking at me like, Oh my God, Camille is so big. 

I was like, When you’re a visionary, you’re always onto the next thing. You’re never really dwelling so much on, oh, I did this thing. I’ve learned from time to time to just be easy and tell people I did that. Then I go back to work. 

Photos: Camille 

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