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Celebrating 10
years---Maylay Entertainment (ME) – Reflections from the owner.
Maylay Entertainment celebrates ten years of TV & music. It
has lasted through two husbands, seven acts, and lots of family drama. It has turned out to be much
more than just an Indie label. It has been a teaching tool of life lessons, some were easy, but more often
than not, they were hard.
I started ME because I wanted to put a name with some of the things I was doing. I
was doing a talk show, hosting an open mic , producing my cd and I had a thriving karaoke/dj business with
my then husband. Therefore, I came up with Maylay Entertainment. Why
did you name your company Maylay? Someone once asked me. It doesn’t seem to have a lot of maylay surrounding
it. It was actually named after someone in my family Malaysia, shorten it’s Maylay. Maylay
would eventually go in an entirely new direction when one of my sons brought a beat machine and started
making beats, and writing songs. The first rap group associated with ME was formed, CBC.
They performed and promoted shows throughout the Chicago land area. They received some local and
international radio play but never quite got off the ground.
At one point ME had
seven acts on its roster, constantly pumping out music and looking for avenues to promote it. As with any
Indie label the music mountain is much harder to climb if you don’t have the finances to back it up. Having
good music wasn’t enough, even though I was naive to think so. Eventually
everyone would go his or her separate ways because of many reasons. I was left with over two
hundred songs in my library including mine, so all is not lost.
As with any company with determination
the fact that people left ME did not stop us. I had to find a “backdoor”, a way to
get my music exposed. That “backdoor” would be The Indie Music Video Show.
In co-creating TIMVS I quickly learned there are lots of artist who want their music appreciated
heard and seen. We put a call out for videos and now
have over two hundred & fifty video submissions for the show and the library is still growing. Even
though Maylay Entertainment is nowhere I would like it to be, I know that I can still get there. With some
people and without some people, it doesn’t matter to me at this point. The one thing we should
always do in life, is make the best decisions for our lives and not others. Life is too short, I
realized this more intimately over the last few months. I love this company and I love the entertainment business. I
am excited about the possibilities it brings in the future. As I look back, perhaps I believed more in
other people than myself, so be it, that’s what it was. However, I will not stop
and I will not give up, God has a plan for my life and it is awesome!
I find it funny, the very person who stated it all is the one who never left—me.
Just a footnote: As I was
driving, the other day tears came to my eyes. I realized the reason I started this business is not the
same reason I will continue. I found my reason to keep going, in spite of the no’s and nay-sayers.
What’s your reason, I dare you to find it or it just may find you. God bless and keep dreaming.
Youlanda Burnett – President Maylay Entertainment
