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Before Megan Thee Stallion<\/a> made it big and signed her first record deal, she thought that rappers made a tremendous amount of money. She saw the social media posts they made sporting new cars and fancy clothes. She couldn\u2019t wait to become a rapper and take care of her whole family<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, the three-time Grammy Award-winning<\/a> star, whose real name is Megan Pete, said that the reality of her first record deal was that she wasn\u2019t getting paid what she was worth.\u00a0<\/p>\n At Entrepreneur\u2019s Overcoming Impossible<\/a> event last week, Pete said that when she signed her first deal, she knew \u201cit wasn\u2019t the best deal.\u201d What pushed her to sign it<\/a> was the knowledge that she was going to be able to take care of her mom and pay the bills with the money. She was excited to \u201ctake care of her people.\u201d<\/p>\n However, the bigger she got, the more she realized how much her likeness and sound<\/a> were worth.<\/p>\n \u201cI started realizing I\u2019m not making as much money as I should be making because I kind of just gave my life away to somebody else,\u201d Pete said. \u201cI had to take a step back and think, Okay, let me see what\u2019s going on with my contracts<\/a>. Let me figure out how I can be my own boss<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Pete said that her biggest mistake early on was being scared to ask questions<\/a> about her contract.<\/p>\n \u201cI was a little bit nervous about asking questions,\u201d she said. \u201cI feel like that is one of the biggest things that hold people back, being afraid of sounding stupid<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Pete said that now, if she doesn\u2019t understand something, she asks.<\/p>\n She added that she didn\u2019t just want to be famous; she wanted to own her own music<\/a>. Ownership became important to her because she was putting in all the work and felt like she wasn\u2019t receiving anything back.<\/p>\n Asking questions and trying to figure out how she could be her own boss paid off. In 2024, Pete signed a deal<\/a> with Warner Music Group that allowed her to have full ownership of her masters and publishing<\/a>. She retains her independence as a musician while tapping into Warner Music for promotion and marketing.<\/p>\n \u201cI do own my masters<\/a>,\u201d Pete said. \u201cIt was important to me, coming out of a situation where I didn\u2019t own anything and I didn\u2019t have control of my career. I just didn\u2019t want to ever be in that position again<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Only one topic made Pete tear up on stage.\u00a0<\/p>\n It happened when she was talking about her \u201cNorth Star,\u201d or the guiding light that keeps her focused and shows her the way forward.<\/p>\n For Pete, her North Star is her family<\/a>. Her mom, dad, grandmother and great-grandmother are her foundation.<\/p>\n \u201cI do things that I feel like they would have wanted to see me do<\/a>,\u201d she said. \u201cI just keep them in mind, and I just know that my mom is proud of me, my dad is proud of me.\u201d<\/p>\n Wiping away tears, Pete said that her responsibility is bigger than herself<\/a>. She wants to make her family proud and give her fans \u201clittle pieces\u201d of her to incorporate into their everyday lives. She filters decisions<\/a> by how her family would respond to them.<\/p>\n Pete also said that anyone in any career path can achieve success. They just have to follow one principle: Be true to themselves<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen they\u2019re being authentic to themselves, that\u2019s when they win,\u201d Pete said. \u201cThat\u2019s when they\u2019re most successful<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Before Megan Thee Stallion<\/a> made it big and signed her first record deal, she thought that rappers made a tremendous amount of money. She saw the social media posts they made sporting new cars and fancy clothes. She couldn\u2019t wait to become a rapper and take care of her whole family<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, the three-time Grammy Award-winning<\/a> star, whose real name is Megan Pete, said that the reality of her first record deal was that she wasn\u2019t getting paid what she was worth.\u00a0<\/p>\n At Entrepreneur\u2019s Overcoming Impossible<\/a> event last week, Pete said that when she signed her first deal, she knew \u201cit wasn\u2019t the best deal.\u201d What pushed her to sign it<\/a> was the knowledge that she was going to be able to take care of her mom and pay the bills with the money. She was excited to \u201ctake care of her people.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nHer biggest mistake<\/h2>\n
Her motivations<\/h2>\n
Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n
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