This is a subscriber-only article. Join Entrepreneur+ today for access

Learn More

Already have an account?

Sign in
Entrepreneur Plus - Short White
For Subscribers

An Experimental, Tuition-Free Program Is Teaching Business Lessons Using Hip Hop Budding entrepreneurs are using lessons from music-industry moguls to learn how to run their own businesses.

By Max Marin

This story appears in the September 2017 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »

Institute for Hip Hop Entrepreneurship

In a modish co-working space overlooking downtown Philadelphia, Imowo "Veli" Udo-Uton has six minutes to persuade six investors to finance his startup.

He has an event production company he wants to take to the next level, and, clad in a baseball cap and black-framed glasses, he outlines his plan -- his ticket sale models, room occupancy caps and the first few big venues he can get with more capital. He tries to keep it animated and conversational. But midway through, he falters.

Related: 6 Tips for Perfecting Your Elevator Pitch