By Lauren Caggiano
12 June 2007

Danny McLean can not go a day without using his iPod. Music is his passion, his raison d’etre. But McLean is more than a music junkie-he’s a businessman as well.

McLean, a 21-year-old recent graduate of the University of Dayton knows the "ins" and "outs" of big business firsthand, or in this case, "BigBizness." BigBizness Entertainment is the name of the Brooklyn, N.Y., native’s up-and-coming record label.

Flash back to the summer of 2005. McLean was interning at a New York City entertainment law firm. On the job, he became interested in the treatment (or mistreatment) of artists by their managers in the music industry. It was this concern that sparked the idea for his own record label.

At work one day, the intern sketched a drawing that would become the concept of his current logo. He showed the drawing to his co-workers and the idea took off from there.

To some, the name BigBizness calls to mind images of Italian-American mob bosses caught up in corrupt deals. But don’t make any assumptions about McLean’s moral fiber.

The origin of the name comes from a 1991 movie called "New Jack City." At the end of the movie, the crime boss, Nino Brown, defends his innocence in front of his affiliates: "This thing is bigger than Nino Brown. This is big business. This is the American way."

McLean was inspired by the quotation, so the phrase stuck. Another source of inspiration came from his late distant cousin, rapper Biggie Smalls (a.k.a. Christopher Wallace or Notorious B.I.G.) In an odd series of events, McLean learned he was related to the famous rapper after his death. McLean said being related to "one of the greatest rappers ever" sparked his interest in starting his own label.

Upon his return to the Midwest, McLean set out to make his dream a reality.

Although his dream hasn’t taken off as quickly as he expected, McLean is working hard to expand the business.

"We’re doing it way big, big," he said about his high hopes for the label.

His original intent was to run BigBizness Entertainment as a management company, but now he wants to expand into label shows, artist promos and mixed tapes. The venture is currently more of an "underground organization," than an official record label, due to some red-tape limitations by the university.

As a business administration major and communication minor, he believes his academic background has laid the foundation for his endeavor and has made him a "well-rounded" individual. A self-described "person of integrity," McLean hopes to educate artists so they are well-rounded as both artists and business people. He claims to have high standards for his artists and places a strong value on creativity.

"Everything must be there," he said. "I appreciate artists who do something different."

Not only does he stress the importance of education for music artists, he encourages young entrepreneurs to value academics.

"Anyone can do what they want to do, but education must come first no matter what they do," he said.

According to McLean, young people need to learn along the way to gain a sense of direction to devise a structured plan. McLean also shared a valuable lesson he learned from his father: "You have to be willing to take risks to go for your dream," he said.

The young entrepreneur said his father is a major motivator because he has pursued his passion of creating African abstract art. Currently, McLean is busy going for his dream. After graduating last May, he has worked full-time on promoting the record label.

An appearance at his school’s week-long annual festival Dayton to Daytona is in the works. Collaborating with fellow UD student Dekontee Lombel, the men are trying to get the university community more involved in the music scene. Lombel has just released a record with several tracks that pay tribute to the spirit of UD’s vibrant social scene.

In the future, McLean hopes to expand beyond the music industry and perhaps venture into sports management. Philanthropy is also a priority, as he wants "to help the needy" by branching out BigBizness into a charity.

But in the meantime, McLean is engaged in growing BigBizness Entertainment by talking to recording artists on MySpace and Facebook. MySpace users can access his profile under the user name "bigbizness." For more information, readers can contact him through his MySpace page or via his Facebook account.

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