Looking for qualtiy entertainment during quarantine? Support local Tampa artists by following @ate1.ent on Instagram for all your entertainment needs!
Ladarius Jones, Founder and CEO of ATE1 Entertainment, describes ATE1 as a media platform “created with the vision of becoming the Hub for Tampa Artistry.” As an artist based in the Tampa Bay area myself, it is evident that our city is home to an infinite matrix of gifted artists that deserve recognition for their creative dexterity. Unfortunately, our city has been lacking in providing this spotlight for these artists who certainly merit public acknowledgement.
It has become a common saying here that if you want to get recognized as an artist, you must leave Tampa and travel to a major music city like Atlanta or Chicago. ATE1 acknowledges this issue and seeks to strike it at its roots as it strives to become the platform that every Bay area artist can rely on as they gain exposure and transition into the limelight.
Tampa has the potential to be an Atlanta, a Chicago or a New York. In fact, Jones confesses that what drove him to invest in this project was witnessing just how big the market was in our city! Not only is this project necessary to bridge the gap between our local artists and the masses, but ultimately, it is necessary to serve our community.
In achieving this, ATE1 follows a meticulous, multi-faceted publishing process that merges social media marketing, journalism, graphic design and content writing to sponsor these Tampa creatives. Such a process consists of conducting an interview, crafting an attention-grabbing visual, and composing an exceptional artist biography and review that concisely articulates the artist’s content, quality and tone to future audiences.
In the image above, you’ll find the criteria that ATE1 uses when evaluating an artists’ album. It consists of a review of the following elements: production, flow, creativity/execution, energy, lyrics, originality, vocal delivery, versatility, track fluidity and replay value. Each category holds a score up to ten, while the total review is graded out of 100.
Even more impressive, ATE1 hosts online competitions such as the popular “Freestyle Fridays” that evoke the competitive nature of any hungry artist to join and flaunt their lyrical prowess.
The concept of being and understanding who you are is embodied by the Latin aphorism, temet nosce, which directly translates to “know thyself.” ATE1 describes his first musical inspiration as Tyler the Creator, an artist who directly exemplifies this concept of truly being and knowing yourself. Jones fully embraces this expression as he further advances this platform of inspiring artists.
In displaying the talent of Tampa Bay, ATE1 Entertainment seeks to know and appreciate the essence of the city and capture the originality that thrives here, propelling it towards becoming one of the major musical hubs of the country.
“I am giving opportunity to a city in which opportunity is hard to come by,” Jones said. “This isn’t Atlanta or New York. Nobody checks for us—but I will certainly change that.”
Visit @ate1.ent where “you’ll get ATE in the 813!”