Todays guest is Jo Na Williams, a lady who has been involved in the music industry since the age of five when she started belting out the tunes in musical ensembles around where she lived, and I guess grabbing hold of that hair brush in her bedroom like all small girls do. And music seems to have always been the thing that lights her up inside, and was always going to be a key thing to her career. And why not when her Mother was in the music industry, and worked in Detroit during the halcion days of Motown. So being surrounded by such creative folk showing their passions and talent everyday was likely to start her vision for joining them and becoming a star too. So she started pursuing a career as a vocalist professionally, and at the age of 17 began singing backing vocals in studios, and supporting local bands and life looked like it was only going to be heading one way. She felt like she was on her way to being a star. As she says "I happily stayed late nights in the studio, wrote lyrics and recorded vocals waiting for my moment to be discovered. It never happened. I was never credited or compensated and that was when I realized, I'd been exploited." And its moments like that when you feel that the world is against you, that really shows you the way that your future will be and should be. It's the dark dots on the Join Up Dots timeline that become the stepping stones to where you need to be. This is where the greatest startup stories begin, when you have no other choice than to move forward with conviction. She is now an attorney/brand and business development expert for musicians and artists. Through her company, Artist Empowerment Group, she will do everything she can to empower you to build an authentic, unstoppable brand, a movement of raving fans and the components of being a successful entrepreneur so you can finally live your dream on YOUR terms. She cares about musicians and artists deeply as hey, shes been there and done it and experience combined with heart makes one powerful proposition. So what was it about the music industry that was so intoxicating for her as a young lady? And does she see it now as the best form of apprenticeship to where she is today? Well lets find out as we bring onto the show to start joining upd ots with the one and only Jo-Na Williams