Being a mother is the most difficult job on the planet, but when you have to be both a mother and manager to your child, the tough just gets tougher. Entrepreneur Stacia Mac knows all about what it takes to separate the professional from the personal and be successful on both sides of that fine line.
Image credit Stacia Mac
Stacia has helped place her son Polo G firmly in the public’s consciousness as one of the hottest hip-hoppers of 2021. More impressively, she did it without any prior knowledge of the music industry, an industry notoriously difficult for outsiders to break into. All she had was a mother’s love and a parent’s determination that their child’s talent shouldn’t go unrecognized.
Through her management company ODA/Only Dreamers Achieve and the business acumen she developed during her real estate career, Stacia helped her son negotiate the legal minefield of contracts and other distractions the music industry bombards their artists with and freed Polo G to focus on what he does best - the music.
Along the way, Stacia founded the lifestyle brand and podcast “I Birth Legends” which deals with the tricky juggling act of motherhood and business. As an individual who knows exactly how tricky it is to be both a mother and a manager to a talented child, Stacia is keen to dispel some of the myths she has encountered along the way.
“People have a lot of misconceptions about a mother managing their child,” explained Stacia, who added, “Number one, they believe as a mother, you’re too emotionally attached to your child to make detached and level-headed decisions. Wrong! As a mom of course you have your child’s best interests at heart, but shouldn’t all managers have their client’s best interests at heart? A good manager should never manipulate their client to feather their own nest. That to me is the textbook definition of unprofessional.”
Stacia added, “The second biggest myth I encounter is that moms who manage their offspring are only doing it for their egotistical gratification. No chance. You may have heard of such famous ‘momagers’ as Kris Jenner, but she’s the exception. Besides which, who’s more famous, Kris or Kim Kardashian? How many people have heard of Miley Cyrus’s mom Tish, or Kanye West’s late mom, Donda? Both are prime examples of moms who managed their kids, not for their self-interest, but to help their child like only they could.”
Stacia concluded, “The third myth I’d like to put to rest is the one about moms who manage being pushy parents. That’s absolute nonsense. Anyone who knows anything about how a true artist’s mindset works, knows they cannot be pushed into anything. Music is a calling, that at times they try hard to resist, but in the end, they’ve just got to surrender to it. In the case of my son, Polo G, he chose to give up college for a music career. It was a huge gamble and I could have tried to persuade him otherwise, but as a responsible parent who had his best interests at heart I decided to support him the best way I knew how, and I’m so glad I made that call.”