We had the good fortune of connecting with Dion Dupree and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dion, what is the most important factor behind your success?
The most important factor behind the success of me and my brand is that no matter how challenging things got with the business and my personal life, I continued to persevere. Knowing how important it is for me to not let myself down has had a ripple effect on those who have entrusted me with their business. My dedication and commitment to providing ethical and professional standards often motivates others to continue to embark on their journey despite their own obstacles. This has also led me to be able to continue to evolve in an ever changing business field.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
What sets as apart from a lot of other businesses in entertainment is our commitment to the personal growth and development of the relationships we build with our clients. I personally make it a point to have a trusting, respected professional relationship with all the service providers in our network that gives us the esteemed ability to provide a unique experience for all of our clients. I got to where I am today by being committed to ethical business practices and not allowing temptation, opportunity or lack of support deter me from my willingness to stay true to myself. Music entertainment is a very porous business and affords many opportunities for artists to get conned or scammed from people knowing how bad artists are willing to chase their dream. I refuse to allow money to drive me. My drive comes from my desire to see people succeed and I believe that’s what helps me to be successful. It was not easy to get here. There are many challenges that comes with being a business owner of multiple entities. Having the right staff involved to execute, having the capital to come in to ensure the bills are paid, getting the support from your peers and others in the business who view you as a competitor has made the road very difficult. Being an individual who views success as a collaborative effort, there aren’t many others who have that mentality and attitude in business. Many people are cutthroat and put others down to build themselves up. My refusal to allow the negative energy of naysayers and those with narrow minded perspectives influence my decisions to sway from my goals has really been the driver for overcoming the challenges. When it comes to the challenges within the business such as, personnel and finances, I have to rely on my ability to make sound decisions to create the best possible outcomes for the business. Understanding the gifts, strengths and not so good strengths of my staff, affords me the ability to position them in the right place for them to be successful at reaching the goals. Leadership comes in many forms and I choose to be a leader who leads by example. I believe my willingness to get in the trenches and do the “dirty” work encourages others on the team to rally in support to get the tasks at hand accomplished. I feel like these internal practices are what leads to a better working relationship with our clientele, thus opening the door for more people wanting to do business with me. I’ve learned way too many lessons along the way to discuss in this interview lol, however, I will share a few. I’ve learned that taking a “L” is never a LOSS when your LEARN from the experience. When I say learn, I mean taking transparent responsibility for your contribution to the the circumstance. In that space, you are able to evaluate where you made your mistakes and how to prevent them from happening in the future. You learn how to take accountability to the areas that you are in control of and implement the wisdom it takes to know the difference between the things you cannot change and the things you can. At that point, it then moves into having the courage, strength and support to modify your process. Keep that on step and repeat and you will find yourself stacking “W’s” along your pursuits. I would like for the world to know that Grind Mode represents a LIFESTYLE. That lifestyle is one of principle that applies to all walks of life. From birth, we have to learn our way through the human experience. From learning how to breathe, navigate, feed ourselves to more complex levels of evolution, it takes being in GRIND MODE to execute. That’s that level, when you decide no matter what it takes, I’m going to get it done. Infants get in grind mode when they learn to walk, students get in grind mode when its time to achieve, athletes get it in grind mode when they quest for wins, adults get in grind mode when they know they have responsibilities they need to handle. Grind Mode represents the lifestyle of those who want to succeed and achieve on a high level. Thanks to my partner, Nina Amendola, who coined our catch phrase, Life In Grind Mode, which is also the title of my documentary series that goes behind the scenes of what I do in the entertainment business, sums it all up.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
During a weeks visit in Pittsburgh, we start off with a visit to Acrisure Stadium to see the Pittsburgh Steelers play on a Sunday. Follow up at dinner at one of our famous diners, then ending the night off partying at Paparazzi Lounge for Sophisticated Sunday’s with DJ Nick Nice. Monday morning would be a great day to visit Pamela’s for one of their great breakfasts and end the night off with dinner at Ruth Chris’ Steakhouse. Tuesday would be a great day to take on a Penguins Hockey game and Wednesday for a Pirate Game. Thursday would be a great night to visit Burn Lounge for a cigar and take the weekend to the next level with great food and vibes at 24 and Club Ikon.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My mentors, Nick Nice and Domingo have been instrumental in providing the leadership, foundation, mentorship, guidance and non-stop support for my efforts to provide professional entertainment services.

Website: www.grindmodemusic.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grind_mode412/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/grindmodeLIVE

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grindmodeceo/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/GrindModeMusicWorldwide

Image Credits
Images provided by Her Vision Media & Dion Dupree

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