Michael Nelson Rizzo

- Creative Producer / Storyteller -

“For 30 years I’ve been creating stories in many mediums.”

MUSIC

I started my professional career at 17 years old, when a week out of high school I met Pat Robertson, who was running for president in 1988. He asked me to write the theme song for his show, THE 700 CLUB.

After the theme’s debut, they hired me to be the full-time Music Director for CBN and the new Family Channel. (NOTE: I no longer identify as Christian.)

Yeah, it was wild. Especially, when I got my first music royalty check for $28,000 at 18. You bet I went out and bought $14,000 worth of my dream gear!

Over the next 20 years, 100’s of companies and TV shows used my music.

BLACK GOSPEL Music Dir. – One interesting tidbit was that for a few years back in the ’90s, I was the music director for some of the best Black gospel groups on the Atlantic east coast – including Earl Bynum as well as Peggy Britt (who was a key figure in the Netflix series, “Voices Of Fire.”)

WEBSITES AND TECH

Around 1999, I made my own website and realized I liked it – as the process was similar to music writing-arranging-producing. So when a business friend asked me (2006) to develop a full website for his girlfriend (he paid me well) I was ready to move music to the side as I was exhausted of broadcast deadlines.

Website design evolved into full web and online development as well as custom tech solutions for small and large companies. See Amplify Creative Strategies and Little Bit Of Tech for more info.

STARTUP AND BUST – A year-ish into my web business, I began a startup called FANTONES. I had some funding, a small team, developers, some buzz in Nashville… and really bad timing. Sadly, the 2008 Wall St. crash killed my dreams of “Bringing Fans, Bands and Brands Together.”

VIDEO AND STORY

During the FanTones development, I went to Portland, OR and ate some organic bread called Dave’s Killer Bread. I was so impressed, I emailed Dave (his email was on the packaging) and I ended up “accidentally” redoing his video story which became my first video production.

The company had created prior story videos, but the one I created (my music and editing was a major factor) help catapult them into COSTCO, Fred Myers and garnered serious press and growth. From that success, I realized I could tell a story. I produced all their videos from 2008 – 2015 until they sold out 100% to Flowers for $325+ million.

Since those days, I’ve written, directed, produced and edited videos of all kinds like “how to” videos, acted videos, interview style and creative.

My favorite part of crafting a story is editing and selecting (or creating custom) music.

And truly, if I wasn’t a music composer, I couldn’t edit. Music, and it’s inherent principles and emotional core, still drives how I look at everything.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

In working-closely with clients, I often get into deeper business issues, process and project management. For today’s business world, my comprehensive knowledge solves problems and reduces the stress of business owners by using appropriate strategy with tactics like effective and beautiful design, storytelling, custom tech solutions, task and project management and improved and streamlined systems. Click a logo below to check the work out a little more. Or better yet, hit me up and ask what we’re into. ;-)

ABOUT