Meet Hugo Johnson: Music Manager & Founder of Kee Records

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

Hi Hugo, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I don’t think about risks, its a real natural part of my DNA. If you as a business owner are not willing to risk anything, none of the people following you will be either, and that’s bad for business. Make people feel like work is NOT FUN, NOT A DUTY but a RESPONSIBILITY, help them see and make them make it THER OWN and try that everything they are doing it’s for a greater purpose or cause.

The first real risk, that I remember I ever took in my life was going to the college of musicians dreams, a place where musicians, new upcoming producers, managers, dreamt everyday of going; Berklee College of Music, we didn’t have money, resources to be able to even consider or think about it and when a friend of mine came one day to church talking about how Berklee was gonna bring scholarship opportunities and audition musicians, my friend automatically thought I was a perfect fit, I honestly never would have, I considered myself talented but never did I thought I was truly that talented, to top it off auditions we’re being held at a school I wasn’t accepted too lol, that didn’t help at all, I got a little frightened and first day I remember there was alot of applicant’s so many many talented piano players way way better than myself! I remember my dad’s words at home that day when I arrived, son if you truly believe you got this, it doesn’t matter who are your competitors, believe and fight for it! Talk closely to your professors after clinics, go to lunch with them if you can, be a stalker, want it more than the others “being persistent beats talent any day” and that’s all I needed to hear in order to visualize in my head that I had won a scholarship for instrument piano and I was going to Boston!

An important announcement was given mid week into the program “they were only giving 1 Piano scholarship within almost 50 students in the whole program and cutting the full story even shorter I was the lucky one who one the only piano scholarship in the whole program! As my first risk, i risked loosing, letting my parents down they were investing the little savings they had for me to go to the program, my friends, teachers.

when I got just a taste of risking and letting go of the fear of loosing I didn’t care anymore whether I lost a few, winning was a fuel for me and it’s necessary for all levels of life, financially, emotionally and spiritually.

And since then I value every win and loss and level up the high risk on every hand!

You can win and you will! But have in mind always that in order to win sometimes you have to lose some to become greater!

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Kee Records & The Johnson Brothers

Kee Records is a comprehensive artist representation agency that seeks to add value to the artist vision and help them make strong decisions that cultivate their artistic freedom, creativity and financial independence. With offices in Los Angeles, Puerto Rico and Beijing, China. Kee Record’s current and past roster can be found in the top 20 of the Latin Billboard charts, have won multiple Grammy’s, Dove Award nominations, and include: pop artist, Obie Bermudez; salsa artist, Michael Stuart; christian artist, Alex Campos; the indie band, Tropa; and YouTuber, Daniel E Travieso.

The company was launched more than a decade ago by Hugo Johnson, first product being his own band “Living Word”with the motivation of Five Time Grammy award winning musician John Benitez, The Johnson Brothers whose expertise represents the perfect balance of right and left brain integration. Hugo and Abraham Johnson were born in Rhode Island, and moved to Puerto Rico as young boys. Their parents, entrepreneurs and philanthropists, insisted the boys learn to play an instrument. With Hugo on piano and Abraham on drums, they were made to practice every day, and became sought after musicians. The brothers would get offers to go on tour with other artists, but their father would say no, and encourage them to write and record their own music. He wanted them “to be artists for what it would mean to their lives, not simply to be in service for others.” This lesson would become a guiding principle of Kee Records.
At the age of 16, Hugo attended a 2-week seminar in Puerto Rico, provided by the Berklee College of Music that changed his life. He talent earned him a scholarship to Berklee, where he studied the business of music. His first endeavor began with the production of his the film, El Guardia. Many of the cast members turned out to be musical artists – and included Michael Stuart and Obie Bermudez. Their conversations led to representation and the start of an indie record label, with the capacity to provide full service media production for their artists’ music videos and content. Hugo has worked with artists like El Debarge, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, The Avila Brothers, Carlos Ray “Chuck” Norris, Andre Merritt, and many others.
As a teen, Abraham could see the ever-expanding universe of musical artists. But he realized they were being paid pennies, compared to the revenue others earned from the their labor. So he began a career in pubic relations. Then, Abraham moved into the real estate industry and left Puerto Rico, when he was recruited to work for one of biggest attorneys in Las Vegas. There, he immersed himself in the study of wealth-building, with one of his investments being in his brother Hugo’s business.
in 2020 during the pandemic Kee Records was able to stand out with winning its first Latin Grammy for Best Spanish Christian Album with Artist Alex Campos giving the indie company another boost to there hard work
“A lot of managers have the traditional mindset of wanting to own their artists lives. We are different. We want to help artists make strong financial decisions to help the them build a meaningful brand and an empire that will support them for decades to come.”
-Abraham Johnson
“The secret to our brand of management is that we are managers, but we are also not afraid to take on the tasks of an assistant. We want to function as an integral part of our client’s day-today lives, to know and understand what they need, and hold the vision for their greatest achievements.” – Hugo Johnson

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.
My Fav LA Spots

Runyon Canyon
Colorado Blvd. Pasadena
Santa Monica Pier

King Taco
Pink Pepper
Señor Fish
Kings Fish Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First of all my parents have been my greatest inspirations and supporters in my vision, Hugo e Ileana Johnson since day 1

My brother Abraham Johnson and partner

My team Kelvin Rose, Vicky Card, Jaime Rivera, Angelica De Jesús, Adalberto Solis

Mentors
David Sariñana, Gustavo Lopez

All the artists I have been blessed to work

Instagram: @keerecords

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

Image Credits
Picture with Ferrari credits are Jaime River @lomvars there are a lot of celebrity pictures I wouldn’t know how to start naming them through here