Imperious Entertainment

IMPERIOUS: You started making your own video games at 12, which shows your intelligence and your commitment to hard work at a young age. What values did your parents instill in you for you to be so tenacious at such a young age?

Ephren: (Laughs) I started at the age of 12. I started because my mom told me to make my own video games. She really didn’t have a way to pay $50 per game for these video games, especially Super Nintendo games. I went to the bookstore, did some research, and found a book on “How to make a video game in 21 days”. I started reading it, doing the lessons, and taught myself how to program computers. I used the school computers because we didn’t have one at the house at the time. A couple weeks later, started making games. I then started slinging them at the school, so it was my first little school hustle.

As far as values, my mom put her career on hold to raise my siblings and I at the house. She definitely instilled in us, “you can accomplish anything”. And I was dumb enough to believe it (laughs). I started doing that and my parents really got behind me and allowed me to kind of explore a lot of the creative options that were before me.



IMPERIOUS: You launched the “Urban Wealth Tour in which you promoted entrepreneurship in urban communities. Some young people believe that you don’t need a formal education to be successful as an entrepreneur. How important is the idea of higher education to you?

Ephren: Well the idea of higher education depends on how you 1) view education and 2) what exactly is education? You know, Mark Twain said, “Don’t let your schooling get in the way of your education.” I think people have the misconception that school will translate into education. But, anyone who grew up in or around an urban community knows that just because there is a school there, doesn’t mean there is a good education there. So, for me, I didn’t really have the opportunity to complete higher education. Everything I’ve done so far has been self taught. Reading books constantly. Education is a life long journey. I may not be formally educated, but I do have a pretty decent educational background from things I have accomplished and things I’ve done. Whether it was from the school of hard knocks or from just general educational.

IMPERIOUS: At 25 years old you are doing business deals with people 20 years your senior. Do ever have misunderstandings with colleagues because of the difference in generation?

Ephren: All the time! I mean, just most recently, if you question someone on a deal, asking when are you going to provide the service for us? Why should I give you this money? Why should I sign this contract? I have had people respond, “you shouldn’t be disrespecting me”. I’m like, man you are 50 years old. So I think because I’m younger, they feel because I’m questioning their background or things they have accomplished, that they feel they worked so hard for. I’m stroking the check, but they are insulted by me questioning their years of experience. (laughs). It’s really humorous sometimes. But I’m still the one writing the check whether you like it or not. But everyone thinks they can bring something to the table and have their hand out without me being cautious. But as soon as you ask for the check, you have to take the responsibility of answering the questions that come along with it. Whether I’m 5 years old, 25, or 55.

IMPERIOUS: Do you ever feel that you missed out on your childhood because you were a working millionaire at such a young age?

Ephren: Depends on how you look at it. I’ve watched so many people kick it so hard during their younger years. And they make mistake in their twenties (20s) or even in their teenage years that they take a lifetime to kind of make back up. So I figured, why not sacrifice now and enjoy the rest of my life versus kicking it hard for 10 years and then spending the next 30 years trying to clean it all up. As far as social life when I was younger, it wasn’t to chase any girls, or drinking and partying and everything else. I was really focused on what I was trying to accomplish. So now, just the freedom to have the time to even have this phone call, is kind of a benefit. While everyone else is at work, I’m at the crib! Its kind of a different experience. I get paid to go out of the country. While people struggle to get 2 weeks of vacation, if I wanted to, I could take a vacation. Not right now because we are a growing company, but you know. The sacrifices I made when I was younger are things I will do in the future. And I’m still young, only 25, so it wasn’t that much lost.

Imperious: You are the youngest African American CEO of a publicly traded company? Tell us a bit more about your job and how us young folk can get involved.

Ephren: (laughs) Unfortunately. But yeah, I’m the youngest and one of the first. There are few and it should be a lot more of us. Day in and day out there is something different. The CEO takes the fall for everything. And no longer are there a bunch of angry shareholders, you go to jail now, for anything! The responsibility is pretty great no matter what happens under you watch. And the consequences are more severe. Day in and day out, you are dealing with the SEC, NASD, whatever exchange you’re traded on, auditors. Then on top of that you have shareholders and the media all over you. So, I mean, you’re getting wooped on from 5 or 6 different fronts. And If the stock goes up, you’re a hero. And then on top of that, surprisingly enough, people get mad at me if the stock goes up. Because they didn’t get to catch on early enough. They get upset because you didn’t “properly communicate” with them. Either way, I’m still in the wrong.

I’ve been advising a lot of young people to get involved in the public market. Definitely get educated on it from the financial standpoint. How it works, how money moves. A lot of brothers and sisters as well go into the financial services market and get their series 7 license, etc. It’s a lot of money coming through Wall Street. And its going to be one of the top industries in the next 20 years because of all the money the baby boomers are moving. This is something we should be teaching at our black colleges. Most brokerage firms allow you to open an account where you can play around with fake money and do mock trades before you start playing with real money. But, the best time to start investing is when you are young. An investment of a couple hundred dollars when you’re 16 can turn into a couple million in your thirties if invested properly.

IMPERIOUS: Do you listen to hip hop? What are your feeling about the current state of hip hop and what direction would you like to see it go in?

Yup. I would like to see a return to lyricism where someone is actually talking about something. I remember when I was first introduced to hip-hop in the South. It was Public Enemy on TV talking about “911 is a joke in your town”. And I was a kid looking at Flav on TV with a clock on his chest like, “Haha, he looks kind of stupid”. But then you start thinking about what they were talking about. Now that I’m older and working in the urban core, THEY WERE SERIOUS! And it’s just, you know, hip hop has so much power, but it’s being wasted on the wrong things. It would be nice to at least see a balance. A balance between the fun and humorous, the braggadocios, but also the political activist. And I think when you start to see artists that have a balance between those areas, those will be your future more successful artists. Somebody who can cross-relate. Someone who can “keep it real” but “not be ignorant” at the same time. Someone who can make a statement.

I mean, if you look at the black race as far as black people, there hasn’t been a movement among our race for almost 40-50 years. So its really going to have to come out of our generation to bring that to past. And you know, between the black church and the hip hop nation, those are the two forefronts that can really make it happen QUICKLY!