Lee 'Q' O'Denat

Posted: Mar 23, 2012 by Sean Lynch

Recently we got a chance to chop it up with the CEO of one of the most infamous websites on the globe...Worldstarhiphop.com.  Take a moment with us as Q talks social media, music and all the elements that have made his viral platform a nationwide net phenomenon, to be dissected...behind the machine........

Can you tell the Source magazine how you first became involved with the internet hustle and the creation of Worldstarhiphop.com?

I’ve been involved since 1996. I remember purchasing WEBTV and hooking it up through a phone jack to my TV so I could surf the web. I started messing with different sites and created profiles way before Myspace and Facebook. I was a instant fan of the web and started reading entrepreneur magazines and business magazines. Then I started WSHH in July of 2005 and noticed there was a need for mixtape download sites and wanted to get involved. Originally WSHH was a blog site mixed with a little bit of entertainment, celebrity gossip, freestyle videos and bizarre interviews. In ‘05 I  felt a lot of Hip Hop sites were boring and not entertaining so I wanted to bring something different.

Was there something else in entertainment you wanted to do prior to creating your online brand?

I was into managing and being a booking agent. I handled a lot of bookings for DJ Whoo Kid and acted as his road manager on the world tours I booked in Europe, Japan, Australia etc. I also booked tours for several DJ’s and artists like Clinton Sparks, DJ Vlad, Sean Paul, Akon, 50cent, and many others.

When did you initially realize this site was going to be a phenomenal success?

When we premiered “Cash Flow” from Ace Hood featuring Rick Ross. It was our first major video exclusive that looked like it had a nice budget. The song was fire and we were shocked to have premiered it first. We were on the rise and a lot of cats were talking about us in the industry. I was getting blown up from big names in the business asking how they can partner up with me and help take WSHH to the next level. I knew then WSHH was going to be huge by the caliber of people that wanted to partner with me.

With so many urban websites in the marketplace all over the net, what goals did you have in place that was going to set Worldstarhiphop apart from the rest of the pack?

I wanted to capture the realness. That’s what WSHH is all about, we are going to bring it to you live. Hip Hop culture was built on being real and representing your everyday good, bad and ugly. That is what the core Hip Hop audience is all about. It’s not always sweet, so WSHH felt the need to stay true to that. Where as other sites to me were catering more to advertisers.

Your site is responsible for breaking acts visually in hip hop nationwide and internationally.  Did you expect to be that conduit of talent globally?

Yes. I traveled the world prior to creating WSHH. I knew back then that my next site had to have a global appeal since it’s the world wide web. I wanted to give artists a chance to shine in front of a broader audience. Most radio DJ’s and club DJ’s are only broadcasting your music to a smaller scale. WSHH can make you an overnight celeb with just one video. We have over 2million people a day visiting the site and it’s growing..

Worldstarhiphop is also known for its explicit and violent content. Is there ever a moment when you and your staff say "Hey, can't post that!" or this is where we draw the line?

Yes, we get a ton of submissions daily that we pass on. We like to keep it real on what we report but we also know that some videos cross the line.

Do you have your hands in anything else related to the music industry?  What are you currently working on?

We have Worldstar Agency which is doing well and a couple of other ventures in the pipeline. We are looking to expand to movies, TV shows and more original programming.

What does the Source magazine brand mean to you?

I’ve always been a supporter of the Source and it’s movement. It used to be one of my favorite mags growing up, I would have a glass case of my favorite covers. It helped to break unsigned artists like Biggie and others, really making it a staple in Hip Hop!!!