Chris Zarou

Chris is the Founder & CEO of Visionary Music Group. Operating at the intersection of music and technology across both campaigns, Chris oversees all aspects of his entire artist roster which includes artists like Logic, Jon Bellion, and Quinn XCII.

His most recent venture Visionary Records in conjunction with Sony Music is operating artist development in real-time, in the rapidly evolving music industry. Outside of his accomplishments in music, Chris has also built an angel portfolio of 20+ companies.

“As your business grows more successful, you feel the wins need to get bigger. But you need to step back and appreciate small wins — because the small wins once meant everything when we were first starting out.”

The Kickoff

Lately, Chris has been making sure to get immediate sunlight exposure after waking up.

It helps reset his circadian rhythm and sets him up for a good night of sleep at the end of that day. Afterward, he’ll drink coffee on his balcony before going for a morning run.

As a marathoner, running is generally therapeutic for Chris, which leads him to log between six to eight miles every day.

“Getting on a healthy sleep schedule is something I’ve struggled with throughout my adult life. So I like to set myself up well as early as the start of the morning.”

Running as a Respite

In Chris’ words, he was a fitness junkie throughout his whole life until he quit D1 soccer in his sophomore year of college. He pivoted to pursue entrepreneurship, but fitness has remained an underlying theme of his life, leading him to fall in love with distance running a couple years ago. 

But despite the immense physical benefits it’s brought him, Chris considers running a mental health practice. 

After a decade in client services, he’d realized that much of his day-to-day life was a constant influx of client calls and messages, and generally being pinged all day long. 

But by putting his phone on Do Not Disturb and hitting the pavement, Chris is completely uninterrupted for an hour each day, during which he can let his thoughts roam freely and get into a flow state. 

As he puts it, his running routine is imperative to maintain his mental health among the demands of running Visionary, and thus a non-negotiable in his life. Chris hasn’t taken a breakfast meeting in 12 years. 

“If I don’t start my day off by breaking a sweat, I am 100% not the same person. This routine has honestly kept me sane throughout my career.”

Blue-Collar Hustle

According to Chris, he continues to struggle with work-life balance — something he attributes to his start as a 20-year-old founder who consistently pulled 18-hour workdays. 

He calls it his blue-collar approach to entrepreneurship. He was younger and less experienced than others in the music industry, but could definitely outwork them. 

Reflecting on those early years, Chris wouldn’t go back and change that grind because, in his words, he gained his metaphorical MBA through pure trial-and-error experience. 

Naturally, Chris admits he wouldn’t recommend this approach to anyone else, and that he’s far more productive today as someone who takes care of himself before beginning to crank. 

He’s especially working to improve on being fully present in his personal life, rather than feeling only half-involved in the moment and people surrounding him. 

For instance, Chris described being unable to truly celebrate major achievements because he was preoccupied by thoughts of how to attain the next, even larger success. 

“It felt like if I wasn’t working, I was losing, because everyone else was building while I was resting. That’s just part of the entrepreneur’s ambition, but it can really rob you of valuable moments in everyday life.”

Trusting His Gut

As both a music manager and an angel investor, Chris ultimately chalks up his decision-making process to intuition. It’s a gut instinct that’s difficult to articulate, but something that’s driven him throughout his career and broader personal life. 

He described one of his first meetings with Logic when the then-unknown rapper talked about selling out Madison Square Garden. At that moment, Chris followed the intuitive voice in his head that said - maybe this guy could really pull it off. 

He translates that same intuition to the pitch process when deciding which founders actually have the potential to accomplish what they’re imagining for their startup. 

“Gut instinct is hard to describe. It’s how I sit across from Logic or Jon Bellion and know that I need to take a chance on them. It’s even how I choose the friends I want to surround myself with on a daily basis.”

The Wind-Down

Depending on the day, Chris normally heads home between 8 to 10 PM.

And while his evening routine is typically barebones, he likes to fill in the gaps by researching whatever particular topic or curiosity he’s hooked on at the time.

He calls it ending the day with learning, through reading, podcasts, interviews, or whatever’s available. He’ll then head to sleep between midnight to 1 AM. 

Chris struggled with a consistent sleep schedule throughout his adult life, but three tools have shifted his sleep hygiene for the better: blackout shades, a white-noise machine, and his Eight Sleep mattress which can regulate body temp for sleepers who run hot.