At RekordShop, we’re proud to platform people who are using creativity, experience, and community to create opportunities for the next generation.

As part of our RekordRoom: Community of Practice series, we sat down with Ashley Samuels-McKenzie, Media & Social Impact Lead at In Music In Media, podcast host, filmmaker, coach, and creative entrepreneur, to explore his journey through music, media, education, business, and mentorship.

Ashley’s story is one of creativity constantly evolving — from discovering rap as a young person in Northampton and performing in a band, to studying at university, working professionally in film and media, and eventually helping other young people discover their own creative pathways.

Meet Ashley Samuels-McKenzie: Creativity Coming Full Circle

Ashley’s relationship with music started as a young rapper, writing and recording with friends before eventually spending several years performing as a rapper and vocalist in a band.

His journey later took him away from Northampton for university before developing into a wider career across video production, storytelling, podcasting and entrepreneurship.

Ashley went on to co-found video production company Unity & Motion and later co-create the How I Became podcast, using conversations with creatives and professionals to explore the real journeys behind success.

Perhaps most importantly, his story has now come full circle.

Having benefited from creative opportunities himself as a young person, Ashley now works with In Music In Media and Musically Unorthodox, helping create those same pathways for another generation.

His work includes mentorship, creative development and alternative provision for young people who may struggle within traditional education.

RekordRoom: Community of Practice

As part of our ongoing Community of Practice series, Ashley joined us for an open conversation about creativity, education, entrepreneurship and what young people really need in order to thrive.

In this episode, we explore:

• Ashley’s early journey through rap, music and performing in a band.
• Leaving Northampton for university and discovering wider creative possibilities.
• Building a career in film, video production and podcasting.
• His journey with In Music In Media and Musically Unorthodox.
• Working within alternative provision and supporting young people who struggle in mainstream education.
• The limitations of traditional education for some creative young people.
• Why Northampton needs more third creative spaces outside home and school.
• His experience building Coconut Paradise and the realities of entrepreneurship.
• Mentorship and the importance of sharing experience with the next generation.
• Why talent needs opportunities, networks, and spaces around it in order to grow.

The conversation asks an important question:

What happens when a young person has talent, but nowhere for that talent to develop?

For Ashley, creative spaces can become more than somewhere to make music or content. They can become places where young people find confidence, relationships, direction, and ultimately a sense of possibility.

Final Words

Ashley Samuels-McKenzie’s journey shows how creativity can evolve throughout your life.

From rapper and musician to filmmaker, entrepreneur, podcast host, and mentor, he has drawn on each chapter to support others.

His story also highlights something central to RekordShop’s own mission: talent alone isn’t enough.

Young creatives need access.

They need mentors.

They need opportunities.

And sometimes they need a space where someone takes their creativity seriously.

That is why conversations like this sit at the heart of RekordRoom: Community of Practice — connecting people, sharing experience, and helping build stronger creative pathways for the next generation.

🎧 Listen to the full RekordRoom conversation with Ashley Samuels-McKenzie.

📲 Follow the movement:
📲 Coconut Paradise: @coconutparadisecafe
🎵 In Music In Media:  @inmusicinmedia
🔊 Restoration Soundsystem: @restoration.soundsystem
🎙️ How I Became Podcast: @howibecame__ — available across podcast platforms