Meet Freddie Harb: President of Sleeping Giant Music, Mastering Engineer at Distinct Mastering, Producer and DJ

Back in the early 2000’s, me and a couple of friends were always in the studio making music. They had just gotten out of record deals and wanted to do their own thing. One was a rapper (Blest), one was a vocalist (oneson), and then there was me the DJ / Producer. So we started Sleeping Giant Music, at that time which was more of a traditional record label and a community of artists. The MP3 eventually came out which led us down the path of pivoting into a booking agency, and that’s when our partner Mikey Beats got involved around 2007/2008. As the main division Sleeping Giant Music grew into the touring DJ division, we eventually developed the SGM Events division that deals with corporate and private events and a whole other subset of artists. Fast forward to 2012, we merged with Troy Gilmore from Blue Moon Management and then again in 2016 with Angel Matos from In the Sound and that’s how Sleeping Giant Music has grown from a small bedroom operation to a global booking agency. Through Sleeping Giant Music, I still operate under DJ Fresh One as a touring DJ, and produce music under the Freshcobar alias. Recently I have started Distinct Mastering, a music mastering service.

I love music and have built my entire career around it. It has not been easy, juggling multiple jobs, wearing many hats and learning how to operate a business, deal with employees, and the day-to-day of the business itself has been a huge learning process. As I was building Sleeping Giant Music I was still touring, playing shows all over the United States and sometimes internationally. Traveling can be a burden and tire you out, all while trying to get home and get back into the office so I’m not always working remotely. Juggling all of that while trying to make music was a challenge but I would just grind it out. The best advice I can give is to try to always make things efficient, create systems and processes that make your team feel knowledgeable about their positions. 2020 has been a change of pace since there is not much touring, kind of like a reset which has allowed me to focus on building up Distinct Mastering, my new mastering service for anyone that wants to take their music to the next level.

Most of the time when friends visit they want to hit the typically spots, beaches and bars by day, and nightclubs at night. It’s fun to take people over to Coronado as well to give them a bit change of pace, or travel down to Mexico to grab some tacos. Some favorite food spots: Nico’s Taco Shop (always have to get someone a real burrito) Barleymash, Miss B’s Coconut Club, Huntress / Lumi, La Puerta, Meze, Craft and Commerce, and Kettner Exchange. Favorite Daytime Bars: Firehouse, PB Shoreclub, The Local PB, Poolhouse, Waterbar, Float, The Nolan, and Wonderland. Favorite Nightclubs or Nighttime Bars: Mavericks Beach Club, Oxford Social Club, Sidebar, False Idol, Parq Nightclub, and Vin De Syrah.

Three people I owe a lot to would be Matt Spencer for giving me a chance as a DJ, booking me in clubs underage and teaching me to be more than a DJ. Jonas Bevacqua from LRG for believing in Sleeping Giant Music and myself and sponsoring me with their clothing and lifestyle brand years ago. Kevion Stirdivant for teaching me about goal setting, planning and giving me inspiration to push forward. Lastly, my partners and the team at Sleeping Giant Music!