Today’s guest, Michaelangelo L’acqua is one that I find truly fascinating as he does something that is very rare and unheard of, but also completely inspiring. He is known as a music lifestyle curator for the W hotels. He gets to travel around the world to their hotels and curate the musical experience for their guests -pretty awesome. He’s actually been to one of my dream places, the W hotel in the maldive Islands, which I’m dying to see. He also DJ’s huge parties around the world, which he considers just a “hobby”, but in the grand scheme he just loves curating musical experiences for people.
Michaelangelo has also created an amazing mentorship program for DJ’s that we get to hear about and we also dive into how big personal branding is for DJ’s and well anyone in the creative field. I’ve always thought that if I weren’t a photographer, I’d be a DJ, but after talking to him, I realize how much photography is something that is much more natural to me. Especially as he talks about the vast musical knowledge that a real DJ should have to take their career to the highest level.
We also get to talk about the process of curation and how in this day in age it’s necessary to stand out above the digital noise.
We met at Summit Series a couple years ago, and Michaelangelo has always inspired me in what he does, and it’s a privilege to get to dive into it with him. So lets jump in!
“Once you define what you’ve become, you defy the infinite possibilities of what you could be.”
[smart_track_player url=”https://soundcloud.com/nickonken/michaelangelo-lacqua-returning” title=”Michaelangelo L’Acqua – What it Takes to Master Your Craft” image=”https://nionlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/07_Michaelangelo_NIONradio_02-1.jpg” color=”de4b9b” ]
Connect with Michelangelo Instagram | Twitter | Website | Soundcloud
Today’s guest, Michaelangelo L’acqua is one that I find truly fascinating as he does something that is very rare and unheard of, but also completely inspiring. He is known as a music lifestyle curator for the W hotels. He gets to travel around the world to their hotels and curate the musical experience for their guests -pretty awesome. He’s actually been to one of my dream places, the W hotel in the maldive Islands, which I’m dying to see. He also DJ’s huge parties around the world, which he considers just a “hobby”, but in the grand scheme he just loves curating musical experiences for people.
Michaelangelo has also created an amazing mentorship program for DJ’s that we get to hear about and we also dive into how big personal branding is for DJ’s and well anyone in the creative field. I’ve always thought that if I weren’t a photographer, I’d be a DJ, but after talking to him, I realize how much photography is something that is much more natural to me. Especially as he talks about the vast musical knowledge that a real DJ should have to take their career to the highest level.
We also get to talk about the process of curation and how in this day in age it’s necessary to stand out above the digital noise.
We met at Summit Series a couple years ago, and Michaelangelo has always inspired me in what he does, and it’s a privilege to get to dive into it with him. So lets jump in!
“Once you define what you’ve become, you defy the infinite possibilities of what you could be.”
[smart_track_player url=”https://soundcloud.com/nickonken/michaelangelo-lacqua-returning” title=”Michaelangelo L’Acqua – What it Takes to Master Your Craft” image=”https://nionlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/07_Michaelangelo_NIONradio_02-1.jpg” color=”de4b9b” ]
Connect with Michelangelo Instagram | Twitter | Website | Soundcloud







Today’s guest, Michaelangelo L’acqua is one that I find truly fascinating as he does something that is very rare and unheard of, but also completely inspiring. He is known as a music lifestyle curator for the W hotels. He gets to travel around the world to their hotels and curate the musical experience for their guests -pretty awesome. He’s actually been to one of my dream places, the W hotel in the maldive Islands, which I’m dying to see. He also DJ’s huge parties around the world, which he considers just a “hobby”, but in the grand scheme he just loves curating musical experiences for people.
Michaelangelo has also created an amazing mentorship program for DJ’s that we get to hear about and we also dive into how big personal branding is for DJ’s and well anyone in the creative field. I’ve always thought that if I weren’t a photographer, I’d be a DJ, but after talking to him, I realize how much photography is something that is much more natural to me. Especially as he talks about the vast musical knowledge that a real DJ should have to take their career to the highest level.
We also get to talk about the process of curation and how in this day in age it’s necessary to stand out above the digital noise.
We met at Summit Series a couple years ago, and Michaelangelo has always inspired me in what he does, and it’s a privilege to get to dive into it with him. So lets jump in!
“Once you define what you’ve become, you defy the infinite possibilities of what you could be.”
[smart_track_player url=”https://soundcloud.com/nickonken/michaelangelo-lacqua-returning” title=”Michaelangelo L’Acqua – What it Takes to Master Your Craft” image=”https://nionlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/07_Michaelangelo_NIONradio_02-1.jpg” color=”de4b9b” ]
Connect with Michelangelo Instagram | Twitter | Website | Soundcloud

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Emanate is a creative-direction-led photography experience for entrepreneurs, speakers, and thought leaders in a moment of expansion. This isn’t about better photos. It’s about aligning how you’re seen with who you’ve become. For seasons of rebrand, visibility, and next-level leadership.
Magnetic Authority is a self-guided container for people who feel visible, but not fully anchored.
If your message keeps shifting, your brand feels inconsistent, or your presence doesn’t match your capability yet. This is where you build the foundation before you scale.
For founders, creatives, and leaders who want a trusted long-term partner. This isn’t coaching or traditional consulting.
It’s an ongoing creative partnership focused on bringing your personal brand identity to life.
Your brand. Your website. Your visuals.
All shaped as a direct extension of who you are. The work also includes a bespoke process of identifying and aligning the right experts when needed, so nothing gets built out of sync with your core.
Quiet. Precise. Highly Selective.

You cannot pour from an empty well. Travel is how I refill mine. Here is why new places are creative input rather than a break from the work, and why output without input runs dry.

There is a difference between making something and performing the act of making it. Here is what I learned about the creative act, content, and why the resistance is the whole game.

AI can generate endless brand content, but it cannot construct the identity underneath it. Here is the real line between what AI can do for your brand and what only you can.

Burnout is less a willpower problem than a nervous system running with no recovery. Here is what I learned about creative recovery from social media burnout and a reset in Costa Rica.

Most brand photographers take good photos of you. Few capture who you actually are. Here is what to look for when hiring a brand photographer so your images match your authority.

Taste is less a gift than a discipline you build through thousands of reps of seeing. Here is what twenty-five years behind a camera taught me about the art of seeing.

Visual Frequency of Authority is the energetic signature your images transmit before anyone reads a word. What it means and why two people with the same credentials read so differently.

Every personal brand stalls in one of three gaps: Identity, Signal, or Infrastructure. Most people have the third and spend years fixing the first.

A month of kung fu training in Wudang, China taught me that the body learns at the speed of honesty rather than the speed of ambition. Here is what martial arts taught me about practice.

Creative coherence is when who you are and how you’re seen are the same thing. A short, clear definition of the term, its four layers, and why it makes a brand magnetic.

A magnetic through-line is the one or two word idea your whole brand becomes associated with. What it is, why it matters, and how to find yours.

Creative coherence is the state where who you are and how you’re seen are the same thing. Why it matters more than frequency, and how to build it.
I was born in a low middle class conservative religious family in the suburbs of Seattle. Art was and always has been my passion, and more than that a way of life. Starting as a graphic designer, I taught myself photography, built a commercial/editorial business shooting for the worlds biggest brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, Adidas and more. I've also had the opportunity to photograph the world's biggest celebrities like Justin Bieber, Usher, Jessica Alba and more. I've curated a lifestyle around creativity and have learned a lot along the way which I get to share here.
I was born in a low middle class conservative religious family in the suburbs of Seattle. Art was and always has been my passion, and more than that a way of life. Starting as a graphic designer, I taught myself photography, built a commercial/editorial business shooting for the worlds biggest brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, Adidas and more. I've also had the opportunity to photograph the world's biggest celebrities like Justin Bieber, Usher, Jessica Alba and more. I've curated a lifestyle around creativity and have learned a lot along the way which I get to share here.