What a web he weaves

Lee Martin’s career in the music biz started at South Terrebonne High School in 2003, when he designed an unofficial Web site for fans of the rock band Mars Volta. His social networking site soon amassed 20,000 members. “When the site crashed because of an overload, the band made a donation to keep it running,” Martin says.

The band’s manager liked Martin’s unofficial site so much she asked him to design Volta’s. “It was a job that I obsessed over,” Martin recalls.

His diligence paid off. In late February, Martin moved to Hollywood to head up the new media department of a music business company, a division the company created and is building around Martin. Not bad for a self-taught designer who’s still only 23 years old.

He arrived with an impressive resume, having graduated from Mars Volta to design work for Foo Fighters, AFI and Queens of the Stone Age, to name a few. “I networked and met a few people at each record label and always said yes to a job,” Martin says.

Now he’s with Sam, the Hollywood company that orchestrates tours and handles band merchandising. “Sam’s the closest friend to the band,” Martin says.

“Record labels have a lot of red tape, and networking straight from management helps to handle those problems,” Martin says.

In addition to his work with Sam, Martin still works with small businesses in Baton Rouge, including Storyville and Unique Cuisine. He also serves as a contractor with the Loyola Small Business Development Center, which helps local businesses develop online presence.