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Despite the obvious benefits of having a musician wear the company logo while playing, few musicians are actually endorsed by sneaker companies. There are rap stars in the mix, but the majority of the chosen few with athletic wear endorsements are, well, athletes. Mike doesn't pin the blame solely on the major sneaker and athletic wear companies however.

"Musicians have to take the initiative to make the math clear to the people who have the potential of investing. So its not like you run up to the people and say, 'Hey look what I've got on! That's hot right?'"

Mike said his business philosophy originated when he began to consider ways to cross-pollinate his musicianship with corporate America at the behest of a friend from Duke University. For Mike, one is incomplete without the other if you are serious about being successful and he cites a brief interview as an example.

"When I did CNN, I made sure I had the Jordan headband on when they did a five-minute interview on me. CNN Headline News is in 18 different countries and they did a 24-hour profile, so every hour on the hour for 24 hours they showed me. So, really, how much is buy time for CNN for 30 seconds during prime time?

You see, without doing the math you can't build equity off the musical gifts that we all have."

"Doing the math" has enabled Mike Philips to launch himself into many ventures and respect those who have done the same.

"I have a high level of respect for Karl Browne for his musicianship as well as a businessman," Mike said. "He's never late for a gig and he commands respect for his peers. Only a businessman can have the ability to make other people work."

He recalls the first time he met Karl this way, "I remember one time I played a gig and there was this burning keyboard player and I turned around and we connected immediately." And seeing him within the last couple of years, Mike said, the high level of respect has grown.

Mike's respect list reads like a Who's Who of music.

"I admire Prince so much because he says that on the road he'll call us and tell us to get ready because he wants to jam at a club tonight. He just loves the music. (I admire) Marcus Miller and Stanley Clarke because they're just not playing, they're handling business. They're scoring. They're getting the points off the whole movie deal for scoring and not just doing sound tracks. So you got to be in the matrix of the business to understand that level."

And the matrix of Mike's business will soar soon enough once his own "Mike Philly kicks" hits stores. His second album is about to drop and his own brand of saxophones will be released late this year. All this comes on the heels of the Prince tour, which kicks off on March 29th. But don't worry folks he'll be gigging at the local club soon enough, wearing the Jordan logo somewhere. And money down, he'll be just as unassuming and personable as he is on his cell phone as he strolls through Sam Ash.

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