JON SHAPIRO: Working

On a recent Sunday afternoon in a friend's East Hampton studio, Jon Shapiro ("My friends call me Johnny Shipes") listened to a young rapper named Charles Furman add his voice to a track Mr. Shapiro had produced. The mix was impressive.

At 22, Mr. Shapiro's two small but growing companies, One Shot Entertainment and Cinematic Records, have propelled him into the harsh and profitable world of New York's music industry. And, like those of many of the aspirants surrounding him, his was a rocky start.

A promotional company of sorts, One Shot Entertainment was launched two years ago when Mr. Shapiro and three partners decided to throw a one-time bash at Southampton's Conscience Point night club; 700 people attended, most of whom paid a cover charge, and though Mr. Shapiro refused to discuss money, he did say the party made them "some."

"It showed me what I should be doing," he said, which, with the 10 people who now make up One Shot, is throwing parties. As the self-proclaimed creative member of the group, Mr. Shapiro will envision a concept, for example, Ladies Night. ("If ladies come, guys will come.") They will then find a venue, such as Club Brazil in Hampton Bays, where One Shot "owns" Saturday nights, he said. Next, the company's graphic artist will create fliers for the event and distributors will give them out "like mad."

Much of the company's success can be attributed to "guerrilla marketing," Mr. Shapiro said. "You've got to have your fliers in every single store." Once the social public is aware of an ongoing event, like One Shot's Monday nights at Club Swa in Wainscott, "you don't have to promote as hard," he said.

He is not, however, content to remain in the Hamptons; "It's just so easy to make money here." One Shot is now working out of Manhattan as well, holding open mike nights and talent shows, where Mr. Shapiro looks for promising musical acts to produce. "I throw parties to make a living while my music is bubbling."

"Cinematic Records," he said with a long, thoughtful pause. "I produce music. I love music. I buy records all day, every day." With an M.P.C. 2000 drum machine and keyboard, "if I like a record, I'll record it, put it on my drum machine, and sample it. That's what hip-hop is." What that means is, with the sampler he can change the speed of a musical track, the accents, and even the instruments, while still maintaining its original scheme.

Before the birth of Cinematic Records, Mr. Shapiro worked in marketing for the leviathan Bad Boy Records in New York, which is run by Sean (Puffy) Combs. "I was in over my head," he said, but it was there he met Josh Taekman, the then-president of marketing, with whom he interned for eight months.

"People would kill for that opportunity," he said. "Josh is mad important in the game." With his marketing support, the music Cinematic Records produces has more than just a foot in a doorway. "We're going to be the next big thing in the music industry," he said, pointing to the fact that both Mr. Combs and the hip-hop industry mogul Russell Simmons started out promoting parties.

Raised in New York and East Hampton, Mr. Shapiro said he received little parental support for his musical dreams, other than encouragement in his youth to pursue an instrument, which he declined. "Nobody helped me out," he said, and at 17 he left home and took a room in an East Hampton motel. "I just survived," said the smooth-talking entrepreneur. "That's why I'm so nice. Those years molded a good hustler, you know, a businessman."

Now living in Amagansett and the city, he divides his time between the two companies while nurturing big plans for the future. One Shot is in the process of assembling a publication, One Shot Information, the specifics of which Mr. Shapiro declined to discuss. "It's going to revolutionize. What people charge money for we'll be doing for free." Also on his immediate agenda are plans for a summer fund-raiser with his mother, Linda Shapiro, a special events coordinator, and an after day camp care center he would run with his younger brother Jesse.

"We're about to be millionaires real quick - then we'll retire."