IN PERSON
Atomic Tango Founder + Creative Strategist
Freddy Tran Nager
Over his 30+ years in business, Freddy’s written ads for Tom Petty and B.B. King. Won awards for Toyota interactive marketing. Creative directed the world’s first (and last) infomercial-zine. And directed the twisted business pitch that landed the National Lampoon account.
On the sidehe’s acted in avant-garde theatre. Conducted “investigative journalism” for the Weekly World News (but no UFO sightings). Listened to underground jazz in a Havana nightclub. Worked as a writers’ assistant on the worst sitcom ever. And created a football blog —the gloriously self-indulgent TURFgeeks —back when “blog” wasn’t even a word.
And that was all before getting his MBA.
Putting Pen To Paper — The Copywriting Years
After graduating from Harvard with a degree in East Asian Studies & Sociology, Freddy used his one marketable skill — writing — to land a job as the sole copywriter at major music label MCA Records. There hewrote all of MCA’s ads and directed one of the world’s first entertainment websites, the acclaimed MCA Records Online, in 1994.The pioneering site scored widespread acclaim — and opened more than a few doors.
But with dotcoms popping up everywhere, he wanted to be closer to the action.
Enter The Dotcom Boom —And Bust
F
reddy joined digital agency Magnet Interactive, where he directed content for Nissan and Infiniti, among other clients. He also helped win the National Lampoon accountand came this close to being named the magazine’s Editor in Chief.
Inspired to pursue even more creative opportunities, on 9/9/99 Freddy joined IZ, the world’s first infomercial-zine, which combined ecommerce and television. The startup was fantastically headquartered in the old Warner Bros. writers’ offices across from the legendary Formosa Café. Happy hours and late nights became a dynamic norm.
So Freddy enrolled in the MBA program at the University of Southern California, where he focused on marketing and entrepreneurship, and relished an eye-opening educational trip to Cuba.
Launch Time
It all came together in 2007 — or, better yet, ‘007.
At a Silicon Valley networking event, Freddy found himself discussing marketing with a group of entrepreneurs. A Danish startup exec asked him if he did any consulting. Freddy’s responded, “I do now.”
And that’s how Atomic Tango started — and how it continues to run: clients first.
Returning to L.A., Freddy officially launched his agency to offer the creativity of an ad boutique with the strategy of a management consultancy. “Tango” refers to that intricate dance between creativity and strategy (“it takes two…”). And “Atomic” evokes the mid-century modern era, when Freddy’s father worked as a State Department communications officer, and James Bond emerged as both an action hero and style icon.
The Atomic Tango mission statement came naturally:
“Stir the imagination and leave the competition shaken.”
To supplement his new business, Freddy taught MBA marketing courses online. He immediately became hooked on teaching, and now serves as a full-time Lecturer at the University of Southern California, where he also co-directs the new Master of Science in Digital Media Management program. (Learn more about Freddy’s adventures in higher education here.)
Always itching to do something new and creative, Freddy has evolved Atomic Tango to publish books and produce lifestyle brands, with new ventures coming soon. ¡Viva la evolucion!
Along the way, he’s also given talks to entrepreneurs in China, marketers in New Orleans, renaissance women in Houston, and fitness trainers in Long Beach. He’s been interviewed by The Washington Post,Bloomberg, public radio’s Marketplace, The Guardian (UK), Les Affaires (Canada), and Sondag(Finland), to name a few.And he’s won awards and recognition from Adweek, Communication Arts, and The One Show.
And that’s just the beginning.
To learn more, check out Freddy’s profile on LinkedIn, follow him on Twitter, or simply drop him a line.