John Summit quit his accounting job at Ernst & Young to pursue a career as a DJ. Today, the internationally known DJ is building Experts Only with Medium Rare, betting on a new business model that gives artists a stake in the festivals they create.

With all due respect to our accounting Avengers and the great work they do, it’s hard to believe that most CPAs dreamed of becoming CPAs. That certainly wasn’t the case for John Summit, who went from a monotonous role at Ernst & Young to arguably one of the most exciting careers imaginable: an internationally famous DJ.

Now, in the second year of his Experts Only Festival on Randall’s Island, Summit and his partners at Medium Rare are showcasing a new model for artist ownership, all while bringing the beats.

Summit found his passion for DJing while studying at the University of Illinois, where he played local shows in his free time. After graduation, he moved to Chicago and took a full-time job at Ernst & Young.

“It was a very soulless job in the sense that I had no fulfillment from it whatsoever,” Summit admits to Entrepreneur, “But the hours are super intense, so I had to have that release of just DJing on the weekends.”

For a while, Summit was burning the candle at both ends, grinding through audits during the day while playing local clubs at night.

“None of my coworkers or anything knew,” Summit laughs.

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