Chief Change Officer
#292 César Couto Ferreira: Don’t Believe the Hype—Design the Legacy
Sat, 12 Apr 2025
César Couto Ferreira spent over a decade deep in the world of global media—shaping MTV across Europe and Africa, working with stars, and riding the wave from analog to digital. But when Amy Winehouse died, something broke. Not in the headlines, but inside him. He saw how the industry treated artists as content—not people—and decided he couldn’t be part of it anymore. That moment became his call to redesign his life. In this episode, César shares how he left global prestige behind to build systems of real impact—helping governments, mentoring young entrepreneurs, and bringing Web Summit to Portugal. For Gen Xers questioning the legacy of their work, this episode is a gut-check: you can walk away from the machine—and build something that lasts.The Rise and the Reckoning“I was living on the same street as Coldplay. But something felt deeply wrong.”Cesar traces his rise from DJ to MTV exec—and the moment he realized proximity to fame doesn’t mean pride in the system.When Amy Winehouse Died, Everything Shifted“We prepped obituaries like playlists. And then Amy died. I couldn’t unsee it.”Her death wasn’t just tragic—it was Cesar’s breaking point. It made him question everything about the machine he helped run.Leaving the Bright Lights to Build Real Change“I chose to stop. Not because I failed—but because I wanted to design something better.”Cesar reflects on the long walk away from global media—and into tech, civic transformation, and mentorship across Portugal and Brazil.Legacy Over Likes“Media taught me how to influence. Now I’m using that skill for society.”From helping bring Web Summit to Lisbon to working with governments and young founders, Cesar is now designing systems with human value.Advice from a Media Veteran to the Always-Online Generation“Read more books. Touch more people. Don’t believe the hype.”Cesar leaves a timeless reminder: attention is power—and what you do with it matters more than who sees it._________________________Connect with Us:Host: Vince Chan | Guest: Cesar Couto Ferreira --Chief Change Officer--Change Ambitiously. Outgrow Yourself.Open a World of Expansive Human Intelligencefor Transformation Gurus, Black Sheep,Unsung Visionaries & Bold Hearts.EdTech Leadership Awards 2025 Finalist.18 Million+ All-Time Downloads.80+ Countries Reached Daily.Global Top 1.5% Podcast.Top 10 US Business.Top 1 US Careers.>>>170,000+ are outgrowing. Act Today.<<<
Chapter 1: What led César Couto Ferreira to leave the media industry?
It's crazy because I always say to people, reality is much way, way stranger than fiction. The way that we talk, the way people come to me and say, Hey, how is it working with Viacom and all that succession? People think, oh, come on, this is like media moguls, Game of Thrones. It's amazing. You've been there. It's chill, man. It's not like that. It's not like that.
Obviously, there's a lot of things that are inspired in real life, but real life is going to be much more complicated. It's going to be real. It's not science. It's not fiction. Sorry. So when I think about these people and when I think about the person that inspired Jerry Maguire, they are so kind and so humble, full of knowledge. This is what I learned from them. And they are artists of change.
And they know that nothing lasts forever. They know that.
Artists of change. Yes. Change is an art more than a science. You work in a media industry. It's always about the glamour. You travel to all those places, parties, stores.
Yeah, slash the hotel all the time. Exactly. They pump your ego all the time. But if you want to be a pioneer, you're going to face the wall.
Yeah, the wall is right there. It's just right there.
Exactly. It's like when you're the first person in the world to do something, you're touching the wall. It's not like I'm not going to face the wall. I'm touching the wall and I'm trying to understand the texture of the wall and how I can grasp between the branches of the wall.
You've told me before that you're all in for building a legacy. After experiencing the highs and lows of the media and entertainment industry, you've gone on to build ventures and venture ecosystem in Brazil and back home in Portugal. A key highlight, I believe, has been your involvement with the Web Summit in Lisbon. While Patty Cosgrave might be the face and voice of the summit,
You've played a crucial role at a national level, influencing the government to take a leap of faith in integrating tourism with technology. Share with us your involvement in bringing this major event to the forefront. And looking at the bigger picture, what kind of legacy are you aiming to build that makes you proud
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Chapter 2: How did Amy Winehouse's death influence César's career?
in the past, with all the brains from Germany to Jewish going to the U.S. and bringing knowledge, bringing so much knowledge.
Human capital and financial capital, of course, but both.
Exactly.
You have to have both elements in order for the economy to grow, to develop. It actually is the golden rule. It actually is a timeless golden rule.
And there's no fast solutions. We know that in every kind of business, there's no fast solutions. I would love for us to be Sweden. I was in the ecosystem in Stockholm, and they are unbelievable what they do. There are 4.5 million people, if I'm not wrong, in Sweden. And their GDP is crazy. Their level of literacy on every level, it's unbelievable.
So for me, we're not still in that process at all. It's a long way to go. But when I do mentorship and when I see people and I see the talent that we're developing and learning from others, because so much good people from other countries, from other continents are coming to Portugal and bringing so much experience, so much talent, so much knowledge that we're evolving.
Yesterday, I saw a young CEO. She was 27 years old. She started her startup when she was 24. I was amazed by her knowledge. I was amazed by her focus. She was laser focus, major laser focus. And she was not born in Lisbon. She was not born in Oporto. I think it was in Aveiro or something like that. But the level of knowledge that she owns, it's crazy. And she was 27 years old.
I wanted to be her, honestly. I was listening to her and I was seeing what she was saying. And I was like, damn, you're really good. And I'm really happy for that. That's when you ask me, what is my driven? It's all about legacy. I gave an interview once and in the middle, because I don't prepare myself for anything of this. I just go with flow.
It's my way of working because I like to be like this.
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Chapter 3: What was César's journey from MTV to building real change?
People need to read books. People need to work. People need to... And right now, everything's quite fast. The fear of missing out. And there's a lot of hype. I always say to people, don't believe the hype. Don't be blinded by the likes. This is all media and creative cliches, but it's true. Go with the curiosity mind. Just go with this mindset.
If you're doing that, it's already amazing because you learned so much. You're going to learn so much. If anything like a hot topic is going to tell you, okay, let's try to understand crispy additions or let's go to understand a little bit about.
Thank you so much for your wise words and of course your time. Thank you so much for joining us today. If you like what you heard, don't forget, subscribe to our show, leave us top-rated reviews, check out our website, and follow me on social media. I'm Vince Chen, your ambitious human host. Until next time, take care.