It's been almost 20 years since Romeo Miller, formerly known as Lil' Romeo, released his debut self-titled album. As the son of hip-hop entrepreneur Master P, he was destined for greatness. Romeo even had a Nickelodeon show that ran for three seasons.

But like many of his contemporaries who start performing from a young age, Romeo had to step back and evaluate what direction he wanted his life to go in.

"I was the biggest music star once upon a time, so I know the work that comes with it, and sadly, it's not easy and it's not as fun as people think," Romeo tells Teen Vogue. "If your heart's not really there, this is going to consume your life. Look at our biggest stars on planet Earth: It's been musicians from Prince to Whitney Houston, Britney Spears."

Before the age of 18, Romeo had a No. 1 on the Billboard hip-hop charts, sold millions of albums, and created a record label with his father. So when the prospect of college was on the table — along with a sense of normalcy — Romeo took it.

"It can consume you," he says about fame. "That lifestyle, it's a monster industry because it spits you up, chews you out, where it's so many people dependent on you. You're the soundtrack of people lives and they want to see you every day. You don't realize, you're flying every other day as a musician. You got to go to this radio station, this concert — you don't have a life."

Romeo put his career on hold and decided to go to University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts, where he learned all aspects of making movies. "I never just wanted to be this famous kid star," he says. "I wanted to learn the grip's job, the director's job, everything."

Fast forward 10 years, and the 29-year-old just produced his first film, I Got the Hook-Up 2, a remake of Master P's 1998 hit. The father-son duo worked to bring the project to life, but with Romeo at the helm, navigating an evolved film industry was all the easier.

"We gave over 124 speaking roles, we gave jobs and opportunities to actors and actresses that Hollywood would never look at," Romeo says about the comedy that he fundraised for and invested his own money into. "I want to be known for just making stars, putting people in the position to give back, and the opportunity that they would've never got."

When asked what surprised him most about making the film, it was, surprisingly, flaky people. "The only thing that surprised me about this project is the people who said they wanted to be a part of it who didn't come through," he says. "Everybody, once they see the success, once they see the end product, that's how it is. It's like you win a championship, you get all these bandwagon fans."

If there's one lesson the budding filmmaker and entrepreneur has learned from his first film — that dropped on all streaming platforms on July 12 — it's that anyone can make a film if they just invest in the work.

"Being an entrepreneur is not easy," he shares. "It's just going to look easy at the end, which is a success. That's what I Got The Hook Up 2 is. We own this, which means we're doing all the dirty work. We're throwing everything out there, we're on the set, we're directing this person, we're making sure this star gets here on time. We're putting money here, we're putting money there.

"You have to invest in yourself," he says. "People don't understand, that's the only way you're going to make real money, the only way you're going to have real happiness. That's the only way you're going to be able to truly do what you want to do."