T3 Management formed by three friends Zach Friedman, Tony Talamo and Tyler Costantino

ZACH FRIEDMAN remembers meeting Tony Talamo on the bus on the first day of first grade. "He asked me if I thought this girl was hot," said Friedman. "I said yes, and he screamed it to the entire bus and everyone laughed at me. Been friends ever since."

The two grew up in the same development in Voorhees, N.J., where they also became good friends with another neighborhood kid, Tyler Costantino.

The three bonded over a love of music. Friedman and Talamo have long been huge hip-hop fans, while Costantino's affection for the music goes back to the Christmas when he received a keyboard as a gift.

The trio had always wanted to pursue a future in the music business, but they also figured it could wait. After all, Costantino is just 20, while both Talamo and Friedman are all of 21.

Those plans went into overdrive, though, earlier this year. In early April, Friedman stumbled upon the video of 13-year-old rapper Chris Miles, who had applied for the NBC reality show "America's Got Talent." Friedman and friends were reeled in not only by Miles' talent, but by his young age as well. At the time, Miles' video had around 200 views.

Within weeks, the trio contacted Miles and his family to express their interest in managing Miles, and Friedman hopped on a bus to Manhattan for a quick hello. "He literally came to New York City for 30 minutes, met me, shook my hand, got on the bus and turned around and went right back," recalled Miles' father, also named Chris. "That, for me, said a lot."

The trio had a client. They also soon had their first taste of success. In June, they put out the video for Miles' first single, "Dial Tone." After being featured on the World Star Hip Hop website, it racked up 1.3 million views in three days. "This is crazy," Talamo remembered telling his parents, Linda Rosanio and Jan Talamo, co-founders of the Star Group advertising agency. "You've got to help us."

So that's what Talamo's parents did. This summer, with help from the Star Group, Friedman, Costantino and Talamo formed T3, their management company, and they're now working full time to nurture Miles' nascent career. The teenager is set to collaborate with Andrew Garcia, the ninth-place finalist on the ninth season of "American Idol," and is exploring his options about making a full-length album.

For Friedman, Costantino and Talamo, the long-term goal for T3 is to eventually form their own independent record label. For now, though, they are just happy to be working together, continuing something that started on the first day of first grade. "Knowing that I can trust my partners in any situation that arises is the most essential part of operating a business for me," said Costantino.

"We fight all the time," Friedman said, "but I know at the end of the day, these are my best friends, and it's going to be all right."