June 2, 2025 • 60 mins
What happens when a creative refuses to choose between passion and practicality? Tony Hale III, professional actor and corporate tech professional, shatters the myth that artists must struggle or sacrifice to pursue their craft.
Growing up watching classic films with his grandfather in Memphis, Tony's path to acting wasn't straightforward. A fateful high school elective class introduced him to theater, where his teacher immediately recognized his talent. Fast forward to today, and Tony has built parallel careers – one in acting across various genres and another at a Fortune 500 tech company. Unlike many creatives who see their day jobs as mere financial support, Tony finds genuine fulfillment in both pursuits.
What sets Tony apart is his deliberate approach to selecting roles. "If it's not a challenge, I'm not doing it," he explains, turning down projects that don't align with his artistic vision. This selectivity comes from a desire to portray characters with power and depth rather than perpetuate stereotypes. The result? A portfolio that makes him difficult to typecast and a reputation for exceptional performances.
Behind Tony's success lies a profound personal journey. Through therapy, he's embraced vulnerability both on and off screen – something that has transformed his acting and strengthened his relationships. His commitment to treating everyone with dignity on set comes from remembering his early experiences as an extra and knowing that every role matters in creating something meaningful.
For fellow creatives, Tony offers powerful guidance: "You are your biggest believer. Never let someone put a dollar on your worth." His story shows that with intentional choices, boundary-setting, and the courage to stay true to your values, it's possible to build a creative life that reflects your authentic self over industry expectations.
Whether you're juggling multiple passions or seeking to make bolder moves in your creative path, Tony’s insights will inspire you to approach your art with both heart and strategy.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
But the community here is so amazing and so
tight-knit that there are somany people that believe in me
to do the, believe in me toportray roles to the utmost
ability, because they've seen it, they know it, they don't have
(00:34):
to blink.
If I give Tony, if I give Tonythis chance, tony's going to do
it, tony's going to kill it.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
I got nothing to worry about, so now I will say
that even though you havecommunity, it doesn't mean that
(01:05):
everybody is a part of it, right?
Speaker 3 (01:08):
Hello and welcome to another episode of For the Love
of Creatives.
I'm Maddox and I'm Dwight.
We're the Connections andCommunity Guys, and today we are
joined by our featured guest,tony Hale III.
Welcome, tony.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Hello everyone, great to be here.
Iii.
Welcome, tony Hello everyone.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Great to be here, glad to have you.
So let's dive right in First,before we really get into the
question and answer part.
Tony, we're going to give youan opportunity to introduce
yourself because we're quitesure that you could do a more
thorough job of that than we cando.
So tell you know in just aminute or so.
Tell the audience, tell us whoyou are, what you're about,
(01:46):
whatever you'd like to say.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Perfect, perfect.
As mentioned everyone, my nameis Tony Held III.
I am a professional actorcurrently residing in the Dallas
Texas area.
I grew up, born and raised inMemphis, Tennessee.
I moved here to Dallas inAugust of 2024 from Nashville,
tennessee, which I resided infor about three years.
(02:08):
And just a little bit about myacademic background.
I graduated from the Universityof Tennessee with a bachelor's
in business and graduated fromGeorgetown University with a
master's in IT.
So that's a little bit about myacademic background.
A little bit about me.
Let's see For those, I'm sureeveryone who's going to watch
(02:29):
this you know that I have a hugeknack for the performing arts.
I love the performing arts and,yeah, that's a.
That's a little bit about me.
So it's great to be here, greatto engage in conversation with
these gentlemen and hopefullyprovide some gems that could,
you know, encourage everyone and, you know, help someone to
(02:52):
start in the middle and then goto the other ends.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
But to date, in your creative journey, your creative
career, what is the thing thatyou feel most proud of right now
?
Because we're in the middle ofthe story.
We hadn't gotten to the end ofthe story right now.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
You know, I'm proud of the fact that everyone is
enlightened by the presence thatI give off, by the energy that
I give off in pretty much everyroom that I walk into, right,
and when I first got back intoacting I had no idea where I was
going to go.
And these past three years,since I've been on the TV and
(03:42):
film side, I recently learnedthat I have, that I've motivated
so many people.
You know, I got so much loveand so much respect from a lot
of people in the industry andI'd say that that's a very proud
thing.
You know, motivating people andgiving them something to look
up to is something that I alwaysstrive to, you know, promote
(04:04):
out here in this world, becausewe got enough negativity already
.
And I try to, you know, walk ina different type of light.
I try to, you know, I try to bedifferent than the
stereotypical norms that we'reused to in this industry, really
the world, honestly.
So I try to be different and Itry to, you know, stand on
(04:26):
business, unlike most people whostand on it a different way.
So I just try to be a differentexample and that's and the, the
, the enlightenment and the andthe happiness that I bring to
people on set and pretty mucheverywhere I go is a thing that
I'm the most proud of.
So people on set and prettymuch everywhere I go- is the
thing that I'm the most proud of.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
So, you know, I love what you're saying.
It makes me think of a verywise person many years ago said
to me don't try to be the best.
There's only one spot for thebest.
Try to be different, try to beunique, and that's what I'm
hearing you say.
You know you're looking at allthe industry, people around you
(05:07):
and instead of being the sheep,or being the clone, as we call
it, you are cutting your ownpath and doing it your way.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Absolutely.
When you're talking abouthaving a positive impact on
people, are you talking aboutthe behind the scenes things
when you're on a movie set or aproject, the conversations that
you have, the way you treatpeople, or is it more about the
characters that you play and theway you embody those characters
(05:40):
, the way you take your craftseriously?
Or maybe it's both, but I'dlove to hear more about that.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
It's definitely both.
So I'm going to kind ofreiterate on the first part that
you had spoke about.
So when I'm on every set sohere's the thing about my craft
and my personality right On setI never come in angry.
I always bring great vibes andgreat energies on set.
(06:12):
I don't treat people likethey're less than Like if I'm
the lead or like a supportingcharacter in a film.
I interact with everybody.
I interact with the crew, Iinteract with the extras,
because at the end of the day,we're all required to make this
excitement, to make this project.
So without, without the extras,without the crew people, we
(06:35):
don't, we don't have a movie.
And I understand how it feelsto be small, because when I got
into this, when I got on the TVand film side, I understood what
it was like to feel small.
Right, because I did do someextra roles and all, and I
understand.
And so I never want to givethis idea that I don't remember
(06:57):
how it feels to be small,because I do, and so I always
thought that there was no needto always come with such
negative energy and such a badattitude, which is something
that I see quite often on filmsets, right, so me.
I'm not like that.
Anyone you talk to almosteveryone that you talk to is
going to tell you that Tony isan awesome dude to be around.
(07:19):
Energy is always well.
He's never stuck up, oranything like that.
Energy is always well.
He's never stuck up, oranything like that.
Now for my characters that Iplay.
One thing about all of thecharacters that I play is that
I'm very particular and I'm verystrategic.
Right, I play characters that Iknow I can portray to my utmost
(07:40):
ability, and if I cannotportray those characters to my
utmost ability, I more thanlikely will not accept the role.
So I want people to feel and Iwant people to understand what
it is that I'm trying to convey,the messages that I want to
send in those characters, andwhat I want people to realize is
(08:04):
that I don't play a lot ofstereotypical characters.
I play characters that resemblepower.
For example, I played a periodpiece of a very prominent
character.
I love playing period pieces.
I love playing dramas, comediesand everything.
So each character is arepresentation of they are a
(08:31):
representation of my art, of mytrue artistry and my ability to,
and my ability to, really getthe messages across the way on
one, if that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
So you know I've always read that Johnny Depp is
very much like that.
He's very particular about thecharacters that he plays and
turns down a lot of jobs andI've always admired that about
him.
That's the high road, because alot of people just take
whatever pays the paycheck,right, right, and they get a
role.
And even if it's a bad rolethey take it because you know
(09:07):
it's a job.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
Oh yeah, absolutely, and and and, and.
Don't get me wrong at all.
There is nothing wrong withmaking, with, with making money
for doing something that youlove to do.
Just don't let that be the onlything that you're after.
Like you, you have to be aftermore than just that.
Right Cause for cause.
For me, um, I care abouttelling a great story.
(09:32):
I care about telling a greatstory and having my audiences
just wowed by the performancesthat I put on.
That means a lot more to methan money at times.
Right, because you could pay meprobably half a million to do a
project.
But if I'm going into the movietheaters and then you got
everyone watching my stuff andthen they say it's terrible or
(09:54):
this is bad, or they walk out,that's going to make me feel
some type of way.
So I don't like feeling likethat.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
So yeah, you take real pride in what you do.
You know my situation was very,very different, but it wasn't
fame or anything, but I had myown salon for 40 years and I
cared more about the people thanI did my paycheck.
And you know they would ask fora service that I didn't think
(10:24):
was good for them or right forthem, and I would turn them down
.
I would say no, I won't do that.
So I really respect what you'resaying there.
I want to backtrack for aminute.
You talked about the other sideof it, the treating people on
set as they were equals,treating them with kindness,
respect.
Where did that come from?
(10:45):
What's the root of that?
I mean, I know you said thatyou had been in positions where
you weren't treated as good asyou could have been.
You know you were the extra inthe movie and didn't feel like
you were the equal, but I'mwondering, is it deeper than
that?
Where's the root of that?
Speaker 1 (11:08):
You know, um, I I came up in a pretty, uh, harsh
environment.
Uh, there were a lot of meanpeople around me.
Um, I dealt with a lot of thatand um, and, to be honest, and
and to be honest, I guess Ialways aim to be better than
that and plus the, the, the manwho helped raise me, he was a
(11:32):
kind guy, a very kind man.
He, he was really my bestfriend and I always watched him.
I watched how he treated peopleand I watched, you know, I
watched how he went about thingsand he taught me that right is
nothing but right and wrong isnothing but wrong.
And growing up, you know, I wastaught that I'm not responsible
(11:52):
for how others treat me.
I learned that early, like um,in my early teen years.
But I'm responsible for how Itreat others, not how they treat
me.
Um, and so a lot of the meanpeople I came up around, I did
not like them and I guess that'skind of why I'm like that, Like
I don't want to like.
There's no reason for me to bea mean person, you know.
(12:14):
So it kind of stems from thethings I saw and and it just
stems on how I was raised andtaught.
So normally, when youexperience and you see certain
things in your childhood, itnormally triples over into
adulthood.
But me, I'm always aiming to bebetter, I'm always aiming to
(12:35):
set a great example, and so, um,you know, a big thing that I
did last year to help myself alot more was go to therapy, and
therapy made me a lot moregrounded.
It helped me understand a lotmore about myself as a, as a
(12:58):
person, as a man, you know,because my experiences last year
led me to that.
So, yeah, yeah, I think thatpretty much.
Yeah, I think that answers thequestion.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
Well, you get your walking anomaly, don't you?
I mean, you definitely are notrunning with the sheep.
You're doing life on your terms, chief.
You're doing life on your terms.
I mean, I you know, I've beenaround the block a few times and
although there are some menthat will go to therapy, the
vast majority are that's not.
(13:33):
I mean, you got to talk aboutwhat's going on inside of you
and we're not wired that way.
Most of us.
Speaker 1 (13:39):
Absolutely, and that's something that, oh, I
tell you, nowadays I'm morevulnerable and more open than
I've ever been before, like I,and that's something that I did
not do last year, like earlierlast year.
But as a man, I've had toswallow my pride and I've had to
just be honest with myself,like bro, like you need, you
(14:01):
need to get to the bottom ofsome things, man, like you do.
You need to get to the bottomof some things, man, like you do
.
And going to therapy wasprobably one of the best things
I ever did in my life, the bestthing I could have ever done,
and it led me to the conclusionthat I am human.
I am a human being and I canmake mistakes and I should never
(14:23):
be condemned for makingmistakes that are not life
threatening, that are notharmful to people.
And you know, yeah, I thinkit's.
I think it's important for allmen to do, and I'm and I'm
telling all men now that you donot have to feel bad, you do not
have to feel less of a manbecause you want to get, you
(14:46):
want to get help, you want totalk to someone.
You should never feel that way.
I don't care what, what, whatthe world says I don't care what
, what, what any of that means.
Men have feelings, and men have, and men have have the right to
talk to someone, and at timesthey have the right to cry too.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
So I've done that and that's, I think, our that there
are men who are listening thatneed that permission.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
Absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
Vulnerability is one of my favorite topics.
I could talk about it every day.
I would like to know, as youlean into this vulnerability,
how has it impacted yourcreative journey?
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Oh, that's a great question.
You know, acting on set believeit or not, I'm a lot more
vulnerable when I'm playingcharacters.
Well, let me take that backwhen I'm when I was um the back
then, before I started myhealing journey, I was more
(16:11):
vulnerable with my characterslike being vulnerable, like
acting in those characters thanI was being like vulnerable as
tony.
And the reason why it was likethat was because acting was a
form of therapy for me.
It's still a form of therapy,right, because that was my
(16:32):
escape Playing roles like anarcissist.
I'm not saying that I'm anarcissist or I have that in me,
but sometimes it felt good tolet it all out.
When I'm playing in a dramarole or something, there are
roles where I've had to be veryemotional.
That emotion is there but Tonydoesn't know how to let it out.
(16:53):
But that character Jasper orBrian or anything like that I
don't have to be Tony in thatmoment.
I can be something totallydifferent, you know.
So that was my way of.
That's how it kind of trickledinto my creative side, if that
makes sense.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
I get that.
That would almost be safer,very safe, because you're in
character.
It's like the straight men whoplay gay roles that might not be
as safe in real life, might notbe as comfortable or safe, but
in a role they're able to do itwith ease.
You see it all the time.
(17:32):
Absolutely Mm-hmm, would yousay that, okay, go back, because
you're headed that direction.
But let's go back to thatquestion.
How has that vulnerability, asyou've leaned in, because you
started off being vulnerable inyour characters, then you got
(17:52):
into therapy and now you'rebringing therapy, bringing your
vulnerability, into youreveryday life and into your
career How's that changed things?
Speaker 1 (18:06):
How's that changed your experience?
How's that changed yourexperience?
It's changed a lot, because I'mmore, because now, as a man,
like I'm not, I'm not afraid tobe open.
You know, I'm not afraid, likelike I'm not closed off anymore.
You know, when I go on dateswith other women and stuff like
(18:27):
that, you know I can, it's a loteasier for them to communicate
with me now because I got thathelp, because I'm vulnerable,
right, and it's easier for me tocommunicate with them.
And so it's changed for me in alot of ways, because now, uh,
because, as men, we're, we'revery prideful, we're, we're,
(18:50):
we're, we're very prideful, uh,and some of us have egos and
it's hard for us to be openabout certain certain things,
and I don't have that feelinganymore.
I mean, of course I got alittle bit, but it's not to the
point to where I'm closing offeverything and everybody, if
that makes sense, yes, so Idefinitely feel that it's made
(19:12):
me, it's making my, myfriendships and my relationships
a lot more, you know, strongerit's, it's it's making it, it's
making it easier for me to beopen, and that's something that
I couldn't do before.
I could not do that before.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Do you find that as you step into that vulnerability
, it draws a different kind ofhuman to you?
Speaker 1 (19:39):
Yeah, I think so, and I also think it draws in
different experiences.
Right, for example, I steppedaway from Christ a while back,
right, I wasn't going to church,I pretty much forgot who God
(20:02):
was and all, and so I wanted toget my faith back strong again,
and I was able to do that, andbecause I was vulnerable and I
got the type of help that Ineeded, I was able to establish
a stronger relationship with God, and so I'd say that that's one
example that's beautiful,absolutely, absolutely so, yeah,
(20:31):
I know that, I know that it hadto be a real shift, uh, moving
to this place of being morevulnerable and open, um, and I,
I love the way that you werekind of walking back, how, you
know, you got a little bit ofego, um, but uh, we, we got to
(20:55):
acknowledge that we need some ofit to protect us, you know it's
oh yeah, most, most, most, youdefinitely need, need that right
, right and and you know, um,this is, this is the thing that
I've, that, that I've, that I'mso, so thankful for, I'm so, I'm
(21:16):
so thankful for, for thisbecause, um, you know, I used to
handle conflict a bitdifferently than I do now, and
the reason why I had to go totherapy was because of a
conflictual amount of situationsthat had transpired with me
last year.
(21:37):
Now, I went through a lot lastyear and my whole world just
melted down, right, and you know, there were people who I
thought I could trust.
There were people who came inand made that happen.
Right Now, unhealed version ofme would do everything in his
(22:00):
power to get back at people fordoing such things, right, but I
don't even want to do that.
I don't have to do that, youknow, because and the people
that watch this part, they'rereally going to know that I have
grown a lot, but I don't see aneed to bash anybody.
(22:22):
I don't see a need to, you know, do things that are vengeful at
all, because there is no point.
I believe that everythinghappens for a reason and I
believe that you know part of megrowing and just letting things
run its course is a primeexample of me growing A very big
(22:43):
example.
So you know, and I'm lettingpeople know that I am healed,
that I am healed, I am great, Iam happy, I am proud and it just
is what it is.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Things happen for a reason.
So you're kind of back totalking about kind of setting
some of the ego aside a littlebit, aren't you?
It's a never, ever changingthing.
It's like a continuum and itvacillates back and forth from
one end to the other.
That part, that ego, that wantsto protect us, also wants
revenge when somebody does usbad, and so, yeah, it's learning
(23:24):
to navigate.
That is, it's one of the morechallenging things that we do as
men, absolutely.
So I'd love to go back to thebeginning.
I would love to hear what wasthe first hint that you had that
you were creative.
Speaker 1 (23:43):
Oh, that's a great question.
So let me let me dive into howit all started.
Let me dive into how it allstarted right when, when I was a
kid, I didn't really care toomuch about all of the, all the
sports and and and stuff likethat.
I, I just didn't care about itmuch like that's what everybody
(24:04):
wanted to do.
Everybody wanted to be jordan,everybody wanted to be lebron
and all that stuff there, but me, I.
I always wanted to be my ownindividual, my own person, my
own self.
So when I was growing up, Iloved movies, I loved the movie
theater.
I always watched old movieswith my great grandfather every
(24:27):
day.
We watched different movies allthe time, from Walker the Texas
Ranger, which is a very oldshow before my time Um, just,
you know, that's.
That's something that that Ialways loved.
And I remember growing up I wasprobably like eight or seven
years old at this time Uh, willSmith came out with the movie I
(24:49):
robot at that time and I lovedit, and that's when I knew, you
know what I want to be an actor.
I want to do this one day,right, and so that's what really
.
So all of the things I've seenas a, as a boy, all of the
things that I saw on television.
It stuck with me and that'swhat made me want to get into
(25:13):
the movies instead of, you know,sports and all that other stuff
.
Right, I didn't really care forall that.
And so when I got, so, when Igot to high school, I remember I
needed to get an elective class.
I needed, I needed an elective,and the ones I wanted they were
(25:34):
taken, and the only one thatwas left was like theater.
Right, I didn't really want totake theater because, you know,
stage, just, I just didn't wantto do it.
They told me I had no choice,and so I was like, okay, I'll do
it.
And then that's when I met theteacher.
I still stay in contact withher to this day.
Dr Neomby Webster, a doctoratefrom Drake University, had had
(25:59):
encouraged me to take actingserious because she saw
something.
She saw something that I didn'teven see, and so that's when I
was like, oh, ok, I'll give it atry.
That's when I was like, oh, ok,I'll give it a try.
(26:21):
And so I remember I did myfirst stage play and it was a
full house, it was so manypeople in there, and I was like,
ok, how am I going to do this?
I've been rehearsing, I've beenprepping, I've been doing
everything, went out there doingeverything, went out there.
I killed the performance, theapplause and the people.
That's when I knew I definitelyhave a future in acting.
(26:46):
And so from there I did morestage plays, I did acting
competitions and such, andauditioned for different things,
and all that as a kid.
And when I got to college I tooktheater classes and such to
kind of, you know, build uponwhat I've already learned and
done.
And three years ago was when Idecided that I wanted to take it
(27:07):
to different heights.
I wanted to take it to the, toscreens.
Now, you know, and, um, myfirst gig was on TV one.
That was my first gig.
And since then I've done aplethora of film projects, uh,
from period pieces to dramas, tocomedies, to to commercials and
(27:28):
and music videos and andeverything music videos and
everything, and so, and that'spretty much all she wrote.
And I'm still.
I still got a lot going on.
So just staying busy, lovingart and just taking things day
by day.
Speaker 3 (27:57):
I love the way it goes full circle.
Just when we were talking aboutyour um well, the things that
you you came, came to by way oftherapy, where you were able to
just have the lightness thatcomes from forgiveness, you said
everything happens for a reasonand I could see, you know, when
you had to take that theaterelective.
You didn't want to, but youleaned into it and, once again,
(28:20):
everything happens for a reason.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
No coincidences, yeah , no coincidence.
Speaker 1 (28:27):
Absolutely, and I want people to understand that.
You know, people come into ourlives for for good reasons and I
still stay in contact with herto this day.
I actually played a part in.
We were in a movie togetherlast year and I was able to
(28:47):
convince the creator of thatmovie like, hey, you should get
her.
She's the one that taught meeverything, so she should play
this part, you know.
So that was, that was a proudmoment for me because I felt
like that was an example of megiving back, you know, to her
for what she gave to me and thatwas the happiest thing I could
have ever.
You know, done so, doc, if yousee this video, thank you so
(29:11):
much.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
You know.
I think it's amazing that youknew at age seven you wanted to
act.
I mean, we all had something wewanted to do at seven or eight
years old, but how many of usactually did it?
It's a rare thing.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
Oh yeah, oh yeah.
It's very rare.
And you know, I had no ideathat I would be acting as a.
I had no clue that that thatthat was was was going to happen
.
I had no idea that I would evereven have made it this far.
You know, uh, some things thatwe do in life and try.
We may not ever do.
(29:46):
Well then, but we're doomed ifwe never try.
Had I never tried, I would havenever known that I had the
potential to do great things inthis area.
So I think that we owe it toourselves to take those risks.
Speaker 2 (29:57):
To say yes.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
To say yes.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Even to the things that we don't think we want to
do, like taking a stage actingclass in high school Right right
, Exactly exactly.
So I'm going to ask anotherquestion that I think will be
interesting to our listeners,because this really is.
We may have all kinds of peoplethat listen, but I suspect most
(30:20):
of our listeners are othercreatives, people that are going
through their own journey andtheir own challenges and their
own successes, and creatives.
We have a unique situationbecause oftentimes we lead dual
lives.
We have our craft that we doand our goal oftentimes is to do
(30:45):
that full time, to supportourselves that way.
But it doesn't always work outthat way and oftentimes to get
there we have to have yetanother life, a job, as so many
people love to refer to it as areal job, and I hate that,
because acting is a real job.
Art is a real job.
(31:06):
If you do something and youlove it, it is a real job.
But is there a dual thing goingon for you?
Are you acting full time?
Speaker 1 (31:17):
There is a dual thing going on with me.
There are two passions thatI've always had in life acting
and business.
And I work for a Fortune 500company I work for, do work.
I do work with them a lot,probably one of the most
(31:37):
rewarding experiences I couldever have as a professional.
So, on on the side, um, I workas a business professional.
Um, I've been doing that forthe past five years and and um,
yeah, that's my, that's mysecond love, like technology was
my second love, and you know,um, it's very rewarding.
(31:59):
Um, I do my education.
Um is always going to be one ofthe most um, one of the most
proudest things that I couldhave ever accomplished in life,
and I'm going to use it withouta doubt.
So I don't think there'sanything wrong with having two
(32:20):
passions in your life and that'sOK.
Oh, my gosh.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
I think we should have as many as we want.
I also think it's very rare tohave what you have.
I mean we interview I hate thatword.
Think it's very rare to havewhat you have.
I mean we interview I hate thatword.
We have conversation with a lotof people and many of them have
, you know, their craft and thensome type of a day job or day
work, and oftentimes that dayjob is not something that feeds
(32:47):
their soul or that they love todo.
It merely puts food on thetable and a roof over their head
and funds the supplies and thethings to do their craft.
Whatever that looks like,you're unique.
I have yet to talk to anybodythat loved both gigs the way
you're describing loving bothgigs Absolutely, absolutely.
(33:09):
Now, how much of that do youthink just kind of happened and
how much of that do you thinkwas very intentional on your
part, like, like you set out todo that and this is something
you have achieved?
I have two passions.
I have two professions that I'min, that I love and feel
passionate about.
Was that all intentional?
Was that the plan that?
Speaker 1 (33:31):
was always the plan.
Um, when I was um as a kid, youknow, I knew that I wanted to
do something in the academicrealm as as as well, because,
even at a young, younger age, Iknew that I had to be realistic
(33:52):
about things, right Like there.
There are times where you, you,I, had to be realistic about
things, right like there.
There are times where you, you,just have to be realistic about
life and um, I knew that.
I knew that I had to pushmyself to a greater height when
it came to, you know, um, whenit came to balancing my creative
(34:13):
career and my real and my othercareer I don't like to say my
acting career and my job,because I have two careers that
I'm, that I'm in.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
So language is important yes, yes, yes.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
So I, I I have two careers and I have two passions.
When I was, when I was like 16years old, I had my very first
job in high school, right, and Iworked as a bag boy at Kroger's
and, believe it or not, thatwas a very interesting
experience for me and it was anexperience I'll never forget,
(34:51):
but I did not like it.
It was an experience I'll neverforget, but I did not like it.
I did not like doing that work.
I was.
I had to stand up all day, pushbaskets in the cold and all
that stuff there.
And when I was doing that forabout probably a month, uh, when
I was doing that, um, I knewthat I did not want that to be
(35:16):
my future.
If I was going to chase acreative career or anything like
that, I'm not going to be doingthis and then focusing on that
one, right?
So if it's going to besomething that I work, it's
going to be something thatactually treats me with dignity
and that actually pays me prettydamn well.
So that's when I knew, okay,I'm definitely going to put a
lot more time into two passionsbusiness technology and acting.
(35:43):
So that's when I came to thatconclusion, and part of part of
that drive that I had came froma lot of the doubt, not not the
doubt that I had for myself, butthe doubt that that that other
people had for me.
(36:03):
Because when I I had got let gofrom that terrible job I had at
the grocery store, I got let goand it just was what it was.
And word got out around schooland all that stuff there and
there were some people that kindof gave me hell about it.
(36:24):
They were questioning me likewhy did you get fired?
How did you get fired?
Are you insane or are youstupid?
And then I was thinking tomyself, wow, like, like, like
these idiots really think thatworking, that working there was
(36:44):
going to be my future.
They actually thought that itwas right.
Like I, I'm I'm laughing, justI laugh a lot now just thinking
about it.
And so that's when I knew that.
That's when I knew I had to tryfor more than one thing.
I had to have more than onepassion for myself and and, and
(37:08):
it was a way of being realistic,if that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (37:11):
So it makes perfect sense.
Very, very strategic.
That's pretty amazing.
I mean, you definitely have aunique story.
I've not heard anything thatcomes close to this.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah, I know that it must be demanding to meet the
demands of both at times.
Speaker 1 (37:36):
How do you stay well resourced?
Oh, definitely being organized.
Yeah, and I struggle with beingorganized.
I'm just going to be honest,I'm terrible at being organized
because I got so many thingsgoing on at once.
I got people pulling me in thatonce.
I got people pulling me in thatdirection.
I got people pulling me in thatdirection and over the past
(37:58):
couple of years it was hard tomanage that, because there were
times where I got sick.
There were times where peoplejust always blowing up my phone,
like Tony, I need you to dothis for me, I need you to do
that for me, can you come hereon this set, can you come here
on that set?
It was so much of that going on,that my, that, my, that my
(38:19):
health was taking a toll.
Like I tell people like, bro, Ican't look, I appreciate the
opportunity, but I can't do it.
It's, I'm tired, I need rest,but I can't do it.
It's, I'm tired, I need rest,you know.
And then there and then thereis my corporate career.
That's actually not that hardto manage.
That that's not as hard tomanage because I'm only working
(38:41):
for a set amount of hours a day,right?
So, and I think one of thebenefits that came out of COVID
was remote work, so it makes ita lot easier to balance
everything right and working foran amazing company like
Microsoft.
They support our goals and ouraspirations outside of work.
(39:04):
So with Microsoft it definitelymakes it a lot easier to do
right, because they want us tohave a life, they want us to do
different things and also I'mstill working to become more
organized and I've been doing apretty good job at it.
Say yes, but does it have aneffect on my?
(39:30):
Does it have an effect at times?
Almost definitely it does, butit's a work in progress.
Speaker 2 (39:36):
I want to say maybe the first coach that I ever
worked with said to me if youwant to be successful in
business and in life, createsystems that support you, simple
systems that support you.
And I have spent.
Well, that was decades ago, tobe real honest.
That was 2006, so almost 20years ago, and I've spent that
(40:02):
20 years.
And symptoms, I mean thesystems can look almost any way.
Dwight will tell you that Ihave a system for folding the
chip bag down so the chips don'tget stale.
I've taken it to kind of anextreme, but yes, there's alarms
on the phone, there's a varietyof just crazy stuff where I
(40:22):
track stuff, and I have systemson the computer that help me
keep track of, I mean thispodcast oh my God, you know just
a single episode.
There's a gazillion steps thathave to be taken to process and
publish one episode.
I would never, ever be able todo that if I didn't have a
(40:43):
really solid system in place.
Speaker 3 (40:45):
Well, and we also have the community within each
other.
So there are a lot of steps,but we also share the
responsibility, like I do thepromotion, for everything that
we do for the podcast.
Speaker 2 (41:03):
Yes, we divide and conquer.
I do the publishing part of thepodcast and he does the
promotion part of it, and that'swhere our strengths are.
I'm strong in the productionpart publishing and he's much
stronger in the promotion and itworks and I don't think we knew
(41:25):
it was going to unfold that waywhen we started it, but it
certainly has gone that way andit works really well.
He doesn't bother me, he letsme do my thing with the
publishing and I don't muchbother him.
I let him do his thing with thepromotion.
But yes, systems are you know,whether it's timers or an app on
(41:48):
your phone or something,systems are the best.
Speaker 1 (41:52):
Absolutely, absolutely.
You are right about that one,and reminders are too Reminders,
even AI.
It's very helpful, yes.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
I'm leaning in.
In fact, I've been in a summitthis week learning how to
utilize AI more effectively.
It's been a little bitoverwhelming so much information
all at once, but good stuff.
Speaker 1 (42:16):
It's a lot.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Let's talk about perhaps.
Well, I kind of want to know.
The one thing we haven'ttouched on so far is, in all of
this, that you've done the twopassions, the way that you very
intentionally set this all up.
I want to know how hascommunity played a role in all
(42:42):
this?
And I'm going to qualify thator quantify that or whatever the
right word is, clarify that oneof those things.
You know, community can mean alot of different things.
You know, community happens whenthere are two people together,
two or more, and I believe thatwe have lots of communities in
(43:03):
our lives.
You know, our family can be oneof the communities.
Our co-workers can be anothercommunity.
Our work life that could be acommunity.
Maybe we, you know, do a.
You talked about therapy.
Maybe you do some group therapyand now you've got a little
community of people that are inyour therapy group, or, but I
think that you know there's allin all, those communities play a
(43:27):
role, most likely in yourcreative process, but have you
had any interaction orinvolvement in something, some
community that is centeredaround creativity?
Speaker 1 (43:45):
Absolutely, oh yes, most definitely, oh yes, most
(44:12):
definitely.
So I'm going to touch on thisin this way.
My stomping grounds are inNashville, tennessee.
I've definitely had my downsbeing there and I've definitely
had my ups, and I got to givethanks to a lot of individuals
who supported me, who believedin me while I was there.
You know individuals likeCynthia Trice, who gave me my
first short film opportunity.
Ben Oaks, who gave me my firstcommercial, herschel, uh, the.
Canaan Cox, who put me in hisfirst music video.
People, like, like, like him,and um, uh, who else?
(44:43):
Uh, there's a, there's a lot ofpeople who, uh, and I and I I
just can't think of a TalishaWalker, a lot of people you know
.
Those are just some of theindividuals who, uh, who
believed in me, who have alwaysbelieved in me, and, uh, that
that is a prime example ofcommunity.
Um, I gotta also give thank youto the, to the Atlanta film
(45:03):
community as, as well.
I gotta give thanks to, youknow, tnt productions.
I gotta give thank you to, uh,to B Daniel Watkins and so many
other people, my agent,stephanie Olson.
You know those people, thatcommunity, even here in Dallas.
You know I haven't been herethat long.
(45:26):
But the community here is soamazing and so tight knit that
there are so many people thatbelieve in me to do the.
They believe in me to portrayroles to the utmost ability
because they've seen it, theyknow it, they don't have to
blink.
If I give Tony, if I give Tonythis chance, if I give Tony, if
(45:55):
I give Tony this chance, tony'sgoing to do it, tony's going to
kill it.
I got nothing to worry about.
So now I will say that eventhough you have community
doesn't mean it doesn't meanthat that, that everybody, that
everybody's a part of it, right?
So, like I do have instanceslike that too.
I got to touch on that.
One of the things I learned isthat just because you're doing
(46:16):
well, just because you got agreat community, doesn't mean
everybody else is going to likeyou or everyone else is going to
want to see you win.
I've had instances like that.
I've had instances where youknow, like, there are some
communities that do not havestructure, they don't have a
family oriented or tight knitstructure, and I've been a part
(46:41):
of those at times and there aretimes where I've had to you know
, distance myself from those.
But you have those too.
You have to do a great job atpicking your right people and
you have to do a great job atinserting yourself into certain
communities, because noteverybody is going to be for you
.
You know, one of the things thatI learned about this industry
(47:03):
in particular is that there is alot of favoritism, there is a
lot of pretty privilege, thereis a there is a lot of things
that go on under the table thatyou sometimes cannot see.
But this industry when you seesomething, believe it.
When you hear something, don'tbe so quick to believe it, but
(47:26):
definitely don't ignore it,because that's just how some
communities are.
You know, some communities aremanipulative.
Some communities use you tobuild blueprints for people that
are already established.
That kind of thing happens, andI'm saying this because I want
(47:47):
creatives to understandsomething is that you are your
biggest believer.
You are your biggest advocate.
Never, ever, ever, let someoneput, never let someone put a
dollar.
(48:07):
Don't let them put a dollar onyour word.
You decide that I always decidethat there are, there are people
who know better when they, whenthey, when they contact me or
they reach out to me aboutcertain certain, certain certain
things, they know better.
They know not to.
They know not to call Tonyabout that, because they know
Tony's not going to do it.
So you've set boundaries.
(48:29):
I definitely set boundaries andin the beginning I wasn't like
that.
I wasn't like that at firstbecause I didn't have the
portfolio that I have now, Ididn't have the reach that I
have now and I didn't have theamount of power that I possess
now.
I didn't have that at first.
(48:50):
But once you get that, you haveto let certain people
understand like, hey, listen, Iappreciate you for you know,
sending this opportunity my way.
But given the circumstances andgiven everything that I have
noticed and seen, someone elsemay be a better fit for this,
not me, because if the value isnot there, you don't really want
(49:16):
to make something great.
Speaker 3 (49:19):
That's a great knowledge bomb right there, and
I love the way it circles backto how you were so intentional
about carving your path andmaking sure that you did things
that were in alignment withwhere you wanted to be it is
definitely a wisdom andknowledge bomb.
Speaker 2 (49:40):
You know, uh, there is something very um empowering
about being able to take thejobs you want and turn down the
jobs you don't want.
Or you know, in my case it waswork with the clients that I
wanted to work with and not workwith the clients that I didn't
(50:03):
want to work with.
I think one of the biggestinjustices that we do to
ourselves is take a job or takea client that's not a good fit
for us.
You know, when you're young andhungry you do that shit, but
there's a point where yourealize that's not good for me
and if I'm going to go the wholeenchilada, I got to pull back
(50:28):
and only do good stuff that'sgood for me.
Speaker 1 (50:32):
Absolutely, absolutely.
And I turn down opportunities.
You guys just don't know I turndown opportunities all the time
.
Speaker 2 (50:42):
You know, on some level, tony, that makes you more
desirable, because when youtake every job that smells like
desperation and people, whenthey smell that desperation, in
that moment whether it's arelationship or a job you become
less desirable.
People are not attracted todesperation.
Speaker 3 (51:02):
Yeah it doesn't doesn't smell good.
Speaker 2 (51:05):
It does not smell good.
Speaker 1 (51:07):
And there are a lot of, and there are a lot of.
There are a lot of actors thatdo do that because they're just
trying to make it and you can'tbe mad at them.
But, honestly, me, I care a lotabout my craft and I care a lot
about my viewers, and nothing Ihave done is bad.
(51:27):
I have not been in a badproject.
Everything I've done isperformed to its best ability.
I can't put trash on.
I cannot do trash.
I can't do anything.
I can't do too manystereotypical parts.
I can't do it.
I got to have versatility andthat's kind of why and I have to
(51:52):
give myself a pat on the backfor this one but I have made it
extremely difficult to typecastme because I've been in so many
different genres and people knowthat you can't keep me in one
area.
You can't do that, and so oneof the things I learned from
watching Will Smith as a kid wasthat this guy can do any role.
(52:14):
He can act like anybody, andthat's when I was telling myself
OK, you know what?
I got to do it like he's doingit, because he's not just just
just doing anything, he's takingroles that are a challenge, and
I tell people.
If your project is not achallenge to me, I'm not doing
it.
Speaker 2 (52:34):
That's a rare talent and a gift.
I think you know we see actorsthat they kind of act the same
in each role, no matter whatmovie they're in.
It's kind of their characterthat they do male and female.
I see it all the time.
And then there are those,certainly like Will Smith, who
can be so completely differentin every role that you don't,
(52:55):
even if you closed your eyes,you know you wouldn't recognize
him at all, because he's so, sodifferent.
He may look the same, but well,we're kind of running a little
bit low on time.
So, in a nutshell, and thenwe'll get on to our rapid fire
questions.
(53:16):
In a nutshell, what's your nextstep?
Speaker 1 (53:31):
I do got a couple of projects that are coming out
this year.
I got some stuff that I'mworking on now.
I'm working on something thisweekend.
Actually, I might be working onsomething next weekend, and
let's just say what is to come.
I think people are going to bevery, very, very intrigued by
(53:51):
what they see from me and Ithink that I think personally,
professionally and everythingelse, that I'm going to make my
mark in the film world, withouta doubt.
Speaker 2 (54:01):
You know, you're really reminding me of something
right now.
I've been in this conferenceall week long listening to all
these gurus, and yesterday oneof them said that you've got to.
When you get in front of people, you have to ditch the humility
.
He said I'm a very humbleperson, but when I'm marketing
(54:24):
myself and when you're marketingis different for you.
When you're marketing, it'sgoing to auditions, it's showing
up in public places and beingseen.
Here you are in thisconversation and you are owning
who you are.
He said ditch the humility andbe bold.
Now, he said I'm not telling youto be ego-driven and maniacal,
(54:50):
or that's not the word I'mlooking for.
I make words up, anyway,egomaniac or boastful or you
know that, but be bold and youdefinitely have that going on
and that, I think, worksmassively to your favor, and I
wanted to call that out and saythat because that applies to any
(55:11):
of us.
Whatever your creative endeavoris, boldness is going to be
where it will get you therewards that you're looking for
Bold.
I have a little necklace aroundmy neck that I made and on it
it's a ring with it's stampedand it says audacity, because
(55:31):
that's what I am working onbeing audacious in my life,
because I know that those thatstep up and make bold moves are
the ones that get what they want.
Speaker 1 (55:43):
Absolutely, absolutely.
I couldn't agree more, I couldnot agree more.
So I just tell people and youguys, just stay tuned for a lot
more.
Speaker 2 (55:54):
Well, and just so the listeners know, tony will have
a profile in the show notes ofthis episode, so you can cruise
his profile, probably see socialmedia links there if you want
to follow him.
This has been amazing.
I really enjoyed theconversation and learning so
much about you, tony.
(56:15):
And now, if you're ready, we'llget to some rapid fire
questions, and these are easy.
These are easy peasy.
Number one who's a creativerole model you look up to?
Speaker 1 (56:34):
I got two of them.
One is an A-list actor, andthat would be Will Smith.
Two is the woman that taught meacting, Dr Webster.
She's the other person that Ilooked up to.
That's.
That's the person that taughtme everything I know about
acting.
Speaker 2 (56:53):
Beautiful.
Next question what's the bestdecision you've ever made in
your creative career?
Speaker 1 (57:06):
I would have to say I've made.
I have two of them.
One was choosing to expand myand expand type of strategy.
Speaker 3 (57:36):
And two was going to therapy.
Speaker 2 (57:38):
I love that, I love that too.
Speaker 3 (57:39):
I'm reminded of how it is that when you plant a tree
and a pot, it's limited to theconfines of that pot.
You got to put it in the groundfor it to really reach out its
roots and expand so that it hasa chance to really take hold and
be firm and get strong and livefor a long time.
Speaker 2 (58:02):
Awesome, great metaphor, dwight and final
question what's one lessonyou've learned from your
creative community?
Speaker 1 (58:23):
I'll tell you one lesson that I learned that I
don't want to, one lesson that Ilearned that I don't want to
commit as a creative, and thatis being a two faced person.
I've seen a lot of that.
That's not how I roll, that'snot how I am.
(58:44):
That's one thing I learned notto do.
I can't say that yeah, that'sone thing I learned not to do,
because there's a lot of thingsabout this industry that that
you can learn, but I thinkthere's a ton of things that
that people ignore, and that'sthe things and those are the
(59:12):
things that you shouldn't do.
Speaker 2 (59:12):
If that makes sense, makes perfect sense, yeah, yeah.
So it's not something theytaught you like oh, let us teach
you this, tony.
It was something they taughtyou by you just observing the
general behavior.
I call those backhandedlearning lessons, backhanded
teaching.
Yeah, love it, get it and loveit completely.
(59:32):
Sounds good, sounds good.
Well, this has been a completejoy.
I've really enjoyed hearingabout your story and finding out
more about you.
Thank you so much for yourcontribution to the podcast and
to all of our listeners.
Speaker 3 (59:47):
Yes, thank you so much, tony.
We're glad that you joined usto all of our listeners.
Speaker 1 (59:51):
Yes, thank you so much, tony.
We're glad that you joined us.
Absolutely.
Thank you guys for having me.
I hope everyone enjoys this andlearns something from it and
yeah.
But the community here is so amazing and so
tight-knit that there are somany people that believe in me
to do the, believe in me toportray roles to the utmost
ability, because they've seen it, they know it, they don't have
(00:34):
to blink.
If I give Tony, if I give Tonythis chance, tony's going to do
it, tony's going to kill it.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
I got nothing to worry about, so now I will say
that even though you havecommunity, it doesn't mean that
(01:05):
everybody is a part of it, right?
Speaker 3 (01:08):
Hello and welcome to another episode of For the Love
of Creatives.
I'm Maddox and I'm Dwight.
We're the Connections andCommunity Guys, and today we are
joined by our featured guest,tony Hale III.
Welcome, tony.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Hello everyone, great to be here.
Iii.
Welcome, tony Hello everyone.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Great to be here, glad to have you.
So let's dive right in First,before we really get into the
question and answer part.
Tony, we're going to give youan opportunity to introduce
yourself because we're quitesure that you could do a more
thorough job of that than we cando.
So tell you know in just aminute or so.
Tell the audience, tell us whoyou are, what you're about,
(01:46):
whatever you'd like to say.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Perfect, perfect.
As mentioned everyone, my nameis Tony Held III.
I am a professional actorcurrently residing in the Dallas
Texas area.
I grew up, born and raised inMemphis, Tennessee.
I moved here to Dallas inAugust of 2024 from Nashville,
tennessee, which I resided infor about three years.
(02:08):
And just a little bit about myacademic background.
I graduated from the Universityof Tennessee with a bachelor's
in business and graduated fromGeorgetown University with a
master's in IT.
So that's a little bit about myacademic background.
A little bit about me.
Let's see For those, I'm sureeveryone who's going to watch
(02:29):
this you know that I have a hugeknack for the performing arts.
I love the performing arts and,yeah, that's a.
That's a little bit about me.
So it's great to be here, greatto engage in conversation with
these gentlemen and hopefullyprovide some gems that could,
you know, encourage everyone and, you know, help someone to
(02:52):
start in the middle and then goto the other ends.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
But to date, in your creative journey, your creative
career, what is the thing thatyou feel most proud of right now
?
Because we're in the middle ofthe story.
We hadn't gotten to the end ofthe story right now.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
You know, I'm proud of the fact that everyone is
enlightened by the presence thatI give off, by the energy that
I give off in pretty much everyroom that I walk into, right,
and when I first got back intoacting I had no idea where I was
going to go.
And these past three years,since I've been on the TV and
(03:42):
film side, I recently learnedthat I have, that I've motivated
so many people.
You know, I got so much loveand so much respect from a lot
of people in the industry andI'd say that that's a very proud
thing.
You know, motivating people andgiving them something to look
up to is something that I alwaysstrive to, you know, promote
(04:04):
out here in this world, becausewe got enough negativity already
.
And I try to, you know, walk ina different type of light.
I try to, you know, I try to bedifferent than the
stereotypical norms that we'reused to in this industry, really
the world, honestly.
So I try to be different and Itry to, you know, stand on
(04:26):
business, unlike most people whostand on it a different way.
So I just try to be a differentexample and that's and the, the
, the enlightenment and the andthe happiness that I bring to
people on set and pretty mucheverywhere I go is a thing that
I'm the most proud of.
So people on set and prettymuch everywhere I go- is the
thing that I'm the most proud of.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
So, you know, I love what you're saying.
It makes me think of a verywise person many years ago said
to me don't try to be the best.
There's only one spot for thebest.
Try to be different, try to beunique, and that's what I'm
hearing you say.
You know you're looking at allthe industry, people around you
(05:07):
and instead of being the sheep,or being the clone, as we call
it, you are cutting your ownpath and doing it your way.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
Absolutely.
When you're talking abouthaving a positive impact on
people, are you talking aboutthe behind the scenes things
when you're on a movie set or aproject, the conversations that
you have, the way you treatpeople, or is it more about the
characters that you play and theway you embody those characters
(05:40):
, the way you take your craftseriously?
Or maybe it's both, but I'dlove to hear more about that.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
It's definitely both.
So I'm going to kind ofreiterate on the first part that
you had spoke about.
So when I'm on every set sohere's the thing about my craft
and my personality right On setI never come in angry.
I always bring great vibes andgreat energies on set.
(06:12):
I don't treat people likethey're less than Like if I'm
the lead or like a supportingcharacter in a film.
I interact with everybody.
I interact with the crew, Iinteract with the extras,
because at the end of the day,we're all required to make this
excitement, to make this project.
So without, without the extras,without the crew people, we
(06:35):
don't, we don't have a movie.
And I understand how it feelsto be small, because when I got
into this, when I got on the TVand film side, I understood what
it was like to feel small.
Right, because I did do someextra roles and all, and I
understand.
And so I never want to givethis idea that I don't remember
(06:57):
how it feels to be small,because I do, and so I always
thought that there was no needto always come with such
negative energy and such a badattitude, which is something
that I see quite often on filmsets, right, so me.
I'm not like that.
Anyone you talk to almosteveryone that you talk to is
going to tell you that Tony isan awesome dude to be around.
(07:19):
Energy is always well.
He's never stuck up, oranything like that.
Energy is always well.
He's never stuck up, oranything like that.
Now for my characters that Iplay.
One thing about all of thecharacters that I play is that
I'm very particular and I'm verystrategic.
Right, I play characters that Iknow I can portray to my utmost
(07:40):
ability, and if I cannotportray those characters to my
utmost ability, I more thanlikely will not accept the role.
So I want people to feel and Iwant people to understand what
it is that I'm trying to convey,the messages that I want to
send in those characters, andwhat I want people to realize is
(08:04):
that I don't play a lot ofstereotypical characters.
I play characters that resemblepower.
For example, I played a periodpiece of a very prominent
character.
I love playing period pieces.
I love playing dramas, comediesand everything.
So each character is arepresentation of they are a
(08:31):
representation of my art, of mytrue artistry and my ability to,
and my ability to, really getthe messages across the way on
one, if that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
So you know I've always read that Johnny Depp is
very much like that.
He's very particular about thecharacters that he plays and
turns down a lot of jobs andI've always admired that about
him.
That's the high road, because alot of people just take
whatever pays the paycheck,right, right, and they get a
role.
And even if it's a bad rolethey take it because you know
(09:07):
it's a job.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
Oh yeah, absolutely, and and and, and.
Don't get me wrong at all.
There is nothing wrong withmaking, with, with making money
for doing something that youlove to do.
Just don't let that be the onlything that you're after.
Like you, you have to be aftermore than just that.
Right Cause for cause.
For me, um, I care abouttelling a great story.
(09:32):
I care about telling a greatstory and having my audiences
just wowed by the performancesthat I put on.
That means a lot more to methan money at times.
Right, because you could pay meprobably half a million to do a
project.
But if I'm going into the movietheaters and then you got
everyone watching my stuff andthen they say it's terrible or
(09:54):
this is bad, or they walk out,that's going to make me feel
some type of way.
So I don't like feeling likethat.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
So yeah, you take real pride in what you do.
You know my situation was very,very different, but it wasn't
fame or anything, but I had myown salon for 40 years and I
cared more about the people thanI did my paycheck.
And you know they would ask fora service that I didn't think
(10:24):
was good for them or right forthem, and I would turn them down
.
I would say no, I won't do that.
So I really respect what you'resaying there.
I want to backtrack for aminute.
You talked about the other sideof it, the treating people on
set as they were equals,treating them with kindness,
respect.
Where did that come from?
(10:45):
What's the root of that?
I mean, I know you said thatyou had been in positions where
you weren't treated as good asyou could have been.
You know you were the extra inthe movie and didn't feel like
you were the equal, but I'mwondering, is it deeper than
that?
Where's the root of that?
Speaker 1 (11:08):
You know, um, I I came up in a pretty, uh, harsh
environment.
Uh, there were a lot of meanpeople around me.
Um, I dealt with a lot of thatand um, and, to be honest, and
and to be honest, I guess Ialways aim to be better than
that and plus the, the, the manwho helped raise me, he was a
(11:32):
kind guy, a very kind man.
He, he was really my bestfriend and I always watched him.
I watched how he treated peopleand I watched, you know, I
watched how he went about thingsand he taught me that right is
nothing but right and wrong isnothing but wrong.
And growing up, you know, I wastaught that I'm not responsible
(11:52):
for how others treat me.
I learned that early, like um,in my early teen years.
But I'm responsible for how Itreat others, not how they treat
me.
Um, and so a lot of the meanpeople I came up around, I did
not like them and I guess that'skind of why I'm like that, Like
I don't want to like.
There's no reason for me to bea mean person, you know.
(12:14):
So it kind of stems from thethings I saw and and it just
stems on how I was raised andtaught.
So normally, when youexperience and you see certain
things in your childhood, itnormally triples over into
adulthood.
But me, I'm always aiming to bebetter, I'm always aiming to
(12:35):
set a great example, and so, um,you know, a big thing that I
did last year to help myself alot more was go to therapy, and
therapy made me a lot moregrounded.
It helped me understand a lotmore about myself as a, as a
(12:58):
person, as a man, you know,because my experiences last year
led me to that.
So, yeah, yeah, I think thatpretty much.
Yeah, I think that answers thequestion.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
Well, you get your walking anomaly, don't you?
I mean, you definitely are notrunning with the sheep.
You're doing life on your terms, chief.
You're doing life on your terms.
I mean, I you know, I've beenaround the block a few times and
although there are some menthat will go to therapy, the
vast majority are that's not.
(13:33):
I mean, you got to talk aboutwhat's going on inside of you
and we're not wired that way.
Most of us.
Speaker 1 (13:39):
Absolutely, and that's something that, oh, I
tell you, nowadays I'm morevulnerable and more open than
I've ever been before, like I,and that's something that I did
not do last year, like earlierlast year.
But as a man, I've had toswallow my pride and I've had to
just be honest with myself,like bro, like you need, you
(14:01):
need to get to the bottom ofsome things, man, like you do.
You need to get to the bottomof some things, man, like you do
.
And going to therapy wasprobably one of the best things
I ever did in my life, the bestthing I could have ever done,
and it led me to the conclusionthat I am human.
I am a human being and I canmake mistakes and I should never
(14:23):
be condemned for makingmistakes that are not life
threatening, that are notharmful to people.
And you know, yeah, I thinkit's.
I think it's important for allmen to do, and I'm and I'm
telling all men now that you donot have to feel bad, you do not
have to feel less of a manbecause you want to get, you
(14:46):
want to get help, you want totalk to someone.
You should never feel that way.
I don't care what, what, whatthe world says I don't care what
, what, what any of that means.
Men have feelings, and men have, and men have have the right to
talk to someone, and at timesthey have the right to cry too.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
So I've done that and that's, I think, our that there
are men who are listening thatneed that permission.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
Absolutely, absolutely.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
Vulnerability is one of my favorite topics.
I could talk about it every day.
I would like to know, as youlean into this vulnerability,
how has it impacted yourcreative journey?
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Oh, that's a great question.
You know, acting on set believeit or not, I'm a lot more
vulnerable when I'm playingcharacters.
Well, let me take that backwhen I'm when I was um the back
then, before I started myhealing journey, I was more
(16:11):
vulnerable with my characterslike being vulnerable, like
acting in those characters thanI was being like vulnerable as
tony.
And the reason why it was likethat was because acting was a
form of therapy for me.
It's still a form of therapy,right, because that was my
(16:32):
escape Playing roles like anarcissist.
I'm not saying that I'm anarcissist or I have that in me,
but sometimes it felt good tolet it all out.
When I'm playing in a dramarole or something, there are
roles where I've had to be veryemotional.
That emotion is there but Tonydoesn't know how to let it out.
(16:53):
But that character Jasper orBrian or anything like that I
don't have to be Tony in thatmoment.
I can be something totallydifferent, you know.
So that was my way of.
That's how it kind of trickledinto my creative side, if that
makes sense.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
I get that.
That would almost be safer,very safe, because you're in
character.
It's like the straight men whoplay gay roles that might not be
as safe in real life, might notbe as comfortable or safe, but
in a role they're able to do itwith ease.
You see it all the time.
(17:32):
Absolutely Mm-hmm, would yousay that, okay, go back, because
you're headed that direction.
But let's go back to thatquestion.
How has that vulnerability, asyou've leaned in, because you
started off being vulnerable inyour characters, then you got
(17:52):
into therapy and now you'rebringing therapy, bringing your
vulnerability, into youreveryday life and into your
career How's that changed things?
Speaker 1 (18:06):
How's that changed your experience?
How's that changed yourexperience?
It's changed a lot, because I'mmore, because now, as a man,
like I'm not, I'm not afraid tobe open.
You know, I'm not afraid, likelike I'm not closed off anymore.
You know, when I go on dateswith other women and stuff like
(18:27):
that, you know I can, it's a loteasier for them to communicate
with me now because I got thathelp, because I'm vulnerable,
right, and it's easier for me tocommunicate with them.
And so it's changed for me in alot of ways, because now, uh,
because, as men, we're, we'revery prideful, we're, we're,
(18:50):
we're, we're very prideful, uh,and some of us have egos and
it's hard for us to be openabout certain certain things,
and I don't have that feelinganymore.
I mean, of course I got alittle bit, but it's not to the
point to where I'm closing offeverything and everybody, if
that makes sense, yes, so Idefinitely feel that it's made
(19:12):
me, it's making my, myfriendships and my relationships
a lot more, you know, strongerit's, it's it's making it, it's
making it easier for me to beopen, and that's something that
I couldn't do before.
I could not do that before.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Do you find that as you step into that vulnerability
, it draws a different kind ofhuman to you?
Speaker 1 (19:39):
Yeah, I think so, and I also think it draws in
different experiences.
Right, for example, I steppedaway from Christ a while back,
right, I wasn't going to church,I pretty much forgot who God
(20:02):
was and all, and so I wanted toget my faith back strong again,
and I was able to do that, andbecause I was vulnerable and I
got the type of help that Ineeded, I was able to establish
a stronger relationship with God, and so I'd say that that's one
example that's beautiful,absolutely, absolutely so, yeah,
(20:31):
I know that, I know that it hadto be a real shift, uh, moving
to this place of being morevulnerable and open, um, and I,
I love the way that you werekind of walking back, how, you
know, you got a little bit ofego, um, but uh, we, we got to
(20:55):
acknowledge that we need some ofit to protect us, you know it's
oh yeah, most, most, most, youdefinitely need, need that right
, right and and you know, um,this is, this is the thing that
I've, that, that I've, that I'mso, so thankful for, I'm so, I'm
(21:16):
so thankful for, for thisbecause, um, you know, I used to
handle conflict a bitdifferently than I do now, and
the reason why I had to go totherapy was because of a
conflictual amount of situationsthat had transpired with me
last year.
(21:37):
Now, I went through a lot lastyear and my whole world just
melted down, right, and you know, there were people who I
thought I could trust.
There were people who came inand made that happen.
Right Now, unhealed version ofme would do everything in his
(22:00):
power to get back at people fordoing such things, right, but I
don't even want to do that.
I don't have to do that, youknow, because and the people
that watch this part, they'rereally going to know that I have
grown a lot, but I don't see aneed to bash anybody.
(22:22):
I don't see a need to, you know, do things that are vengeful at
all, because there is no point.
I believe that everythinghappens for a reason and I
believe that you know part of megrowing and just letting things
run its course is a primeexample of me growing A very big
(22:43):
example.
So you know, and I'm lettingpeople know that I am healed,
that I am healed, I am great, Iam happy, I am proud and it just
is what it is.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Things happen for a reason.
So you're kind of back totalking about kind of setting
some of the ego aside a littlebit, aren't you?
It's a never, ever changingthing.
It's like a continuum and itvacillates back and forth from
one end to the other.
That part, that ego, that wantsto protect us, also wants
revenge when somebody does usbad, and so, yeah, it's learning
(23:24):
to navigate.
That is, it's one of the morechallenging things that we do as
men, absolutely.
So I'd love to go back to thebeginning.
I would love to hear what wasthe first hint that you had that
you were creative.
Speaker 1 (23:43):
Oh, that's a great question.
So let me let me dive into howit all started.
Let me dive into how it allstarted right when, when I was a
kid, I didn't really care toomuch about all of the, all the
sports and and and stuff likethat.
I, I just didn't care about itmuch like that's what everybody
(24:04):
wanted to do.
Everybody wanted to be jordan,everybody wanted to be lebron
and all that stuff there, but me, I.
I always wanted to be my ownindividual, my own person, my
own self.
So when I was growing up, Iloved movies, I loved the movie
theater.
I always watched old movieswith my great grandfather every
(24:27):
day.
We watched different movies allthe time, from Walker the Texas
Ranger, which is a very oldshow before my time Um, just,
you know, that's.
That's something that that Ialways loved.
And I remember growing up I wasprobably like eight or seven
years old at this time Uh, willSmith came out with the movie I
(24:49):
robot at that time and I lovedit, and that's when I knew, you
know what I want to be an actor.
I want to do this one day,right, and so that's what really
.
So all of the things I've seenas a, as a boy, all of the
things that I saw on television.
It stuck with me and that'swhat made me want to get into
(25:13):
the movies instead of, you know,sports and all that other stuff
.
Right, I didn't really care forall that.
And so when I got, so, when Igot to high school, I remember I
needed to get an elective class.
I needed, I needed an elective,and the ones I wanted they were
(25:34):
taken, and the only one thatwas left was like theater.
Right, I didn't really want totake theater because, you know,
stage, just, I just didn't wantto do it.
They told me I had no choice,and so I was like, okay, I'll do
it.
And then that's when I met theteacher.
I still stay in contact withher to this day.
Dr Neomby Webster, a doctoratefrom Drake University, had had
(25:59):
encouraged me to take actingserious because she saw
something.
She saw something that I didn'teven see, and so that's when I
was like, oh, ok, I'll give it atry.
That's when I was like, oh, ok,I'll give it a try.
(26:21):
And so I remember I did myfirst stage play and it was a
full house, it was so manypeople in there, and I was like,
ok, how am I going to do this?
I've been rehearsing, I've beenprepping, I've been doing
everything, went out there doingeverything, went out there.
I killed the performance, theapplause and the people.
That's when I knew I definitelyhave a future in acting.
(26:46):
And so from there I did morestage plays, I did acting
competitions and such, andauditioned for different things,
and all that as a kid.
And when I got to college I tooktheater classes and such to
kind of, you know, build uponwhat I've already learned and
done.
And three years ago was when Idecided that I wanted to take it
(27:07):
to different heights.
I wanted to take it to the, toscreens.
Now, you know, and, um, myfirst gig was on TV one.
That was my first gig.
And since then I've done aplethora of film projects, uh,
from period pieces to dramas, tocomedies, to to commercials and
(27:28):
and music videos and andeverything music videos and
everything, and so, and that'spretty much all she wrote.
And I'm still.
I still got a lot going on.
So just staying busy, lovingart and just taking things day
by day.
Speaker 3 (27:57):
I love the way it goes full circle.
Just when we were talking aboutyour um well, the things that
you you came, came to by way oftherapy, where you were able to
just have the lightness thatcomes from forgiveness, you said
everything happens for a reasonand I could see, you know, when
you had to take that theaterelective.
You didn't want to, but youleaned into it and, once again,
(28:20):
everything happens for a reason.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
No coincidences, yeah , no coincidence.
Speaker 1 (28:27):
Absolutely, and I want people to understand that.
You know, people come into ourlives for for good reasons and I
still stay in contact with herto this day.
I actually played a part in.
We were in a movie togetherlast year and I was able to
(28:47):
convince the creator of thatmovie like, hey, you should get
her.
She's the one that taught meeverything, so she should play
this part, you know.
So that was, that was a proudmoment for me because I felt
like that was an example of megiving back, you know, to her
for what she gave to me and thatwas the happiest thing I could
have ever.
You know, done so, doc, if yousee this video, thank you so
(29:11):
much.
Speaker 2 (29:17):
You know.
I think it's amazing that youknew at age seven you wanted to
act.
I mean, we all had something wewanted to do at seven or eight
years old, but how many of usactually did it?
It's a rare thing.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
Oh yeah, oh yeah.
It's very rare.
And you know, I had no ideathat I would be acting as a.
I had no clue that that thatthat was was was going to happen
.
I had no idea that I would evereven have made it this far.
You know, uh, some things thatwe do in life and try.
We may not ever do.
(29:46):
Well then, but we're doomed ifwe never try.
Had I never tried, I would havenever known that I had the
potential to do great things inthis area.
So I think that we owe it toourselves to take those risks.
Speaker 2 (29:57):
To say yes.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
To say yes.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Even to the things that we don't think we want to
do, like taking a stage actingclass in high school Right right
, Exactly exactly.
So I'm going to ask anotherquestion that I think will be
interesting to our listeners,because this really is.
We may have all kinds of peoplethat listen, but I suspect most
(30:20):
of our listeners are othercreatives, people that are going
through their own journey andtheir own challenges and their
own successes, and creatives.
We have a unique situationbecause oftentimes we lead dual
lives.
We have our craft that we doand our goal oftentimes is to do
(30:45):
that full time, to supportourselves that way.
But it doesn't always work outthat way and oftentimes to get
there we have to have yetanother life, a job, as so many
people love to refer to it as areal job, and I hate that,
because acting is a real job.
Art is a real job.
(31:06):
If you do something and youlove it, it is a real job.
But is there a dual thing goingon for you?
Are you acting full time?
Speaker 1 (31:17):
There is a dual thing going on with me.
There are two passions thatI've always had in life acting
and business.
And I work for a Fortune 500company I work for, do work.
I do work with them a lot,probably one of the most
(31:37):
rewarding experiences I couldever have as a professional.
So, on on the side, um, I workas a business professional.
Um, I've been doing that forthe past five years and and um,
yeah, that's my, that's mysecond love, like technology was
my second love, and you know,um, it's very rewarding.
(31:59):
Um, I do my education.
Um is always going to be one ofthe most um, one of the most
proudest things that I couldhave ever accomplished in life,
and I'm going to use it withouta doubt.
So I don't think there'sanything wrong with having two
(32:20):
passions in your life and that'sOK.
Oh, my gosh.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
I think we should have as many as we want.
I also think it's very rare tohave what you have.
I mean we interview I hate thatword.
Think it's very rare to havewhat you have.
I mean we interview I hate thatword.
We have conversation with a lotof people and many of them have
, you know, their craft and thensome type of a day job or day
work, and oftentimes that dayjob is not something that feeds
(32:47):
their soul or that they love todo.
It merely puts food on thetable and a roof over their head
and funds the supplies and thethings to do their craft.
Whatever that looks like,you're unique.
I have yet to talk to anybodythat loved both gigs the way
you're describing loving bothgigs Absolutely, absolutely.
(33:09):
Now, how much of that do youthink just kind of happened and
how much of that do you thinkwas very intentional on your
part, like, like you set out todo that and this is something
you have achieved?
I have two passions.
I have two professions that I'min, that I love and feel
passionate about.
Was that all intentional?
Was that the plan that?
Speaker 1 (33:31):
was always the plan.
Um, when I was um as a kid, youknow, I knew that I wanted to
do something in the academicrealm as as as well, because,
even at a young, younger age, Iknew that I had to be realistic
(33:52):
about things, right Like there.
There are times where you, you,I, had to be realistic about
things, right like there.
There are times where you, you,just have to be realistic about
life and um, I knew that.
I knew that I had to pushmyself to a greater height when
it came to, you know, um, whenit came to balancing my creative
(34:13):
career and my real and my othercareer I don't like to say my
acting career and my job,because I have two careers that
I'm, that I'm in.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
So language is important yes, yes, yes.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
So I, I I have two careers and I have two passions.
When I was, when I was like 16years old, I had my very first
job in high school, right, and Iworked as a bag boy at Kroger's
and, believe it or not, thatwas a very interesting
experience for me and it was anexperience I'll never forget,
(34:51):
but I did not like it.
It was an experience I'll neverforget, but I did not like it.
I did not like doing that work.
I was.
I had to stand up all day, pushbaskets in the cold and all
that stuff there.
And when I was doing that forabout probably a month, uh, when
I was doing that, um, I knewthat I did not want that to be
(35:16):
my future.
If I was going to chase acreative career or anything like
that, I'm not going to be doingthis and then focusing on that
one, right?
So if it's going to besomething that I work, it's
going to be something thatactually treats me with dignity
and that actually pays me prettydamn well.
So that's when I knew, okay,I'm definitely going to put a
lot more time into two passionsbusiness technology and acting.
(35:43):
So that's when I came to thatconclusion, and part of part of
that drive that I had came froma lot of the doubt, not not the
doubt that I had for myself, butthe doubt that that that other
people had for me.
(36:03):
Because when I I had got let gofrom that terrible job I had at
the grocery store, I got let goand it just was what it was.
And word got out around schooland all that stuff there and
there were some people that kindof gave me hell about it.
(36:24):
They were questioning me likewhy did you get fired?
How did you get fired?
Are you insane or are youstupid?
And then I was thinking tomyself, wow, like, like, like
these idiots really think thatworking, that working there was
(36:44):
going to be my future.
They actually thought that itwas right.
Like I, I'm I'm laughing, justI laugh a lot now just thinking
about it.
And so that's when I knew that.
That's when I knew I had to tryfor more than one thing.
I had to have more than onepassion for myself and and, and
(37:08):
it was a way of being realistic,if that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (37:11):
So it makes perfect sense.
Very, very strategic.
That's pretty amazing.
I mean, you definitely have aunique story.
I've not heard anything thatcomes close to this.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah, I know that it must be demanding to meet the
demands of both at times.
Speaker 1 (37:36):
How do you stay well resourced?
Oh, definitely being organized.
Yeah, and I struggle with beingorganized.
I'm just going to be honest,I'm terrible at being organized
because I got so many thingsgoing on at once.
I got people pulling me in thatonce.
I got people pulling me in thatdirection.
I got people pulling me in thatdirection and over the past
(37:58):
couple of years it was hard tomanage that, because there were
times where I got sick.
There were times where peoplejust always blowing up my phone,
like Tony, I need you to dothis for me, I need you to do
that for me, can you come hereon this set, can you come here
on that set?
It was so much of that going on,that my, that, my, that my
(38:19):
health was taking a toll.
Like I tell people like, bro, Ican't look, I appreciate the
opportunity, but I can't do it.
It's, I'm tired, I need rest,but I can't do it.
It's, I'm tired, I need rest,you know.
And then there and then thereis my corporate career.
That's actually not that hardto manage.
That that's not as hard tomanage because I'm only working
(38:41):
for a set amount of hours a day,right?
So, and I think one of thebenefits that came out of COVID
was remote work, so it makes ita lot easier to balance
everything right and working foran amazing company like
Microsoft.
They support our goals and ouraspirations outside of work.
(39:04):
So with Microsoft it definitelymakes it a lot easier to do
right, because they want us tohave a life, they want us to do
different things and also I'mstill working to become more
organized and I've been doing apretty good job at it.
Say yes, but does it have aneffect on my?
(39:30):
Does it have an effect at times?
Almost definitely it does, butit's a work in progress.
Speaker 2 (39:36):
I want to say maybe the first coach that I ever
worked with said to me if youwant to be successful in
business and in life, createsystems that support you, simple
systems that support you.
And I have spent.
Well, that was decades ago, tobe real honest.
That was 2006, so almost 20years ago, and I've spent that
(40:02):
20 years.
And symptoms, I mean thesystems can look almost any way.
Dwight will tell you that Ihave a system for folding the
chip bag down so the chips don'tget stale.
I've taken it to kind of anextreme, but yes, there's alarms
on the phone, there's a varietyof just crazy stuff where I
(40:22):
track stuff, and I have systemson the computer that help me
keep track of, I mean thispodcast oh my God, you know just
a single episode.
There's a gazillion steps thathave to be taken to process and
publish one episode.
I would never, ever be able todo that if I didn't have a
(40:43):
really solid system in place.
Speaker 3 (40:45):
Well, and we also have the community within each
other.
So there are a lot of steps,but we also share the
responsibility, like I do thepromotion, for everything that
we do for the podcast.
Speaker 2 (41:03):
Yes, we divide and conquer.
I do the publishing part of thepodcast and he does the
promotion part of it, and that'swhere our strengths are.
I'm strong in the productionpart publishing and he's much
stronger in the promotion and itworks and I don't think we knew
(41:25):
it was going to unfold that waywhen we started it, but it
certainly has gone that way andit works really well.
He doesn't bother me, he letsme do my thing with the
publishing and I don't muchbother him.
I let him do his thing with thepromotion.
But yes, systems are you know,whether it's timers or an app on
(41:48):
your phone or something,systems are the best.
Speaker 1 (41:52):
Absolutely, absolutely.
You are right about that one,and reminders are too Reminders,
even AI.
It's very helpful, yes.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
I'm leaning in.
In fact, I've been in a summitthis week learning how to
utilize AI more effectively.
It's been a little bitoverwhelming so much information
all at once, but good stuff.
Speaker 1 (42:16):
It's a lot.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Let's talk about perhaps.
Well, I kind of want to know.
The one thing we haven'ttouched on so far is, in all of
this, that you've done the twopassions, the way that you very
intentionally set this all up.
I want to know how hascommunity played a role in all
(42:42):
this?
And I'm going to qualify thator quantify that or whatever the
right word is, clarify that oneof those things.
You know, community can mean alot of different things.
You know, community happens whenthere are two people together,
two or more, and I believe thatwe have lots of communities in
(43:03):
our lives.
You know, our family can be oneof the communities.
Our co-workers can be anothercommunity.
Our work life that could be acommunity.
Maybe we, you know, do a.
You talked about therapy.
Maybe you do some group therapyand now you've got a little
community of people that are inyour therapy group, or, but I
think that you know there's allin all, those communities play a
(43:27):
role, most likely in yourcreative process, but have you
had any interaction orinvolvement in something, some
community that is centeredaround creativity?
Speaker 1 (43:45):
Absolutely, oh yes, most definitely, oh yes, most
(44:12):
definitely.
So I'm going to touch on thisin this way.
My stomping grounds are inNashville, tennessee.
I've definitely had my downsbeing there and I've definitely
had my ups, and I got to givethanks to a lot of individuals
who supported me, who believedin me while I was there.
You know individuals likeCynthia Trice, who gave me my
first short film opportunity.
Ben Oaks, who gave me my firstcommercial, herschel, uh, the.
Canaan Cox, who put me in hisfirst music video.
People, like, like, like him,and um, uh, who else?
(44:43):
Uh, there's a, there's a lot ofpeople who, uh, and I and I I
just can't think of a TalishaWalker, a lot of people you know
.
Those are just some of theindividuals who, uh, who
believed in me, who have alwaysbelieved in me, and, uh, that
that is a prime example ofcommunity.
Um, I gotta also give thank youto the, to the Atlanta film
(45:03):
community as, as well.
I gotta give thanks to, youknow, tnt productions.
I gotta give thank you to, uh,to B Daniel Watkins and so many
other people, my agent,stephanie Olson.
You know those people, thatcommunity, even here in Dallas.
You know I haven't been herethat long.
(45:26):
But the community here is soamazing and so tight knit that
there are so many people thatbelieve in me to do the.
They believe in me to portrayroles to the utmost ability
because they've seen it, theyknow it, they don't have to
blink.
If I give Tony, if I give Tonythis chance, if I give Tony, if
(45:55):
I give Tony this chance, tony'sgoing to do it, tony's going to
kill it.
I got nothing to worry about.
So now I will say that eventhough you have community
doesn't mean it doesn't meanthat that, that everybody, that
everybody's a part of it, right?
So, like I do have instanceslike that too.
I got to touch on that.
One of the things I learned isthat just because you're doing
(46:16):
well, just because you got agreat community, doesn't mean
everybody else is going to likeyou or everyone else is going to
want to see you win.
I've had instances like that.
I've had instances where youknow, like, there are some
communities that do not havestructure, they don't have a
family oriented or tight knitstructure, and I've been a part
(46:41):
of those at times and there aretimes where I've had to you know
, distance myself from those.
But you have those too.
You have to do a great job atpicking your right people and
you have to do a great job atinserting yourself into certain
communities, because noteverybody is going to be for you
.
You know, one of the things thatI learned about this industry
(47:03):
in particular is that there is alot of favoritism, there is a
lot of pretty privilege, thereis a there is a lot of things
that go on under the table thatyou sometimes cannot see.
But this industry when you seesomething, believe it.
When you hear something, don'tbe so quick to believe it, but
(47:26):
definitely don't ignore it,because that's just how some
communities are.
You know, some communities aremanipulative.
Some communities use you tobuild blueprints for people that
are already established.
That kind of thing happens, andI'm saying this because I want
(47:47):
creatives to understandsomething is that you are your
biggest believer.
You are your biggest advocate.
Never, ever, ever, let someoneput, never let someone put a
dollar.
(48:07):
Don't let them put a dollar onyour word.
You decide that I always decidethat there are, there are people
who know better when they, whenthey, when they contact me or
they reach out to me aboutcertain certain, certain certain
things, they know better.
They know not to.
They know not to call Tonyabout that, because they know
Tony's not going to do it.
So you've set boundaries.
(48:29):
I definitely set boundaries andin the beginning I wasn't like
that.
I wasn't like that at firstbecause I didn't have the
portfolio that I have now, Ididn't have the reach that I
have now and I didn't have theamount of power that I possess
now.
I didn't have that at first.
(48:50):
But once you get that, you haveto let certain people
understand like, hey, listen, Iappreciate you for you know,
sending this opportunity my way.
But given the circumstances andgiven everything that I have
noticed and seen, someone elsemay be a better fit for this,
not me, because if the value isnot there, you don't really want
(49:16):
to make something great.
Speaker 3 (49:19):
That's a great knowledge bomb right there, and
I love the way it circles backto how you were so intentional
about carving your path andmaking sure that you did things
that were in alignment withwhere you wanted to be it is
definitely a wisdom andknowledge bomb.
Speaker 2 (49:40):
You know, uh, there is something very um empowering
about being able to take thejobs you want and turn down the
jobs you don't want.
Or you know, in my case it waswork with the clients that I
wanted to work with and not workwith the clients that I didn't
(50:03):
want to work with.
I think one of the biggestinjustices that we do to
ourselves is take a job or takea client that's not a good fit
for us.
You know, when you're young andhungry you do that shit, but
there's a point where yourealize that's not good for me
and if I'm going to go the wholeenchilada, I got to pull back
(50:28):
and only do good stuff that'sgood for me.
Speaker 1 (50:32):
Absolutely, absolutely.
And I turn down opportunities.
You guys just don't know I turndown opportunities all the time
.
Speaker 2 (50:42):
You know, on some level, tony, that makes you more
desirable, because when youtake every job that smells like
desperation and people, whenthey smell that desperation, in
that moment whether it's arelationship or a job you become
less desirable.
People are not attracted todesperation.
Speaker 3 (51:02):
Yeah it doesn't doesn't smell good.
Speaker 2 (51:05):
It does not smell good.
Speaker 1 (51:07):
And there are a lot of, and there are a lot of.
There are a lot of actors thatdo do that because they're just
trying to make it and you can'tbe mad at them.
But, honestly, me, I care a lotabout my craft and I care a lot
about my viewers, and nothing Ihave done is bad.
(51:27):
I have not been in a badproject.
Everything I've done isperformed to its best ability.
I can't put trash on.
I cannot do trash.
I can't do anything.
I can't do too manystereotypical parts.
I can't do it.
I got to have versatility andthat's kind of why and I have to
(51:52):
give myself a pat on the backfor this one but I have made it
extremely difficult to typecastme because I've been in so many
different genres and people knowthat you can't keep me in one
area.
You can't do that, and so oneof the things I learned from
watching Will Smith as a kid wasthat this guy can do any role.
(52:14):
He can act like anybody, andthat's when I was telling myself
OK, you know what?
I got to do it like he's doingit, because he's not just just
just doing anything, he's takingroles that are a challenge, and
I tell people.
If your project is not achallenge to me, I'm not doing
it.
Speaker 2 (52:34):
That's a rare talent and a gift.
I think you know we see actorsthat they kind of act the same
in each role, no matter whatmovie they're in.
It's kind of their characterthat they do male and female.
I see it all the time.
And then there are those,certainly like Will Smith, who
can be so completely differentin every role that you don't,
(52:55):
even if you closed your eyes,you know you wouldn't recognize
him at all, because he's so, sodifferent.
He may look the same, but well,we're kind of running a little
bit low on time.
So, in a nutshell, and thenwe'll get on to our rapid fire
questions.
(53:16):
In a nutshell, what's your nextstep?
Speaker 1 (53:31):
I do got a couple of projects that are coming out
this year.
I got some stuff that I'mworking on now.
I'm working on something thisweekend.
Actually, I might be working onsomething next weekend, and
let's just say what is to come.
I think people are going to bevery, very, very intrigued by
(53:51):
what they see from me and Ithink that I think personally,
professionally and everythingelse, that I'm going to make my
mark in the film world, withouta doubt.
Speaker 2 (54:01):
You know, you're really reminding me of something
right now.
I've been in this conferenceall week long listening to all
these gurus, and yesterday oneof them said that you've got to.
When you get in front of people, you have to ditch the humility
.
He said I'm a very humbleperson, but when I'm marketing
(54:24):
myself and when you're marketingis different for you.
When you're marketing, it'sgoing to auditions, it's showing
up in public places and beingseen.
Here you are in thisconversation and you are owning
who you are.
He said ditch the humility andbe bold.
Now, he said I'm not telling youto be ego-driven and maniacal,
(54:50):
or that's not the word I'mlooking for.
I make words up, anyway,egomaniac or boastful or you
know that, but be bold and youdefinitely have that going on
and that, I think, worksmassively to your favor, and I
wanted to call that out and saythat because that applies to any
(55:11):
of us.
Whatever your creative endeavoris, boldness is going to be
where it will get you therewards that you're looking for
Bold.
I have a little necklace aroundmy neck that I made and on it
it's a ring with it's stampedand it says audacity, because
(55:31):
that's what I am working onbeing audacious in my life,
because I know that those thatstep up and make bold moves are
the ones that get what they want.
Speaker 1 (55:43):
Absolutely, absolutely.
I couldn't agree more, I couldnot agree more.
So I just tell people and youguys, just stay tuned for a lot
more.
Speaker 2 (55:54):
Well, and just so the listeners know, tony will have
a profile in the show notes ofthis episode, so you can cruise
his profile, probably see socialmedia links there if you want
to follow him.
This has been amazing.
I really enjoyed theconversation and learning so
much about you, tony.
(56:15):
And now, if you're ready, we'llget to some rapid fire
questions, and these are easy.
These are easy peasy.
Number one who's a creativerole model you look up to?
Speaker 1 (56:34):
I got two of them.
One is an A-list actor, andthat would be Will Smith.
Two is the woman that taught meacting, Dr Webster.
She's the other person that Ilooked up to.
That's.
That's the person that taughtme everything I know about
acting.
Speaker 2 (56:53):
Beautiful.
Next question what's the bestdecision you've ever made in
your creative career?
Speaker 1 (57:06):
I would have to say I've made.
I have two of them.
One was choosing to expand myand expand type of strategy.
Speaker 3 (57:36):
And two was going to therapy.
Speaker 2 (57:38):
I love that, I love that too.
Speaker 3 (57:39):
I'm reminded of how it is that when you plant a tree
and a pot, it's limited to theconfines of that pot.
You got to put it in the groundfor it to really reach out its
roots and expand so that it hasa chance to really take hold and
be firm and get strong and livefor a long time.
Speaker 2 (58:02):
Awesome, great metaphor, dwight and final
question what's one lessonyou've learned from your
creative community?
Speaker 1 (58:23):
I'll tell you one lesson that I learned that I
don't want to, one lesson that Ilearned that I don't want to
commit as a creative, and thatis being a two faced person.
I've seen a lot of that.
That's not how I roll, that'snot how I am.
(58:44):
That's one thing I learned notto do.
I can't say that yeah, that'sone thing I learned not to do,
because there's a lot of thingsabout this industry that that
you can learn, but I thinkthere's a ton of things that
that people ignore, and that'sthe things and those are the
(59:12):
things that you shouldn't do.
Speaker 2 (59:12):
If that makes sense, makes perfect sense, yeah, yeah.
So it's not something theytaught you like oh, let us teach
you this, tony.
It was something they taughtyou by you just observing the
general behavior.
I call those backhandedlearning lessons, backhanded
teaching.
Yeah, love it, get it and loveit completely.
(59:32):
Sounds good, sounds good.
Well, this has been a completejoy.
I've really enjoyed hearingabout your story and finding out
more about you.
Thank you so much for yourcontribution to the podcast and
to all of our listeners.
Speaker 3 (59:47):
Yes, thank you so much, tony.
We're glad that you joined usto all of our listeners.
Speaker 1 (59:51):
Yes, thank you so much, tony.
We're glad that you joined us.
Absolutely.
Thank you guys for having me.
I hope everyone enjoys this andlearns something from it and
yeah.
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