Inspiring Conversations with Tony Mendoza of Heart of the Gulch

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tony Mendoza.

Hi Tony, I’m so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Since high school, I have always worked in Video and Audio Production, I recall recording musicians in a room at my parent’s house making so much noise! Every day after school, every weekend I recorded new voices – perfecting my audio recording skills until I got burnt out once I graduated high school. Once I transferred to Texas A&M University in College Station, I picked up videography and started to film on campus. 

During those years, it was very challenging to find online content about the University on YouTube, so I decided to fill that void by creating a YouTube channel dedicated to showcasing Texas A&M from a student’s point of view called “Student’s Perspective”. Student’s Perspective taught me a lot when it came to run-and-gun filming, in-person interviewing skills, and finding out you can never predict what someone is going to say or do. Luckily, I had my younger brother Andy (who was a freshman) to help with all the unpredictable nuances when it came to filming on campus. The Student’s Perspective YouTube quickly grew in popularity around College Station, so much so that I was fortunate to employ 8 other students to work on the program. 

However, once I graduated from Texas A&M University the show slowly ended its filming, and now it is a time capsule of my college years on YouTube. Fast forward to 2022, I moved to Nashville TN, and have been working as a technical recruiter for one of America’s “online giants” for 5 1/2 years I suddenly asked myself “What the hell am I doing with my life?” So, I decided to restart my passion for filming, but this time take away the unpredictability, create an in-house YouTube studio, and start filming some of Nashville’s most predominant businesses, musicians, influencers, and personalities. The studio is in the Gulch, thus we called the show “The Heart of the Gulch”. 

In our first year, we have seen some success with over 27M+ social media impressions, 3.4M+ social media views, 1.8 million views on YouTube, being featured on multiple TV shows: Today in Nashville and Local on 2, and reaching over 100k weekly online accounts. What is even more incredible is our guests have introduced us to even more potential guests through word of mouth… I guess we are doing something right! 

Here is a list of some of our guests: Daddy’s Dogs, Taylor Austin Dye, QNTM Fit Life, Richards Bespoke, Peg Leg Porker, Jackalope Brewery, Rustler Hat Co, Dolewite (101.1 the Beat), Bach Babes, Laura Schweizer (Local On 2), RaeLynn, Whiskey Jam, Nelson Green Brier, Party Fowl, Diskin Cider, Charly Reynolds, Bad Luck Burger Club, Erin Oprea, Tin Roof, Kaylin Roberson, Hampton Social, Southern Grist Brewery, Walker Montgomery, Morgan Huelsman, The Block Agency – just to name a few. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road has been like Nashville’s highway: some smooth streets with huge potholes along the way but I would consider myself a 1995 Chevy Tahoe made of hard metal and can take the punishment. All joking aside, Heart of the Gulch had a few hurdles to jump over: first was conniving business owners to tell their stories and promoting their businesses via email without any videos to advertise; I was basically “cold calling email” for the first month. 

The second was taking the idea of Heart of the Gulch and turning it into a real brand with consistent posts/creative vision. I never realized how challenging it was to contact businesses, PR Agents, and Marketing teams just for our guests to show up. Then once our guest arrives at our studio: film, record audio, and have a live conversation (remember this is the first time I met these folks so it’s like speed dating). After the studio recording is completed, Heart of the Gulch records a “Day in the Life” episode at the guest’s location – this is the more run-and-gun style filming with unpredictability once we show up on the stage. 

Then once that is complete, edit all the content via Final Cut Pro and Pro Tools which can take over 12 hours. And the last step is marketing the content via social media and YouTube. Here is the hardest part about the Heart of the Gulch, it is having the mental fortitude to keep going and keeping the hunger inside of you. Also, do not let doubt creep in – there are so many podcasts and digital shows today but can’t judge your success by another one person’s success. Sometimes I get a little jealous when a business. A musician or personality chooses to ghost our invitation to join another program, but I understand that is the nature of the business. Hey, they might not see us as big time yet, but we are coming! 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about the Heart of the Gulch YouTube Show?
The Heart of the Gulch is a YouTube show focusing on interviewing the “Movers” and “Shakers” of Nashville – the city’s most respected businesses, personalities, musicians, athletes, influencers, and entrepreneurs. 

In addition to our interviews, we incorporate a “Day in the Life” video following each episode – this is our secret sauce coined by Walk the Line. In our Walk the Line section our viewers receive an exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpse, showcasing how each guest is truly unique. Everybody has a podcast nowadays but there isn’t any program taking the viewers to the guest’s location! 

We are a YouTube-based show, and we are keeping it that way! Subscribe to our program: http://www.youtube.com/@heartofthegulch. 

Here are all of our guests: 

• ALK Designs & Interiors
• Bach Babes
• Bad Luck Burger Club
• Brooke Taylor (The Big 98)
• Carmen Morgan
• Charly Reynolds
• Cisco Carter
• Daddy’s Dogs
• Danielle Breezy (WKRN)
• David Schultz
• Dolewite (101. 1 The Beat)
• Donut Distillery
• Erin Oprea
• Fairlane Hotel
• Heather Mathis (Talk of the Town)
• Jackalope Brewery
• Jim Morris
• Kaylin Roberson
• Leverick Homes
• Local On 2
• Meaghan Thomas
• Nelson’s Green Brier
• NOKO Nashville
• Party Fowl
• Peg Leg Porker
• Photowalk Nashville
• QN TM Fit Life Gym
• RaeLynn
• Richard Bespoke
• Rustler Hat Co
• Southern Grist Brewery
• Taylor Austin Dye
• The Block Agency
• The Kupin Group
• Tin Roof
• Walker Montgomery
• Wanna Spoon Cereal Bar
• Whiskey Jam
• Whitney Miller
• William Wilson Real Estate

If anyone is interested in being part of the show, please fill out the 2024 application: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScvsniscfeMiqAKV2l5F9ggR7pgtC3oVqFnYTZ9-xt5jBxflQ/viewform?usp=sf_link! 

Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Persistent – the reason why our channel has grown so much in the past year is always communicating with our audience, daily posting and never letting your foot off the gas. 

Being strong mentally – Some days, I feel like not editing, posting, or filming interviews but then I realize the reason why we have been successful thus far is by not stopping. 

Being thankful – I am lucky to have the support of my family (my pops who was the initial investor for the program Love you Dad), my amazing girlfriend who has to listen to all my gripes/crazy ideas, and lastly my friends from Nashville, Texas and now our subscribers! 

Pricing:

• $2000 per full episode (businesses only)
• Free to musicians, influencers, and personalities – form here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScvsniscfeMiqAKV2l5F9ggR7pgtC3oVqFnYTZ9-xt5jBxflQ/viewform?usp=sf_link

Contact Info:

• Instagram: heartofthegulch615
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@heartofthegulch
• Other: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScvsniscfeMiqAKV2l5F9ggR7pgtC3oVqFnYTZ9-xt5jBxflQ/viewform?usp=sf_link