Rising Stars: Meet Kenley Nelson of Music Row/Midtown

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kenley Nelson

Hi Kenley, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Where do I even begin? I moved to Nashville two years ago after graduating from Florida State University. I have been surrounded by creativity and music for as long as I can remember. My parents always tell stories of how my brother and I would walk around the grocery store as young children and be able to pick out the music playing in the background and identify what song it was or even what movie it was from. We were always encouraged to pursue and try things we were interested in; funny enough, we eventually both landed in performance. I was 3 years old when I started dance lessons and over the years, I fell in love with dance and musical theater. But what resonated with me were the lyrics, beats, and emotions of the music. My brother is a guitarist, so between me blasting my solo music or his full-volume amps shaking the walls, there was no shortage of music in the Nelson house.

When I got to FSU, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I tried Exercise Science but quickly realized chemistry was not my thing. But then, I discovered Marketing and it just clicked. By my junior year, I found out about the music business world and was hooked. I was intrigued that I could still be creatively involved in music without being an artist. I landed a few internships, my first being at a local pop and country radio station. When I was accepted into the SOLID Nashville college program, my eyes were opened to the opportunities in the industry. When I found my passion for the live events side, I was interning as the Talent Management and Social Media Coordinator for Florida State’s Friday Night Block Party Concert Series, working with artists like Ashley Cooke and Walker Montgomery, Temecula Road, King Calaway, and others who were headlining the series in 2021.

Finding EVA was a serendipitous encounter. To this day, I can’t find the website that featured EVA, but I remember the article reading something like, “Top 5 rising tech companies in Nashville” and EVA was on that list. Not having much context of what “Entertainment Tech” was, I did some research and took a leap of faith, cold-messaging EVA co-founder, Channing Moreland, on LinkedIn seeking advice. The rest is history. I’ve been EVA’s Brand Manager for two years now, and we’re positioning EVA to be the future of booking entertainment in the music and events industries. Sharing about EVA is one of my favorite pastimes because I am so passionate about the work we are doing to bring an additional revenue stream to artists to support their performance careers. At 24, seeing how much I’ve grown personally and professionally because of my time in Nashville and at EVA is surreal.

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?
Growth is rarely smooth and definitely not easy. Over the past few years, I’ve faced life-altering situations and challenges. Eager to graduate and land a music job in Nashville, I applied to any entry-level industry job I could find but was facing constant rejection. I wasn’t sure how to navigate the space and didn’t have much mentorship to guide me along the way. It was both isolating and defeating, but instead of giving up, I pivoted, deciding to land any marketing job in Nashville and eventually push into the music industry. I was googling “marketing jobs Nashville” or “marketing tech companies Nashville” and stumbled upon that article which opened the right door for me. I am a firm believer that things happen for a reason.

Within my first year in Nashville, trying to acclimate myself to a new city and working full-time, my mom was diagnosed with advanced-stage breast cancer. I’m not shy on topics about mental health and will admit that mine was spiraling during this time. I am very lucky to have such an incredible support system in my family, my friends, and EVA Cofounders, Channing Moreland and Makenzie Stokel. As time went on and I split my time between Nashville and Greenville, SC for my mom’s chemo treatments, her diagnosis just became the new normal. We came out on the other side together… stronger.

Imposter syndrome has been another challenge. I joined EVA full-time at 22, determined to prove myself. I am forever indebted to EVA co-founders, Channing and Makenzie, for seeing something in me and nurturing me to where I am today. From crafting advertising campaigns to creating PR strategies, I’ve gained a lot of confidence in my ideas. Any new situation is daunting, but it’s all about perspective. I always aim to break down anything that overwhelms or scares me into milestones. It’s always one step at a time.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Brand management is truly my cup of tea. It feels so natural to me and it’s been a lot of fun as EVA grows. Starting with running EVA’s social media content creation and platform management, I have expanded my role to oversee brand strategy, advertising, SEO, PR, email marketing, and partnership marketing. It’s a one-woman show, but the experience and trust are invaluable. It’s been a fascinating experience to not only thrive in startup culture but also get to help rapidly scale EVA across the U.S.

I’m most proud of redefining EVA’s brand and ensuring it touches every aspect of our business. Every interaction with EVA exudes our brand voice—fun, spunky, witty, and intelligent. You almost forget that she is a technology platform.

My family has a special saying – “one-twenty”. From what started with my dad yelling it out at my brother during his soccer tournaments, to sending me texts saying “120!” before I took the stage at a dance competition, this silly little thing has turned into so much more. 120 means give 120% percent to everything you do, not just 100%. When my mom was diagnosed with advanced-stage breast cancer last year, she even got the “120” speech. And guess what… She beat her diagnosis and is cancer-free because of it.

That’s what sets me apart from the rest. I will always put in 120% effort because I genuinely am passionate about what I do and who I do it for.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bookwitheva.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kenley.nelson/
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/bookwitheva/

Image Credits
Molly Coyle Photography