Meet Steve Stokes of Stokes Media LLC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Steve Stokes

Hi Steve, 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?
So, when people ask what I do for a living I say that I am both a “recovering musician” and “media producer.” I’m from the Gulf Coast, Mobile, AL. I grew up around music and fell in love with it and the ability to be creative. My parents and my older brother were all very supportive in me forging my own path. So I decided to study music at Loyola University New Orleans in 2004.

While I was there I realized that I needed a way to supplement my music addiction. So one of my teachers approached me and told me about this new thing called “YouTube”. He explained that he had two broadcast cameras, and he wanted to pay me to film his classes and post them online. I was drawn to video production because it was yet another outlet for me to be creative. Of course, my other teachers got wind of this and they wanted me to do the same for them. By my last semester, I was filming half of my classes and making pretty great money doing it.

After I graduated, I decided that I was going to start a video production company. And I’ve been doing it ever since. Formats and mediums have changed drastically since then, but I have done my best to keep up with it. I’ve lived a double life over the past 20 years as both a musician and media producer. I’ve had 2 very successful careers as both. I’m very grateful for my time in the music industry. I got to see the world from a stage, and also met my wife Kayti. Obviously the older I get, the more I’ve focused on my media company. It’s something I can do until I am old and gray (grayer).

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has most definitely not been a smooth road. But I have enjoyed it. Running a business has severe ups and downs. I can’t imagine it being any other way. As far as my business goes (Stokes Media LLC), everything has changed so much since I started in 2005. Everything from the way people consume media, to the way it’s produced. Keeping up is a constantly changing challenge.

But I like a good challenge. I also enjoy the freedom of having my own business. My father told me every single morning of my life to “Be your own boss. As an employee, your employer will pay you the least amount possible and they can fire you at any time.” That is not a life that I have ever been interested in living. So I did, I started my own business and have been doing it for 20 years now.

The single biggest struggle I have encountered is turning it off. Entrepreneurs tend to work 10-16 hours per day. Your freedom to live on your own terms also becomes a trap or a prison. How long can someone sustain that? Not forever. I think that’s why my hair went gray at age 33.

Finally about 4 years ago I decided to fix this struggle by not working from home. Everyone else was doing the exact opposite of this in 2020. So, I rented a studio and moved all of my equipment and computers out of the house! To this day I only have a small laptop for checking emails at the house. And that is it. That way when I leave the studio at the end of the day, I’m done. I get to be home and enjoy life outside of work. It’s been liberating and has allowed me to enjoy the freedom I created.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Stokes Media is a full service media company. We offer a variety of services and specialize in Video Production and AV for live events, and conferences. We also create content for various uses for local and national brands. The content we create includes long-form educational content, promo videos, advertisements, podcasts, social media content, and more.

I think what sets us apart from others is the variety of work we do. In addition to producing great quality videos, we also supply AV personnel for large conferences and events. It’s a one stop shop for both your live event and content creation needs. We have a crew of 12 right now that includes videographers, photographers, editors, motion graphics, audio engineers, and AV techs.

Personally, I am most proud of my team. I am surrounded by some very talented individuals and without them I would still be working 16 hour days. Together we are able to produce some incredible videos and fantastic events.

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
People tell me that I’m always in a good mood and that I am easy to get along with. I don’t know if that is necessarily true “all” the time. I attribute this to watching every single episode of “The Golden Girls” when I was growing up (thanks mom). In watching this show intensely at a young age, I realized that life is very very short and death is forever minus the amount of time you lived. The way those ladies got through every single day was basically to just laugh at it. So enjoy it, laugh at the small stuff. If you have a problem, go ahead and laugh at it. But solve it and move on. If we get hung up on every little thing, we’ll never get anything done and we’ll have a really bad time while doing it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.stokesmedia.us/
• Instagram: @stokesmediaproductions
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-stokes-031720b7/
• Other: Email: steve@stokesmedia.us