Life & Work with Cameron Keith Walls

Today we’d like to introduce you to Cameron Keith Walls. 

Hi Cameron, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Well, I officially started the Lilly Walls Firm a year ago, August of 2020. I was working for a company which created educational curriculum for children using music as its central focus, and my position as the Events Production Coordinator was in question due to in-person events not being applicable from the effects of the pandemic. As our conversations began to look more bleak, I decided to prepare to launch out on my own. 

I had an academic background in Communications (Radio/Film/Television/Music) and Civic Leaders; a professional career in Customer Service, Education (having served 2 semesters as an adjunct professor at Tennessee State University in Communications), Music & Entertainment, and a ton of life experiences, many of which did include project management. I have a superpower of being a human think tank, and Foster great relationships that span many disciplines and communities, both personal and professional. I felt this was an opportune time to bet on me! 

With my vast experience, network, and aptitude to ask the right questions and seek out information, consulting others who may need assistance with these things was an easy decision. 

This journey is Just beginning and I have a long way to go, but I’m glad to be on it! 

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?
My life journey has be no means been a smooth road. I was raised in public housing most of my life, by my maternal grandmother and aunts. Though my mother was still present in my life, she was not my primary caretaker and that still affects a child in ways one scarcely considers. 

Living in Public Housing was never a struggle, as many tend to think…it actually was a large part of the community support that granted me this passion for community building, however, the battle of the mentality towards people coming from where I’m from was more difficult. Having to convince people that you are not an anomaly and that there is much more value in those communities is far more draining than dealing with those who live among you. 

I was blessed to have a different exposure, due to my grandmother being a librarian and intentionally exposing my family to spaces that many from my community didn’t get to discover until they grew up. 

Financially, I have struggled of and on for years, from not having certain things deemed necessary to maneuver through life which cause a financial deficit to acquire the fundamentals. I started college summer of 1999, straight out of Highschool and like most lower-income students had to take out loans. My grandmother, who was my primary caretaker feel terribly ill that October, and passed away that November. Needless to say, I struggle to even finish out my first semester and even failed two courses. I had to use the financial aid refund money that was supposed to be used to procure transportation to school to help with the final burial cost, as my grandmother’s insurance that she paid for over 50 years had a lesser value than funeral cost at that time. I owed her and my family that much, So I took a semester away to recalibrate my life, having no idea that I would not be able to enroll the following fall because my Guardian was now deceased, and as a 19-year-old, I was still considered a dependent. My mother tried to submit her tax information (all though she was not my primary caretaker) but she made to much money for me to receive any grants and because she lived out of state, I was being charged tuition as if I was an out-of-state student to attend the local junior college across the river from the only city I had ever lived. I did not return to college until I was 25 years old. 

I moved to Phoenix, Az when I was 24 to be closer to my mother, who had to move away just two weeks after I moved in town due to a domestic violence situation. I spent the next four years in Arizona, scratching and surviving. I praise God that I did have a family who would help as they were able, both my maternal & paternal side, this did include my mother as she was able. Because my family is large and most people have children of their own, this help could never be assumed, or expected, but they are consistent in my life…even today. 

I went back to school for a second attempt, but now I had to work and pay for school at the same time…this became exhausting and overwhelming, so I got a job with the airline, thinking it would make things easier and I could visit home as often as I needed. My training made me have to take a leave of absence from school, and when it was finished, because the nature of the airline industry requires new people to get the leftovers in seniority, I was scheduled to work when I would typically be in class. This and a lack of transportation made it impossible to return to school. My lack of transportation also resulted in the loss of that job because the city was doing light rail construction, which shifted the bus route schedules, making me 5 minutes later than my scheduled shift. I was unable and I go back to school because my loan came out of forbearance for the amount of time I had been out of school. That was 2006, I was unable to return to school until fall of 2012. This is just a little of my uphill journey! 

The blessing was by my being a resident in Public Housing here in Nashville, I qualified to receive a scholarship after my first semester back in school…I made the dean’s list every semester during my time at Tennessee State University, and Dec. 2015, I graduated with Honors as Magnum Cum Laude with my B.S. in Mass Communications and a 3.75 GPA. That same MDHA scholarship was applied as I received my Master’s of Arts for Civic Leadership from Lipscomb University. 

My most recent struggle was 2109…that year I experienced divorce, after only one year of marriage, the loss of one of my aunts who was a family elder, and the unexpected loss of my mother (after improving our relationship just a few years prior). That year was a rollercoaster of loss and gains and lead directly into the 2020 pandemic. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I chose other because my business is Professional as it is a consulting firm, but it is also creative, as my expertise and experience is rooted in the fields of the arts and education. In addition to my consulting, I am also a Studio and Live Vocal Session Singer, Actor, and Events/Project Facilitator. 

As a singer, I have provided vocals for many artist across genres such as Kaleo, Cage the Elephants, Louis York, Robert Randolph, and Carrie Underwood to name a few. I also provided background vocals for the upcoming 2022 biopic “Elvis”, directed by the legendary Baz Luhrmann. I have worked with many Grammy Award-winning producers, such as Claude Kelly, Chuck Harmony, and Shannon Sanders. 

As an actor, I have performed in such Stage performances as “Ragtime” and “Dreamgirls” (as C.C. White). And have also done extra work for many notable Network shows and Films, including all-season of ABC/CMT’s “Nashville”, CMT’s “Still the King” and even had a Special cameo in Lifetimes 2020 “Welcome Home Christmas”. 

And as a Producer & Events Coordinator, I was the brainchild and co-Producer of the 2020 QuaverCon, virtual Music Educators Convention, which serves over 400 music teachers worldwide at the beginning of the global pandemic. I also served as Associate Producer for the 2021 “R&B Legends” Tribute Showcase, presented by LV Vocal Studios, in partnership with the National Museum of African American Music (NMAAM), which was the first-ever Live Performance in the completed Roots Theater at NMAAM. 

I am most proud to be known for being a community bridge. I have the unique ability to live and function in various worlds, and to connect the dots between them. I can identify a need and correlate it to an answer. I’m the guy who can typically figure out the recipe and help draw the map to the desired outcome. 

My ability to see people’s gifts and to employ them is one of the things that set me apart most. Another is the ability to manifest what’s most needed when it’s time! 

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
Though I am not a heavy reader, I love the things that I love! One of which is “We Sound Crazy” w/ Tamone, Phillionaire, Claude Kelly & Chuck Harmony. They also have a podcast in partnership with NMAAM called “State of Black Music”. 

Though I am an adult, I am a Hugh fan of “The Adventures of Bella Noel” an amazing child author, who is one of the most brilliant children I have ever seen! And her adventures are just as exciting as Bella! 

There is an amazing eye-opening spiritual book called “Oneness Embraced” by Pastor Tony Evans. I had the pleasure of participating with a local Church, Hermatiage Hills Baptist Church, who took the opportunity during last year’s civil unrest from the wake of the George Floyd incident to have Cultural Conversations! I was honored to be a guest speaker for one of those conversations and participated in a few. Though my views are not 100% in alignment with those of the author, he offered some eye-opening history and perspective that crossed cultural lines. Much of the information given is not information regarding how we do Christianity that would otherwise be known. He touched on African Spirituality, the roles of people who would be considered black in the Bible, and even how slavery has affected how we view race in this religious experience. Definitely worth reading to help start the ball rolling for conversation, enlightenment and possibly understanding. 

Finally, there is a show on Netflix called “Explained”. This show has episodes that are only 20mins long, and they give a fast but deep dive into things people typically do understand or may be unsure how we got there in our society. The typics range from “Bitcoin” to “The racial wealth Gap” and “Women’s Wage Inequality”. This show is very interesting and not overwhelming. 

Pricing:

• I offer a monthly subscription of $150. This entails a minimum of 5 hour-long consultations (appointment required). Depending on the venture, the amount of consulting can vary.
• Project management or implication prices varies based on project need

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @thelillywallsfirm
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/theLillyWallsfirm