Ep.9 From Soccer Fields to Sound Booths w/ Walter Gainer II

In this episode of Beyond the Threshold, I am joined by Walter Gainer II, a digital content producer and social media manager at Urban One.

Walter's journey started from his early content creation on Snapchat to founding Boss Locks—a platform dedicated to advancing Black professionals and promoting racial equity in the workplace.

In this episode we discuss.

•  How college journalism classes inspired Walter’s entry into podcasting.

•  Walter’s personal experiences with hairstyle discrimination.

•  Supporting Black professionals through the "Working While Black Show."

•  Strategies for building connections for both extroverts and introverts.

•  His current role as a producer for a major agency.

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How to Support and connect with Walter

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• Transcript

  [00:00:00] Walter Gainer II: Before college, I had two moments where people were kind of like my locks, having locks was like potentially jeopardizing potential of having a job. One was I knew that I could get a job without cutting it, but I just didn't really understand how to do it in that corporate environment. 

  [00:00:18] Sidney Evans: Tune in as we give flowers to black men and women.

  [00:00:21] Sidney Evans: Making waves in the audio industry. I'm your host, Sidney Evans, and this is Beyond the Threshold.[00:00:30] 

  [00:00:42] Sidney Evans: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Beyond the Threshold. I'm your host, Sidney Evans, an award winning audio editor, mixer, and producer. For those of you who don't know, on this show, I interview black men and women working in the audio industry. To highlight the lessons and experiences it takes to achieve success in the field.[00:01:00] 

  [00:01:00] Sidney Evans: We have another great episode in store for today. Before I introduced the guests, I like to give a little bit of a background of the connection point and what led to them actually being on the show. So if you listen to Jahi Whitehead's episode, we have a. We had a great conversation, but once the episode ends and right before we go our separate ways, I like to ask who they think would be a perfect fit for the show to have on, um, not only as far as their contributions to audio, but [00:01:30] the personality, the personality, uh, just being a good solid person and would have an engaging conversation.

  [00:01:37] Sidney Evans: So this is someone who he recommended, highly recommended. So, um, and I got recommended to him from Dante Hodge, who I previously worked with, um, at Frequency Media. So, uh, we're already kind of creating a community of, of, uh, black people in audio to where we just keep making these connection points and keep, uh, building those relationships and [00:02:00] growing the show.

  [00:02:01] Sidney Evans: So, uh, to introduce the guest after recognizing his passion for storytelling centered around the black community. He pivoted from the e commerce industry to dive deep into podcast production, which led him to becoming a digital content producer and social media manager at the urban one partner at the urban one pack at the urban one podcast network.

  [00:02:22] Sidney Evans: He's also the founder and creator of bots. He's also the founder and creator of boss locks, a platform created by [00:02:30] boss locks media that aims to educate, empower, and create opportunities for black people to access resources and grow in their journey. The mission is to raise the bar for the mission is to raise the bar for racial equality.

  [00:02:44] Sidney Evans: The mission is to the mission is to raise the bar for racial equity in the way people are respected in professional environments. So, uh, without further ado, I'd like to introduce Walter gain of the second to the show. 

  [00:02:58] Walter Gainer II: It is, uh, great to [00:03:00] have Vishal Tejahi, um, just for recommending me. Um, he's a super, super producer.

  [00:03:07] Walter Gainer II: It's really cool working with him and also excited to be on this show. This is really, really dope. I feel like podcasting is something that went from like, what is that? To like, Oh, that's what it is. Like really quickly. Well, it feels like really quickly, but yeah. So it's kind of cool. This is happening.

  [00:03:22] Walter Gainer II: Cause um, there's a lot of people in this space who are doing some really dope stuff and I'm excited to be on that list of [00:03:30] people. So thank you. I appreciate it. I really do appreciate the invite. Thank you. 

  [00:03:34] Sidney Evans: No problem, man. I'm excited to have you on the show. Um, I appreciate you. I know it could be kind of, um, you know, getting reached out to from somebody that you don't actually know and asked to, you know, take time out of your day to, you know, uh, Come on their platform and kind of chop it up with them.

  [00:03:50] Sidney Evans: So I appreciate you being super open and willing to just, you know, hop on and share your experience. I guess we'll just jump into the show, man, and kind of [00:04:00] get a little bit of background on, uh, on you where you're from. I know you have an interesting story as far as jumping from one field to another. To get to the point where you were working in audio.

  [00:04:11] Sidney Evans: So, uh, yeah, just tell the listeners a little bit of background about yourself and what led up to that journey. And then we'll, once we get to the audio piece, we'll start, start diving in deeper. 

  [00:04:23] Walter Gainer II: Okay, cool. Yeah. Um, I, uh, originally Charleston, South Carolina. My hometown born [00:04:30] and raised in that area. I grew up, um, you know, actually a couple of pivots in my life.

  [00:04:38] Walter Gainer II: Cause at one point actually was on a path or wanted to become on the team, the U S men's national team for soccer to bring home the world cup, uh, the FIFA world cup, like I ended up playing soccer. Just happened to end up on a team. So I was kind of curious about what people were playing that I saw. Uh, Ended up playing through elementary high school and [00:05:00] got the scholarship to go to college.

  [00:05:02] Walter Gainer II: Went there and immediately realized that everyone who was good in high school was in college, so it was a whole nother playing field. Um, did well, held my own, but I think around like junior year, realized that, okay, you know what, this is like, I could go a little harder in this, but I'm not sure if I, Love it in the same way as I did before when I was just, um, just doing it for fun and for the love of the game type of thing.

  [00:05:28] Walter Gainer II: So I kind of [00:05:30] stepped down from the team and really just started pursuing other things. I enjoy this, like creating content. Um, When I was in school it was around Snapchat, Snapchat got really big and I was just going around and creating just content or interviewing random people just to do it for fun and stuff like that at parties and just everyday life.

  [00:05:49] Walter Gainer II: Um, I ended up doing things like interviewing the president of my college, um, for this journalism class. So I just started to get more into content, um, [00:06:00] seriously and really understanding that world at school. And, um, but still wasn't like something where I was like, okay, yeah, I'm about to drop everything and become like a YouTube or a podcaster tomorrow.

  [00:06:10] Walter Gainer II: It was just like, uh, oh, I like doing this stuff. This is fine, but I don't really know what to do with it. Like I was, um, just experimenting in different things from going live on Facebook, cause I was like the first thing you could go live on. Just continue with Snapchat stuff, getting into this and that, but was just doing it randomly for fun type of thing.

  [00:06:28] Walter Gainer II: Um, but what [00:06:30] got me into, Audio, it was, um, it took me a long time actually to get into it because I wasn't very familiar with the world. I would, uh, start to become a little bit more familiar into podcasting when I was going on long trips from Charleston to where I went to school, um, in Virginia. But it was still kind of foreign to me.

  [00:06:49] Walter Gainer II: I was only a few podcasts that I listened to and it was just, just for fun. Like when I thought about content, I was thinking about like YouTube and stuff like that. So, [00:07:00] um, yeah, it took, it took me a, took me a minute to make that pivot. And I think it was really just more so like, I. Creating audio was more accessible to me at the time than video.

  [00:07:12] Sidney Evans: Okay. So, uh, like your journey with the audio going from, you know, general content creation to zeroing in on audio itself. Was it the podcast space in particular that you decided to pursue? And if so, Like what was [00:07:30] the moment where you maybe were introduced to another podcast or, uh, something within the room where you were like, Oh yeah, I can do this.

  [00:07:39] Sidney Evans: Like, this is because it seems like you already, you had the bug to create something for your own, or it seemed like you had a passionate love for media before, but it didn't, it didn't make sense for you practically about, okay, how can I, uh, like pursue this in a way that I'll be fulfilled. I'm doing what I want to do, but also it's like, okay, I can make a living [00:08:00] off this.

  [00:08:00] Sidney Evans: This is something that I could do sustainably and kind of, you know, and still be able to do the things that I want to do. When was that moment for you? 

  [00:08:08] Walter Gainer II: Yeah, good question. Um, that moment where I was like, I could do this for real, for real. Actually, you know what, um, the same journalism class actually, where I was doing things like interviewing, like the president of the college, um, one of the assignments, uh, we had was to create a podcast.

  [00:08:28] Walter Gainer II: And at the time I was [00:08:30] listening to podcasts, I listened to, um, Podcast called startup by good media. And I was very, very impressed with it. Um, but didn't think it was something that I could do at all, but really just kind of showed us how simple. Uh, creating a podcast could be using something like iMovie, um, as like the beginning stages and at that point it just kind of clicked like, Oh, okay.

  [00:08:53] Walter Gainer II: Yeah. There is like different levels to this game, but it really can be as simple as just recording something, even if it is like [00:09:00] using, um, I was using an iPad to record just the, the regular Apple camera thing to record stuff, didn't even have a microphone, but um, just doing that and then editing it in iMovie and just exporting as audio only could be as simple, it could be that, that, that, that simple, using the free music from YouTube's um, audio library.

  [00:09:22] Walter Gainer II: I don't know what they call it now, but um, yeah, YouTube's like free royalty free audio library adding that in there Um, and just boom. It was [00:09:30] just real I was very surprised by how like simple it could be so that was while I was in college but as like sustainable, I think that came like way way later after I started jumping into it like After school, I wanted to create a YouTube channel around social media marketing.

  [00:09:47] Walter Gainer II: Um, so I was watching Hello Gary Vee and I was like, yeah, I could be the black Gary Vee. I'm out here. Um, but I just wasn't really connecting with it. So. What I ended up doing instead was just creating a podcast around [00:10:00] proving that natural hair and professionalism could coexist and interviewing, uh, black people with locks in different professional environments to learn how they navigated professional environments, uh, while staying true to themselves and not cutting their hair.

  [00:10:16] Walter Gainer II: Cause at the time I was looking for jobs and was kind of nervous about, um, being able to Get hired, even though I had locks, because everyone's saying, no, you got to cut them to get a job. So I ended up creating that as a podcast, interviewing people with [00:10:30] audio. Um, cause I was more comfortable with the audio than putting my video stuff out there.

  [00:10:35] Walter Gainer II: And I, um, wasn't as familiar with video editing for podcasts. So I was like, okay, I could do the audio part. Get it out there. It sounded terrible at first was, but the content was really good. Content was good. But, um, it wasn't until 2021 when I was in this group and this man named Rob Conlin ended up getting a job at this podcast [00:11:00] agency where I ended up meeting Jahi, um, where I was like, okay, okay, fine.

  [00:11:04] Walter Gainer II: I see, I see like a way for it to become an actual profession for real. So it was like 2021. One ended up getting a job as a podcast producer. Uh, left the e commerce and marketing field at a hard pivot into it. And at the time, my only experience was producing for myself, um, helping just some other people I knew with production and just, I just was really good with, uh, um, account [00:11:30] management and marketing.

  [00:11:30] Walter Gainer II: So that kind of stood out. 

  [00:11:32] Sidney Evans: Okay. So when you, um, so when you created the podcast about locks, uh, like, I know you briefly touched on. Like that was something that you were kind of apprehensive about as far as pursuing jobs and thinking that that may have been an obstacle for you. Um, it's funny that you say that.

  [00:11:51] Sidney Evans: Cause I, uh, I remember a particular episode of. A living single back in the day when Kyle was, you know, he like him and Max were like the two most ambitious [00:12:00] ones and I think he was, I think he worked for like wall street or something dealing with finances, financial services or something like that. And, um, I think he was going up for a promotion or a partner or a deal or something.

  [00:12:14] Sidney Evans: And somebody had, I guess, in a slight of, in a sliding kind of way, kind of mentioned it that he wouldn't get the job because of that. And he was very, um, on the fence about whether he should cut it or he should, he should stand his ground and, and, [00:12:30] you know, make it a point to be known. Like this is part of my heritage.

  [00:12:32] Sidney Evans: This is a part of who I am. And stand his ground. He ultimately ended up doing that. And the response was like, okay. And you know, I don't know what, what was the apprehension about, uh, mentioning that, but you were going to get the job anyway. So, um, Even though in that particular, even though in that particular moment, it wasn't, um, there was no validity to, well, it didn't prevent the opportunity, but that's something that's black people [00:13:00] that we potentially would have to face that, you know, maybe other races don't even have to, you know, think twice about that type of thing about how they present themselves.

  [00:13:08] Sidney Evans: So was it just all, um, Kind of in your mind or knowing the possibility of it happening, or maybe someone else that happened to, or is it something or wasn't a direct experience that you had that kind of put it in the forefront of your mind? 

  [00:13:22] Walter Gainer II: Yeah, it was honestly everything. And I love that reference, by the way, shout out to the team at Living Single.

  [00:13:28] Walter Gainer II: Um, [00:13:30] It was a wide range of things. I had had locks for, at that point, maybe like almost ten years. And I was, you know, they were kind of long and everything in my whole life. You know, people always admired them and stuff like that. But I, before college I had two locks. Moments where people were kind of like my locks, having locks was like potentially jeopardizing potential of having a job.

  [00:13:57] Walter Gainer II: One was, um, just at a [00:14:00] career fair. I was looking for stuff and someone asked, like, how important are the locks to me? And at the time, like, I wasn't even real sure if I really wanted to work there. So I just kind of told them like, I was just here. I mean, it was kind of a lie, but I was like, I mean, I'll just say whatever.

  [00:14:12] Walter Gainer II: It's an interview. And then, um, yeah. The other time I was working at Jimmy John's and they wanted to train me to become a manager and take over the store. I had Lux and no one had a problem with it, but they would have this like, like at these retail places, if y'all haven't worked in retail [00:14:30] before, you know, they always have like some corporate inspector come through and they work at the company and they go through everything.

  [00:14:35] Walter Gainer II: Uh, they check to see how dirty the place is. Are you up to code? Um, are you handling things? you know, there's a whole bunch of other stuff there too. So they, um, they, like at the store I worked at, they, they did very well, very well, but they got some, uh, points taken off for grooming. And the only thing they could think of was like, Oh, Walt, he has locks.

  [00:14:59] Walter Gainer II: And it [00:15:00] was basically, it was against their like policy to have hair that was long for men to have a long hair. So basically the next time they kind of. Knew that God was coming. They asked me to kind of just like, they, they weren't like telling me to cut them, but they're like, ah, just, just hang in the back for a little bit and wait till after he leaves and then come in.

  [00:15:17] Walter Gainer II: So, but those two moments also taught me like that, that moment, even though they really didn't have to like, you know, hide me or whatever, it did kind of show that, yeah, they, they did hire me [00:15:30] anyways to work there and everything, even though it was against policy. So I knew that I could get a job without cutting it, but I just didn't really understand how to do it in that.

  [00:15:40] Walter Gainer II: Corporate environment. And then also on top of that, I was just kind of insecure and discouraged about the whole process. And then on top of top of all of that. That same year I left college was the same year that these, like, there was this huge, um, case, um, and it ended up like going to like higher courts and courts and stuff like that.

  [00:15:57] Walter Gainer II: And they've ruled that companies can't, [00:16:00] uh, uh, basically dismiss a job applicant for their hairstyle. Basically, they could not hire someone simply just because of their hair. And, um, that was like one of the things that sparked off the whole crown movement and everything as well. I mean, that happened later, but that was like one of the cases they always talked about.

  [00:16:17] Walter Gainer II: And, um, As a way for like, this isn't necessarily right. The hair doesn't, you know, just shouldn't disqualify someone from, uh, working or, uh, experiencing any form of [00:16:30] discrimination. So, so yeah, so all of that. And then also I personally just wanted to prove to. Really to black people more than anything that we don't have to change who we are or conform for real like if we really wanted to there's people out here who are doing the work like yes they're gonna face certain things won't always be accepted in every environment but um we shouldn't have to change ourselves you know we shouldn't have to tolerate things like someone being upset at me for [00:17:00] having locks because they hate my locks and they're likely just to you Not really like me cause I'm black as well.

  [00:17:05] Walter Gainer II: So that was a lot of inspiration for that show. And then that ended up, um, leading into this new show that actually launched this year, but, um, I was creating content for it before during this like accelerator program I was in with LinkedIn. Uh, called a Working While Black Show, and that was all around just career growth and entrepreneurship advice for black people, black professionals, whether [00:17:30] you, you know, you know, in retail, in corporate, wherever, exploring entrepreneurship, just just conversations with, um, just geared towards.

  [00:17:41] Walter Gainer II: Uh, black professionals who want to grow, win and all that stuff. So, so yeah, that was the motivation help, help our people out. 

  [00:17:51] Sidney Evans: Okay. So you, uh, started the podcast. Um, so which, which came first is I feel like I'm asking like, which, which came first, like the chicken or the egg, but [00:18:00] what came first, uh, uh, boss lost the podcast or the entire media platform to.

  [00:18:07] Sidney Evans: You mentioned you have other shows like under the umbrella. So I would assume that the podcast came first and you were like, okay, this is something, something I want to expand upon. And if so, be a little like kind of what went, what went into and what was the process for like getting the boss locks podcast to a certain point, um, that you were confident in and then wanted to [00:18:30] expand out into producing other shows.

  [00:18:32] Walter Gainer II: Man, so that, the, the key word in all of this, I think is, uh, confidence, because I didn't have that at all. Um, in addition to just feeling discouraged and insecure about job prospects, I was also very insecure about creating content, even though I had done it previously, but it was just for fun. It wasn't serious to me.

  [00:18:52] Walter Gainer II: I just enjoyed it. And this was, so I was just very, Nervous about it. The very first interview I did, my voice was [00:19:00] shaky. Um, so technically the podcast came first, but no one saw it. It wasn't published until after I did a whole bunch of other stuff. So the first thing that people saw was I started an Instagram page where I was just highlighting people with locks who are doing something either impactful for a community or have had some type of achievement or in professional environments.

  [00:19:23] Walter Gainer II: And so just people I would just find just. Being, uh, just on the internet would kind of write up some type of [00:19:30] profile piece on them, publish it, tag them. And that's when they found out about it and they would share it. And so it really, uh, the first thing that was shown was just the Instagram page. And then I started doing these written interviews.

  [00:19:43] Walter Gainer II: So I'd like send questions to people. They've replied and I put in an article. So that came next. And then after that, I eventually launched the podcast during the pandemic when everything was kind of stripped away. Um, I had a contract that was dope and it kind of ended cause they're like, [00:20:00] yo, we, we can't, we can't do this pandemic.

  [00:20:02] Walter Gainer II: And I was like, shoot, all I got is a podcast now. So yeah, basically launched it. So the podcast was like the last. Thing in a way, but it really was the beginning of it all. 

  [00:20:15] Sidney Evans: Okay. And you, you also mentioned earlier that I guess a lot, a lot of this conversation goes back to like confidence and, and, um, um, you being confident about who you are with their locks, you being confident enough to even [00:20:30] though recording.

  [00:20:31] Sidney Evans: The podcast, um, having the confidence to put it out, but eventually that confidence did come. Then you also mentioned that, excuse me, you also mentioned that after producing content for yourself, that the opportunity to produce for other people and, um, working at, you know, urban one podcast network presented itself and obviously there's another level of confidence that comes from, okay, I'm not just doing this for myself, so I'm kind of [00:21:00] being.

  [00:21:00] Sidney Evans: You know, when you're, when you're producing it for yourself or on your own, like there's no, there's kind of no one over your shoulder. There's no another layer of accountability to kind of meet a certain standard outside the one that you provide for yourself. So what was that transition like to producing and being in a room with other people and kind of the somewhat pressure that goes into.

  [00:21:24] Sidney Evans: Having someone who's like critique your work and giving you feedback. 

  [00:21:28] Walter Gainer II: Yeah. Um, [00:21:30] also just want to say you're really good at this. You're good at this man. Um, I appreciate it, man. Yeah. So Yeah, absolutely. I feel like I should probably write a book called like the 50 stages of confidence or something like that.

  [00:21:45] Walter Gainer II: Um, cause it is like a whole evolution of just everything. So yes, um, I think that my journey post college was all tied together, having locks, just understanding [00:22:00] myself more and also podcasting. I think each of these, as I, they continue to grow, just learn more about myself and just had like a greater level of trust.

  [00:22:09] Walter Gainer II: I know, um, I got to be a part of a accelerator program that LinkedIn ran. It was this whole campaign they were doing and I was part of their first class. And that was a huge, like, moment of confidence because previously with my podcast, I was highlighting other people and I was just kind of there, but that was the first time where I was front and center.

  [00:22:28] Walter Gainer II: So that was, [00:22:30] um, interest because I was in a program with people that I followed and I was like, Oh, I'm here with the big dogs. This is crazy. Um, imposter syndrome, all of that. So, um, so that was one level. And then, yeah, working as a producer for an agency. Where I was kind of responsible for the production of podcasts for these, like really big businesses, um, had to have a lot of, uh, trust there.

  [00:22:53] Walter Gainer II: So I think really working in this field, I think I really started to understand anxiety. A lot more as well, because [00:23:00] it's a different type of pressure. Like you said, well, you're not just doing it for yourself. If you mess up, that sucks, but it's like, eh, I'm doing it for myself. And it's not like I have a crazy, huge following.

  [00:23:08] Walter Gainer II: That's only some people are going to find it, but doing it for other people, you mess something up and you know, there's certain, uh, just, it could be a domino effect too. Like maybe someone else in leadership being like, nah, we're not doing this anymore. Y'all are trash at this. Or just be like, yeah, you're not the one.

  [00:23:26] Walter Gainer II: Uh, go skedaddle, go down to the playground. You're not with the big dogs anymore. [00:23:30] So I think different levels of that. So I think the biggest thing for me is just developing a sense of trust and also just knowing to just, just what I'm responsible for and how to improve. Uh, Where my weak points are and strengths and all that.

  [00:23:47] Walter Gainer II: So, 

  [00:23:48] Sidney Evans: okay. So, uh, I'm glad you said that cause I'm curious to know, like, what were the actual, like, once you got in that environment, like, What were the skills where you were like, okay, this is my [00:24:00] bread and butter. I'm really, really strong in this area. And then what were the skills that were, you're like, okay, I have some, uh, room to improve and grow.

  [00:24:09] Sidney Evans: And so if I really want to be in the top tier of what I'm doing, these are the steps that I need to take. This is what I need to improve on while also not forgetting that barriers where you're strong are things that you got to emphasize as well. 

  [00:24:22] Walter Gainer II: Yeah, that's a good question too. So some of them were technical producer skills [00:24:30] and other things were kind of self management and communication.

  [00:24:34] Walter Gainer II: Like I mentioned before, like I was working in roles previously where I was like doing some type of account management or communication. So I was, I was really good at. Building relationships with people I was working for, whether it was, uh, clients or talent, and just really understanding what their needs were and how to, and just kind of executing it and managing projects, but being a producer and having to manage multiple different shows [00:25:00] all at once and in a tight schedule, it's like, uh, bigger emphasis on time management within production.

  [00:25:07] Walter Gainer II: So it was like having to get faster and find ways to be more efficient. Yeah. With the editing, um, starting to learn, like previously I was doing all, all editing and like DaVinci Resolve and then Premiere. So I still kind of knew to the Adobe world. So learning Premiere and then also Adobe Audition. And then if I'm being very, very honest, just figuring out what I could get away with, uh, just doing [00:25:30] in Premiere and not Audition.

  [00:25:32] Walter Gainer II: And thank God to Adobe, you know, uh, I wish I was sponsored by Adobe, but just adding more features to it. So I could like, uh, do enough to get by while also still learning all the tools that I needed to learn, communicating weak points to my managers and kind of just trusting they could kind of guide me in areas as well.

  [00:25:53] Walter Gainer II: Yeah, I'd probably go on and on and on, but did that answer your question? 

  [00:25:56] Sidney Evans: It actually prompted another question. So we're going, we're going to dive a little bit deeper. [00:26:00] So I want you to talk about how, how you actually got that opportunity, because honestly, I've, I've, I've, I've been through it. I'm sure a lot of people have been through it.

  [00:26:09] Sidney Evans: And to be honest, I'm kind of going through it right now with pursuing opportunities of my own to where, you know, you, the, Advertise job or the position that you may be interested in has like a wide variety of skills that you have to have. And it kind of goes to the question that I just asked you, like.

  [00:26:29] Sidney Evans: [00:26:30] You may see, you know, half of the skills, you're like, okay, I'm really strong in this area. I have a lot of experience. I can do this in my sleep. I have no reservation about being able to deliver on this. But then it might be the second half of the skill set. You're kind of like, I've only done a little bit of this.

  [00:26:47] Sidney Evans: I haven't done that much of that. Cause and for the most part jobs like you. There's a, there's a training aspect to it. Like you have to learn certain things. Like, even if you know how to do it, you may have to [00:27:00] learn how they like to do it or a more efficient way to do it. Or you may not have the ability to do it that great at all, but you can learn if you're a hard worker and you're curious.

  [00:27:09] Sidney Evans: So in that role, like how did you end up, how did you end up getting that opportunity, even though later on you realize, or maybe you even realized. up front that, okay, I may not be very strong in the entire skill set, but I know these particular skills will get me in the door and the other stuff I can just learn.

  [00:27:29] Sidney Evans: Um, [00:27:30] if I'm willing to put in the effort. 

  [00:27:32] Walter Gainer II: Okay, yeah, that's a good one. Shout out to everyone who's on the job hunt right now. So, all right. So when I first pivoted from e commerce and marketing to podcast producer, cause that was a big, big, big one. Cause previously I was just doing things for myself and a few things for other people, but, um, I think what stood out to the, and this was not at Urban One, that switch, but previously at an agency and what stood out was I [00:28:00] think some other skill sets that I had and editing and stuff wasn't at the beginning.

  [00:28:06] Walter Gainer II: It wasn't like the main thing that I was doing in that role. Um, Uh, at the agency, it was more so like managing the whole production process. So they had other people to do the editing, but needed someone to truly understood the podcast, understood what clients wanted and, um, what the deliverables were and could manage the whole process, get it down on time and could also help [00:28:30] people to learn about podcasting as a whole.

  [00:28:32] Walter Gainer II: And so I could do. All of that, I just wasn't very strong as an editing. So like I was able to just lean on things that I could do well, which was, um, uh, customer service, account management, uh, managing projects. So I had done all of those things and others, uh, roles I was in. And also the e commerce role I was in was also marketing as well.

  [00:28:54] Walter Gainer II: And part of what they wanted someone who could help. Their clients with, uh, [00:29:00] taking the podcast and turning it into, um, other types of content that you use to grow the show and grow their brand. So I was able to lean in on like those things that I did well and also show that I have done some editing, um, might not be my strongest, uh, skill point at right now, but, you know, Just communicating what I can do my weak points in areas I can learn and for them, actually, I'll be honest with you.

  [00:29:23] Walter Gainer II: I didn't get the job. Um, I don't know what happened to whoever they offered it to, but they call me back like a few weeks [00:29:30] later is like, Hey, you want that job still? So, um, that was that for me. And really, what also helped was, um, somebody I knew I was in this accountability, like, Podcasts group with other podcasters who are looking to grow their own show.

  [00:29:45] Walter Gainer II: So we're all just kind of sharing what we're learning and how we're going about things. And so when one of, uh, the people in that group, and it was Rob Conlan, he got the job and then, um, he was telling us about it. So. Luckily, I had a relationship [00:30:00] with him, which helped to make me look a little bit better, because he was doing very, very good at the role.

  [00:30:05] Walter Gainer II: And I was just, um, during the interview, and I suck at interviews, y'all, but during the job interview, me and the hiring manager, we just kind of got along very well. So that helped as well. Um, so, each time I've gotten something, it's been because of some sort of relationship, either relationship had previously that just helped to make me look better, it wasn't like a, oh, you know him, you're good, or you know her, you're good, it was just more so, oh, [00:30:30] okay, yeah, so this person told us about you, type of thing, um, and then with Urban One, that was once again, um, Just I had kind of networked and someone else had joined and they just knew what I had done previously and I saw I was able to be a part of the creator program and so they kind of trusted that I understood content and podcasting and at the time.

  [00:30:55] Walter Gainer II: Podcast is something that everyone already had, but they wanted to really have a [00:31:00] stronger emphasis on it by creating a whole network. So they wanted to bring in people who are in the podcast space. So for that one, it was just me knowing a great deal about podcasting production, what's needed and the area that I needed to.

  [00:31:16] Walter Gainer II: Kind of proven there was like the, the video editing side of things. I had done it before, but just didn't have a huge portfolio of projects because all the other stuff at, uh, the previous agency was mostly audio and some other types of content. So I just [00:31:30] had to, once again, they just, uh, trust that I could do.

  [00:31:35] Walter Gainer II: What they wanted me to do and help with the other sides of podcasting and everything and um, just deliver value so I think each time i've had to um, I never actually thought about this until you asked for real because Honestly when it comes to interviewing like i'm like, I don't know. I don't know nothing but um, there's always been something that I wasn't necessarily as strong at but Um, just i'm an [00:32:00] obsessive learner type of thing.

  [00:32:01] Walter Gainer II: So just learning what I need to do You And just showing, I guess, uh, potential 

  [00:32:08] Sidney Evans: cool. So you, uh, I'm glad you touched on like the building relationships and networking piece and we're going to dive a little bit more into that. But before, um, so you're the first guest that I had who kind of has a background in audio and video.

  [00:32:23] Sidney Evans: And honestly, like I've been seeing a lot of like job opportunities and postings to where it's like a podcast producer, [00:32:30] but you, uh, the requirement is that you have to be strong in audio and video. So I'm, I'm kind of. Envisioning that as like companies kind of consolidate roles and they may not have as big of budgets for podcasts or shows in general, that they're kind of absolving them into the same role.

  [00:32:47] Sidney Evans: So I know this is an audio focused podcast, but I've kind of already came to this realization on my own, that in order to supplement. Your skill in audio, whether it be recording, [00:33:00] editing, mixing, et cetera, that develop a strong skillset in video editing, because those things are kind of meshing together.

  [00:33:10] Sidney Evans: And if you want to get the best opportunities, the top opportunities, you want to do a lot of the top tier stuff with, you know, these larger companies, these bigger companies. And I think that's a skill set that you should definitely emphasize. And I feel like if someone who. Like to create content in general, [00:33:30] it's kind of a natural process because you may start off just doing audio, but then you wouldn't may add a video component to your podcast, whether you want to do YouTube, like you may make videos talking about audio, but you're actually going to have to edit the videos on your own.

  [00:33:43] Sidney Evans: And then as you continue to do it and do it and want to increase the quality of your videos and your productions in general. That's a skill set that you become really strong in. And I don't think you should set that to the side just because you say like, Oh, I'm an audio engineer or I'm a. I [00:34:00] produce podcasts just for audio only.

  [00:34:01] Sidney Evans: Like if you, if you can be able to cover the full spectrum, um, it'll lead to opportunity, a lot of opportunities. So I just wanted to touch on that. Um, and as far as your like mindset, uh, we're going to get into the building, building relationships portion. Um, as far as doing that, like I know, and I mentioned this on, uh, Other episodes.

  [00:34:22] Sidney Evans: And this is how I feel that it can kind of be like a daunting task. If you think about it in a traditional sense of [00:34:30] like going to these events and shaking hands and being buttoned up and handing out business cards and 20, maybe even 10 years ago, like that was kind of the norm, but with. I guess the, the popularity of social media and people just have more access to you.

  [00:34:47] Sidney Evans: Um, you can find a lot more points of relatability to someone, whether it's just shooting them a message on LinkedIn or following them on Instagram or Twitter. And you can kind of see their interest and maybe that be [00:35:00] a conversation starter that can, you know, that is organic in the moment, but that could build a relationship that over time, um, is beneficial.

  [00:35:09] Sidney Evans: From a career standpoint, or you could just be, you know, have an opportunity that's simply from through the internet or through social media, but for like in person, if you come across someone who, or you may be, you know, working on something, introduced to somebody, I'll kind of just hit it off. Like y'all, y'all get along, um, and the relationship [00:35:30] grows.

  [00:35:30] Sidney Evans: And then later you find out how, you know, the relationship can be mutually beneficial from a career standpoint, you can kind of go one of two ways. So as far as the. Relationships that you built that led to the opportunities that you had or have or will have. What do you think is the thing that allows you to build these relationships that last that turn into things down the road?

  [00:35:54] Walter Gainer II: Um, I am just like, I just am an [00:36:00] introvert. I do extroverted things occasionally. Um, so when I'm at networking events, I'm not the person going up to everyone and be like, Hey, what's up? Just start conversation with random people. Not that person at all. I, when I go, and it took me a while to get comfortable with this, but now when I'm at events, I don't even try to talk to everyone.

  [00:36:21] Walter Gainer II: Like I'm more comfortable just chilling in one area by the food. Just like whoever I happen to talk to is who I [00:36:30] talk to. So I think because of that, I do miss out on certain opportunities to meet people. But I think for me, when it does work, because I, And people I do network with I think there's like a energy exchange type of thing it's like people we kind of have a similar vibe or we Just something it's just kind of like a deeper type of connection So like while some people can walk away with 30 contacts, I have three but those three I'm still [00:37:00] Reach out to and speak to for like the next 30 years type of thing.

  [00:37:04] Walter Gainer II: One thing, one tip actually I would say You Because like, I think business cards, depending on where you're at, they're kind of expected or they're not. But me personally, I just decided I'm not going to carry business cards at all ever, because I don't like them. They end up in like some corner in the desk.

  [00:37:20] Walter Gainer II: I use them as bookmarks maybe, but they end up in the trash. Um, and also you have to pay to make book, uh, business cards. So what I do is I use some of these apps. [00:37:30] Um, the free apps where you can have your information, people scan it. It's a lot more common now, but what's cool about that is that when you hand someone your business card, you're relying on them to actually keep it, take down your information and reach out to you.

  [00:37:43] Walter Gainer II: But when you use some of these apps, um, they scan it, you got their phone number right away, their email right away. You could text them, call them. So there isn't as much dependency on them hitting you up later. So that's something for sure. So really it's just like, just connect [00:38:00] with people that I just feel some type of connection to.

  [00:38:03] Walter Gainer II: And sometimes it is like a immediate, like transactional, but like, it's like mutually beneficially transactional. But majority of the time it's like, uh, Oh, you seem cool. Yeah. Let's, let's, uh, talk later type of thing. I, I connect with more people online than offline. LinkedIn, I've just met a lot of really, really dope people there and somewhat, I was a lot heavier with network on Instagram previously, [00:38:30] but lately it's mostly been LinkedIn for network, especially in this podcast space, man, a lot of.

  [00:38:36] Walter Gainer II: Producers via LinkedIn and different like, uh, kind of podcast communities. So I guess another thing I'd say is like, uh, go where you want to be as far as events, you could pop up at whatever events, but I like to go to places that are kind of concentrated around something that I know about, I'm interested in.

  [00:38:52] Walter Gainer II: And then it's a lot easier to meet people that at the very least, if you don't necessarily vibe with them, at least you're there for like a similar [00:39:00] mission. So that helps too. So yeah, all 

  [00:39:02] Sidney Evans: right. I'm uh, I'm going to kind of get it in there and kind of give my spiel on what you just touched on. But, um, as far as networking, I kind of, I kind of like to take the same approach as you.

  [00:39:12] Sidney Evans: Um, I prefer to do it more online just because you can, um, you can only connect with a certain amount of people in person. Like online is unlimited. But, you know, essentially, if you take time out of, uh, You know, whether it's, you know, 30 minutes a day or it's a certain day, I'm just going to [00:39:30] do networking.

  [00:39:30] Sidney Evans: Like if you really put in the time to, um, like go in, you know, comment on stuff, share, share things of your own, um, just be interested, just be interesting, comment and do it in an organic way, comment on things that you're actually interested in. You know, if you, whether you like make a comment, if you do make a comment.

  [00:39:50] Sidney Evans: May have the comment be your personality. Don't, you know, try to be too corporate or, um, use all this jargon or kind of seem robotic. Like you have to [00:40:00] do it in your using your natural personality. Um, and as far as in person myself. I prefer to kind of like, just like you said, like not be too pushy, you know, um, there are moments where, you know, people just, the group, the like minded people will find each other.

  [00:40:17] Sidney Evans: They kind of go off in a group and, you know, do their thing and, you know, you make introductions like that and it starts off casual and then you can get more into what you do. You know how you can help each other. So that's the approach that I [00:40:30] like to take as well. So we're similar in that way. And then also the thing, big thing you mentioned is LinkedIn.

  [00:40:36] Sidney Evans: Like I know Instagram is like sexy and. It's, you know, to me much more superficial, but if you're trying to get your, your, your career popping for real, you got to be on LinkedIn. Like I posted, uh, just a teaser for this episode, not for the episode teaser for the podcast in general, just introducing the podcast and like revealing the cover art and stuff.

  [00:40:59] Sidney Evans: And [00:41:00] I thought it may, may have got a few hits, but it kind of. Well, not kind of, it definitely exceeded what I thought it was going to do. Not only for people that had already followed me, but I got so many connection requests and messages and comments and things like that, just from, and things like that, just from a two minute clip talking about the podcast.

  [00:41:22] Sidney Evans: So if you're serious about wanting to make connections and progressing your career and taking it seriously, I think [00:41:30] you should definitely be on LinkedIn as well. So yeah, man, you, you shared a lot. Um, so we've, you know, we've covered your journey, we've covered, uh, you know, your insecurities and addressing them and overcoming those, we talked about the, the job itself, we talked about building relationships, um, but you are getting into the, to the end portion of the show, so we kind of want to end with that.

  [00:41:56] Sidney Evans: On a lighter note and just kind of, kind of get a feel for [00:42:00] what you're into. So, uh, got a couple of questions and, um, just, just answer with the first thing that comes to your mind. So first off, uh, what is your favorite piece of equipment that you own? 

  [00:42:13] Walter Gainer II: First thing that came to mind was my phone. Um, but okay.

  [00:42:18] Walter Gainer II: Audio related equipment, audio related or con or content. Yeah. Okay. Okay. First thing. Um, all right. So. Having a RODECaster was, was uh, between the [00:42:30] RODECaster and this, uh, the Mickeys, I'm sure, MB7, um, the RODECaster, always going to have love for it because, um, that helped me out a lot in the clubhouse days when I wanted to have rooms and record them.

  [00:42:42] Walter Gainer II: And then even when I started doing like live, uh, streamed events, just like playing music and everything, or just integrating different sounds, it's just like super, super easy. On it. It took a minute to really learn it and had a lot of terrible recordings 'cause I didn't fully understand it. Um, [00:43:00] so yeah, shout to everyone who had me on as a guess, and it was terrible 'cause of the audio.

  [00:43:04] Walter Gainer II: But, um, yeah, the road caster for sure, and then it sure, MB seven just kind of leveled up a lot of, uh, just, just the, the sound and everything. So. Yeah, tie between those two, Rokas is winning though. 

  [00:43:18] Sidney Evans: Okay, those are, those are two, probably every list that you can think of as far as like top, you know, mixer or and microphones.

  [00:43:27] Sidney Evans: Those are probably, those are definitely be in the list. So those are, those are [00:43:30] some solid, that's some solid gear. Um, next is what's your, what's your favorite album? 

  [00:43:36] Walter Gainer II: Oh, that's not fair. Um, I'm gonna say 2014 Forest Hill Drives by J. Cole. Yeah, I'll just stop there. I'll stop there. 

  [00:43:47] Sidney Evans: Okay. Sometimes you just gotta, you gotta let things speak for themselves.

  [00:43:50] Sidney Evans: So, um, you know, uh, say no more. Next is, uh, who's your favorite movie? Who's your favorite music producer? [00:44:00] 

  [00:44:00] Walter Gainer II: Uh, I'm gonna shout out DJ Mustard right now. I don't know. I'm going to say D. A. Mustard. He's at one hell of a year right now. And not like us, Wrecker, really just, just took, yeah, so, shout out to him. 

  [00:44:14] Sidney Evans: Oh yeah, that's, that's, he, that's, Has elevated him to legendary status.

  [00:44:18] Sidney Evans: If he wasn't, if he wasn't there already. All right. Next, uh, favorite film score, 

  [00:44:24] Walter Gainer II: film score. So I would say, um, the [00:44:30] first black Panther, because I actually listened to it. Like the, like I was listening to an album for real. Um, yeah, love, love. Yeah. Yeah. That's a favorite. 

  [00:44:40] Sidney Evans: Okay. Black Panther solid. And last is a favorite TV theme song.

  [00:44:46] Walter Gainer II: Okay. This is a tough one. Shout out to everyone who makes memorable theme songs. They don't for real. You know, what's interesting actually, um, this is about podcasting. There's like a conversation around, like, are intros [00:45:00] important anymore? Like she just skipped them, leave them out. And people talk about like listener retention and consumption time.

  [00:45:07] Walter Gainer II: You're just getting straight to it. And me personally on the mindset of like, do whatever you want. Just make, if you do do it, just make sure it's really, really good. Cause, um, some podcasts just kind of skip through to the part. I want to start listening to it. Then eventually I might just stop listening.

  [00:45:21] Walter Gainer II: Others. I just, just love it. So, um, TV intro doing all this to buy time. Um, it's a split between, [00:45:30] uh, it's a split between a new girl, uh, fresh Prince and the Wayne brothers. 

  [00:45:38] Sidney Evans: New girls, fresh. I knew, I knew the first French was going to be in there. I had, it's funny. I hadn't, uh, Watch the watch the wings brothers in a while and me and my girls watching it the other night So it's funny you say that cuz it's fresh on my mind and then new 

  [00:45:50] Walter Gainer II: girl.

  [00:45:51] Walter Gainer II: I'm not familiar with new girl Yeah, that's just uh, I'm a big fan of comedy TV shows are just just all over. It's a very [00:46:00] but New girl, it just follows these Three white people and one black person. Um, uh, but it's a really good, I think it's really good show. It's a comedy show. I had a, quite a few seasons and, um, yeah, they're just kind of singing at the beginning.

  [00:46:19] Sidney Evans: Every time somebody mentions for this last portion, something that I'm not familiar with, uh, make sure I go check it out and see if it, you know, check it out and see if it checks out. As far as being [00:46:30] at the top of somebody's list. So 

  [00:46:31] Walter Gainer II: if you love it, you got to let everyone know you got to put a special, a special episode out.

  [00:46:36] Walter Gainer II: Just being like, yo, wall has the best TV taste ever in all eternity. Now that show isn't for everyone, but I think, I think that show deserves a little more credit. 

  [00:46:45] Sidney Evans: Okay. All right. Oh, I love having, you know, people to have their own taste. So I'm not gonna, I'm gonna judge you, but not too harshly. But, um, yeah, man, I think that brings us to the end here.

  [00:46:56] Sidney Evans: Um, you know, definitely want to be cognizant of your [00:47:00] time. So, uh, you shared a lot. I appreciate it, man. Before we get out of here, uh, where can people find you on social media? Um, I know you say you're super active on LinkedIn, so make sure you share how people connect with you on there. And, uh, Uh, anything else you want to share?

  [00:47:17] Walter Gainer II: Yeah. Um, yeah, if you're listening to it, appreciate y'all's time and yeah, definitely, um, I don't even just follow, but just reach out to me. I'm all about, uh, just relationships. And especially if you're listening to this and then following me, let me [00:47:30] know, uh, that you are listening to this podcast. You can find me on LinkedIn, of course, Walter Gaynor, the second Instagram, all the other platforms you can search for.

  [00:47:38] Walter Gainer II: It's the great Walt ITS. The great Walt on all the platforms. Um, yeah, I'm, I'm really excited about, um, I've been kind of like quiet for the past two years as I've kind of pivoted into this new world for me as like a professional in the podcast space. And now I'm starting [00:48:00] to kind of bring back a lot of the content that I had done previously.

  [00:48:03] Walter Gainer II: So. I'm just excited to kind of return to that and return to podcasts. And so if you are following me, I appreciate you. I definitely want to get to know you. 

  [00:48:12] Sidney Evans: All right. I think we got it, brother. I appreciate you and everyone listening. I'll catch you on the next episode.

  [00:48:21] Sidney Evans: Thank you for joining us on today's episode. Please don't forget to subscribe to the show and leave us a review. If you'd like to work with me [00:48:30] or connect, please go to soundbysid. com and schedule a call there. You can also check out the full list of. If you'd like to connect on social media, my handle is soundbysid.

  [00:48:42] Sidney Evans: com on Twitter and Instagram, and I'm Sidney Evans on LinkedIn. Don't forget to follow Beyond the Threshold on Instagram as well. I'll catch you on the next episode.