How KevOnStage assists in building a more successful entertainment industry
"I consider the best method to tell the tale of how I came to this point is one person and one movie at a time," tells comedian and creator Kevin Fredericks - better known as his online name KevOnStage. Kev talks to us from his workspace and office in Los Angeles, the epicenter of his largest creative project up to this point: KevOnStage Studios. The digital artist hasn't gotten an entire production studio in a matter of hours. Kev's business grew from being an occasional side job into a full-time career in the span of 10 years in digital.
"Before the standard path for comedians was to relocate into L.A., get on the Tonight Show, and try to convince an agent," said the actor. "Now thanks to the growth of social media and other social media, you'll be able to attract an audience that is yours and become the world's most famous comedian." Since 2011, KevOnStage has slowly but surely amassed over 1M+ followers on Instagram and more than 800K YouTube users, through sharing candid videos of comedy as well as his loyal online followers as well as being affectionately referred to as"the Stage Crew.
"I think charting your own destiny is extremely important," adds Kev. "Right moment, I'm putting my own show I created and directed and financed that nobody in Hollywood needed to accept. I'm able to make every aspect and show it direct to my audience."
The fundamentals of HTML0
Kev has been building his online community over 10 years ago, however he says things took a time to get going. "I am not seeing any significant growth since the launch of KevOnStage up to probably 2017" states Kev. "Before that I had been working hard, not getting many views, like the majority of people."
In that period the author had to locate his north star for creating content that was true to him and his values. "When people don't create content with their hearts, the achievement is exhausting," states Kev. "I had always felt comfortable with never blowing up however, I could create the content that I felt passionate about. That's why I've experienced more success, instead of trying to do work."
As his fame began to take off, Kev took to touring throughout the country with colleagues - however, the pandemic brought the events on stage to a slow stop. Keen to discover new strategies to keep the momentum going the brother of Kev came to him with a new idea: streaming.
Giving back your power
Kev is the only one who admits that the possibility of an OTT service wasn't not considered by him as an option for a future business decision. "We initially tried to create films that were independent, and then my brother suggested"Yo, I've got an idea that we may have the ability to make it happen via our own app at some point in the near future,"" Kev shares. "I didn't think about this as an option."
Kev met with the producer and business associate Brennon Edwards, offering collaboration on the creation of one OTT application. "It was an easy decision," says Brennon, now President of KevOnStage Studios, because it allowed them to produce (and generate revenue through) the content they create according to their own rules. "We are in a place where the bar of access for becoming a creator significantly lower. It has revolutionized the way we play."
"We could step beyond what we had expected Hollywood to do for us and do the job done ourselves," he says. "We collaborate directly with the audience that has been given to us. They're the ones who give us the funding that allows us to create the things we'd like to do. We have the capacity to come up with new ideas, and we are creators."
Helping other creators become empowered
The KOSS team, led by Brennon Kev and Co-Founder and Co-CEO Melissa Fredericks have consciously created an environment that is supportive and creative for the other Black creators to explore their thoughts. "I simply am thankful that this is a place to work at the beginning, because people are working there, that we allow people to achieve their dreams at KOSS," says Kev.
What's so wonderful about this adventure is the fact that we're taking action contrary to what Hollywood suggests, in our own control." adds Melissa. "We're having a positive effect on the people around us. That is not waiting for Hollywood to anoint the apron of your success. This is the moment to make a decision, we've done this by ourselves. Period. This can be done on our own. Period. Furthermore, we're capable of offering chances they would not get. Period."
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