Today we’d like to introduce you to Anthony Jones.
Hi Anthony, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in Omaha, NE. I have always had a fire in me for fitness and music. Music developed first as I was growing up. I started producing in elementary school with my dad’s radio recorder. I would record myself making drums on anything I could find. I would then play back the drums I had just recorded and use a second recorder to record myself playing the piano while those drums were playing in the background to layer them all together. It has always been a lifelong passion that my family noticed early on. In middle school, I got my first software called eJay Hip Hop 6, and that’s when it started. I would always be in the basement as soon as I woke up and had so many melodies in my head that I had to express. As I developed my talent, I was blessed with a lifelong membership and updates for FL Studio (Fruity Loops). In my spare time, I would express my emotions through production and staying very active in sports or always outside, staying healthy. I even made a full mixtape where I rapped on all the beats I produced. I’ve always dreamed of being a real artist once I found my sound.
Halfway through my 11th grade in high school, we moved to Katy, TX. Throughout school, I was in any sport you could think of. Once I graduated in 2011, I went straight to college and received my bachelor’s in Business (Management Information Systems) at Lubbock Christian University in 2015. During that time, I started putting out my music, and even though high school sports were over, I never wanted to stop being active. That is when I began taking lifting very seriously as a lifestyle and developing my Instagram as a fitness motivation page. I moved straight to Orange County, California, after college for 6 years. I continued to work out daily, doing fitness modeling and photo shoots. I learned to incorporate yoga into my daily routine and build myself and my career. I plan to produce music continually and just received a microphone to start making full songs with me singing and rapping on them. I eventually met my wife, and we decided to move to Austin, TX, in June of 2022 to get settled and start a family. I am still focused on my grind, growing my YouTube page and Instagram to provide for my family and build an empire.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been smooth?
As we all know, life will always have its ups and downs. I had some struggles while I was in Orange, California. My family still lived in Katy, TX, so I was independent, trying to start my own life. I started as a Corporate Recruiter grinding to make ends meet. I had a great first roommate that I met from the gym. After that year’s lease was up, we went our separate ways, and it was a struggle to afford to live on my own, so I had to search for roommates. I connected with a buddy from work and stayed in an apartment with him and another couple where they had an extra room. That couple had issues, and the guy in that relationship tried to commit suicide at one point and went to rehab. When he returned from rehab, that couple stole our rent money and did not pay rent for a few months without our knowledge. We got a random eviction notice in the mail and had to move out within a week. You can only imagine the roller coaster of emotions my buddy from work and I were going through having this come out of nowhere. Once that got sorted, we found an available 2-bed apt in Lake Forest, California, and that went great. It brought a sense of peace for both of us, and we still worked at the same job. After that lease was up, we went our separate ways as well. I was eventually let go from that role. I got a new position and connected with another buddy at my new job as a real estate consultant. I trusted the house he owned in Anaheim, California, was great and didn’t check for faults. When I moved in, my room was mold-infested, and the bathroom had so much mold all over it was black and passed the point of cleaning. It needed to get torn down and rebuilt anew. I had to wear flip-flops in our shower and never touched the curtains: no washer or dryer, and the kitchen cabinets needed to be included and usable as a kitchen. So I got my mini fridge to store food and a microwave in my room to heat easy food. During those times, I always told myself that it was temporary and I needed to stay down for the come-up. I was saving like crazy and dedicated to my success.
During those years in California, the gym was my haven. I went there every morning before work to escape my living conditions, which was therapy. Health is wealth, and I knew if I kept my fitness up, everything would all work out. I went to an infrared sauna after work and had an unlimited membership there, so I went every evening after work to detox the mold out of my system and spend as little time as possible I could look at that house.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My discipline, positivity, and consistency set me apart from others. I am very strong-willed and have been through the toughest conditions on my own, so I know I can get through anything in life. Self-respect and putting myself first got me through my challenges in life. I always made time to hit the gym before work throughout my career, which allowed me to focus the rest of the day on the job to give it my all. I knew if I didn’t succeed in work, I couldn’t pay rent, and I didn’t want to be homeless or move back in with my parents, so I ground my heart out. For work, I am a business professional. I’ve worked various jobs after college. I started as a corporate recruiter for two different companies. I was using my business development skills to acquire clients and hire positions that needed to be filled. Then, I moved on to a real estate consultant, providing options to homeowners to sell their homes and connecting them with agents on the phones daily, pushing those sales. After that avenue, I was heavy in sales in different industries. I worked my way up from a sales agent to an account manager handling requests or issues for large national VIP accounts.
We’d love to hear what you think about risk-taking.
Risk-taking is important for success. It can take you further in life than staying complacent. Taking risks is missing potential opportunities. Staying safe and comfortable is only sometimes in your best interest. There needs to be more. Taking risks will allow you to grow and develop more than staying safe. We must encounter challenges and risks to know our true selves and potential. If you don’t, you miss out on that knowledge of self and may have regrets in the future. Even if you take risks and don’t succeed, that will build character and resilience. It will prepare you for future opportunities, and that fear of risk won’t be as bad the next time. Always know that everything will be okay no matter what, so have no fear of taking risks because life will always sort itself out. The bad can only last so long, take that risk, and you will see a brighter ending in time. If you ever fear risk-taking, follow your intuition, which will lead you to your higher self and the best path for you. Your gut will tell you all you need. All we have to do is listen.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/santotonyxo/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anthony.e.jones.9
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthony-jones-4a0a9a111
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/@santotony
