We had the good fortune of connecting with Janiro Hawkins II and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I believe one of the key things that sets us apart when it comes to the Southern Entertainment Awards is that, we created the event from scratch. There was nothing before us, nobody to help us figure it out and mentor us along the way, we just did the best we could with what we had at the time.

Being in the position that we were in is never easy, we were “new” and while there was an attraction because of that, there were also a variety of hurdles because of that. From locating venues to obtaining sponsors, we were in fact, the ‘unknown’ but standing on the belief of what we were doing, the end goal and ability to provide something to the entertainment community that never existed was how we overcame many of those challenges.

One of the biggest lessons we learned along the way was to stay efficient and open to and accept change because, it is going to happen one way or another.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
In Nashville, TN I would start with cocktails at Patterson House one evening, a late night stop at Dino’s and then carry throughout the week visiting a variety of establishments first taking a day trip at the Uncle Nearest Distillery then have dinner at Supper Club. Next on the list for the remainder of the week would be some live music at Rudy’s Jazz Room, wings to perfection at Germantown Pub then catch some of the hottest djs in the city at Minerva, Plane Jane & SOHO house. A morning visit to No Free Coffee, afternoon lunch at Slim & Husky’s. We would definitely close the week out with some original hot chicken at the ONLY place to get it from the world famous Prince’s Hot Chicken

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d really like to shoutout every single person who has either attended the Southern Entertainment Awards, Nominated or even Voted for someone. You have truly provided the why to what we continue to do. Would also like to take the time to thank Nina Stakz for giving me the opportunity to join the team as the Music Supervisor for her films.

Website: https://southernentawards.com

Instagram: @rio_de_janiro & @sea_awards

Twitter: @sea_awards

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=K_elu1fAwQ1lUsFtZknNBQ

Youtube: youtube.com/southernentawards

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutTennessee is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.