Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Davenport.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I began audio engineering at my family’s home church. The original engineer walked out one Sunday morning and I was the only person who paid attention to how the PA system worked in the church. I took over all sound needs at the age of ten until my family decided to change church homes to which is where we attend church today The House of Hope ATL. At HOHATL, I was trained under Jason Rome who is currently a monitor engineer for Frankie Beverly and Maze group. After years of learning protools, Midas, and other audio consoles, I received the position at the church as the studio and monitor engineer. I currently still hold this position working with various Grammy Award-winning artists and musicians but my engineering journey took a turn once the pandemic happened. Once the pandemic happened, productions of all kinds were canceled including church and everyone was on lockdown. My day job is accounting and I was still doing that however, there was no way to practice engineering during that time locked in the house. All the audio equipment I spent years learning how to use and mastering was at the church. I decided to purchase a bass guitar to learn more about frequencies and tap into what musicians want to hear in their in ear mixes just as practice for when concerts and church opened back up. Once the lockdown started to be lifted and outside gatherings were allowed, I was asked to put on small productions in backyards of peoples homes. I didn’t own any equipment at the time, so I invested in a small PA set and a 4k projector and screen. After my first event, I was asked if I could do bigger and better events for backyard parties. I registered my business with the state, applied for the PPP loan and invested in industry-standard equipment and my business has grown ever since.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
In the beginning, there were a lot of struggles due to equipment not being available in stores when people wanted to book me so I had to turn down a lot of opportunities because of that. I also only owned a four-door sedan at the start of the business and that could not carry all the equipment I needed for events. A large portion of my revenue went towards U-haul rentals. There were also a few events I thought I had what I needed, then realized I needed better consoles and other audio gear to accomplish the sound I was looking for. I also wasn’t making enough to have help with loading, unloading, and setting up which forced me to get to the event space super early to be ready at the start of the event.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My business specializes in sound reinforcement for events of all kinds. Recently, I’ve been traveling with different bands around the Atlanta area to provide a live concert environment to the event. I also do mobile DJ setups as well as church services and live recordings. I have been able to provide quality sound experiences because of the people that have trained me and artist I’ve worked with. The product I provide to a event is specific, detailed, and a full sound. It caters to everyone involved whether they are performing or enjoying the performance. Typically, concerts have separate engineers for performers and engineers for the people in the crowd. I’ve had the opportunity to be the engineer in both roles and I apply the years of knowledge to each and every event I’m working.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I was born and raised in Atlanta, GA and my family is the reason I’m the man I am today and this great city has invested in me with scholarships throughout college and provided experiences I will cherish forever. I graduated from Morehouse College that’s right in the middle of my city and is the home to so much history for black people
It hurts to see all the damage that’s happening to the black-owned businesses, police violence, and gentrification that’s happening here. The city wasn’t like this when I was growing up and it hurts my soul to see how it has changed over the years. Atlanta has turned into a melting pot and just like all things there are good and bad things that come with that. True Atlanta people preserve the culture and cherish it. I see the true culture during moments with my family at cookouts and gatherings, which reminds me of how proud I am to call Atlanta my city
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @Justdavenport
Image Credits:
Photographers: Views from 9 ShotxStreet Keon McKay Jesse Kearse IV Veezy Visions Videographer: 908 FilmWorks LLC
