Daily Inspiration: Meet Trenton Hawkins

Today we’d like to introduce you to Trenton Hawkins.

Hi Trenton, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My story really starts with my love for music. Growing up, music was always a big part of my life. I grew up in church, participated in band programs throughout school, and eventually realized that music was something I wanted to pursue beyond just being a hobby. That led me to study Music Technology, where I began learning more about the technical and production side of the industry.

After school, I spent a lot of time finding my way and figuring out where I fit in the industry. I took internships and looked for opportunities that would give me real hands-on experience, which eventually led to working with different churches and theaters. Those experiences allowed me to work with different types of productions, equipment, and environments and really helped me develop as a live audio engineer.

Eventually, I moved back to Atlanta and continued building my experience by working at local venues and taking on different audio opportunities. As I gained more experience and confidence, I decided to invest in my own equipment and start building my own clientele. Through relationships, referrals, and consistently doing good work, I was able to turn those individual opportunities into something much bigger.

That journey eventually led to the creation of Looped N’ Live LLC, my live audio production company. It’s an extension of everything I’ve learned throughout my career and gives me the opportunity to provide professional live audio and production support while continuing to grow as TTP The Live Audio Specialist. I’m proud of how far I’ve come, but I’m even more excited about where this journey is taking me.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. One of the biggest challenges has been figuring out where I fit in an industry that can be very competitive and where a lot of opportunities come through relationships and experience. Early on, I had to be willing to take internships, smaller opportunities, and jobs that gave me experience even when they weren’t necessarily where I ultimately wanted to be.

Another challenge was transitioning from gaining experience to actually building something of my own. When I moved back to Atlanta, I had to continue finding opportunities, build relationships, invest in my own equipment, and figure out how to turn my skills into a business. There were definitely moments where I had to question whether I was moving in the right direction, especially when things weren’t happening as quickly as I wanted them to.

At the same time, those challenges taught me a lot. They taught me to be patient, stay consistent, keep learning, and understand that growth doesn’t always happen overnight. Every church, theater, venue, internship, and production I worked on added something to my experience and helped shape the engineer and business owner I am today.

Looking back, I’m actually grateful that it wasn’t a smooth road. The challenges forced me to develop not only as an audio engineer, but also as a professional and entrepreneur. They helped me understand the value of relationships, preparation, reliability, and simply continuing to show up and do good work.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My work is centered around live audio and production. As TTP The Live Audio Specialist, I work as a live sound engineer, mixing FOH, providing production support, helping with system optimization, stage management, and working with different artists, bands, churches, venues, and events. I really enjoy the technical side of live production, but I also enjoy being part of the bigger picture and figuring out how to make a production run smoothly from both the technical and creative sides.

I think I’m becoming known for being versatile and adaptable. I’ve had the opportunity to work with different consoles, audio systems, venues, and types of productions, and I’m always focused on learning something new. I don’t want to be an engineer who only knows how to work one setup. I want to understand signal flow, system design, troubleshooting, and the different pieces that make a live production work so I can walk into different environments and adapt to what’s needed.

What I’m most proud of is the growth I’ve had as an engineer and the opportunities that have come from simply continuing to put myself out there. Going from learning music technology, taking internships, working in churches and theaters, to eventually working venues, touring, investing in my own equipment, and building my own clientele has been a huge part of that journey.

What I feel sets me apart is that I care about more than just getting sound out of the speakers. I care about the artist’s experience, the audience’s experience, and the overall production. I try to be prepared, dependable, easy to work with, and willing to solve problems when they come up. I’m always trying to improve my craft, and I think that mindset of constantly learning while still being focused on the people I’m working with is a big part of what makes my approach different.

Any big plans?
The future for Looped N Live is really about growth and building something that can operate on a much larger scale. I want to continue expanding our client base, working with more artists, venues, churches, and production companies, while also growing the equipment and resources we’re able to provide. I’m looking forward to taking on larger productions and continuing to build relationships throughout the Atlanta music and entertainment community and beyond.

I also want to continue developing Looped N Live into a company that can provide more than just live sound. As we grow, I’d like to expand further into full production support, system design and optimization, recording, stage management, and eventually have a team of engineers and production professionals who can represent the Looped N Live brand.

One of my biggest goals is to create more opportunities for myself and for other people who are trying to find their way into the live production industry. I know firsthand how important internships, mentorship, and simply having someone give you an opportunity can be, so I’d love for Looped N Live to eventually become a platform where other upcoming engineers and production professionals can gain experience and grow.

Most importantly, I’m looking forward to seeing how far I can take something that started from my love for music. There are a lot of goals I have for Looped N Live, but I’m focused on continuing to build it the right way—one relationship, one production, and one opportunity at a time.

Contact Info:

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