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"In all things first be service minded" is the mantra that has guided Micheal Smith's nearly 35-year career in radio, television, marketing and entertainment. Practicing this simple act consistently over the years has led him to hold several leadership positions at major companies, including the position of General Manager for Swirl Films.
Hailing from College Park, GA, Micheal spent his formative years at Benjamin Banneker high school, an institution responsible for turning out famous alumni Bone Crusher, Mr. Collipark, Tameka "Tiny" Harris of Xscape, David "Mr. DJ" Sheats of Outkast and Ludacris. It was here that he was bitten by the hip-hop music bug, and shortly after graduation started his career at local radio station WREK 91.1. Serving on one of the city's oldest hip-hop formatted radio shows as a host and emcee for several years, he got his big break in 1996 when he joined the team at burgeoning Radio One owned station WHTA Hot 97.5. During his tenure as an on-air personality, he worked with the likes of Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Alani "La La" Anthony, Ryan Cameron and Chaka Zulu. While there, he was nominated for Best New On-Air Talent in Atlanta, and quickly rose to the position of Music Director before his departure in 1999 to join the team at Cumulus Broadcasting owned WHBX 96.1 Jamz in Tallahassee, Florida. It was there that Micheal began to flex his muscle as a mix DJ on radio and in nightclubs, and further expand his abilities in the arenas of marketing, imaging, production and sound design.
Watching the change in the industry and seeking to grow to the next level, Micheal stepped over into the television arena joining the broadcast engineering staff at Sinclair Broadcasting owned NBC affiliate WTWC NBC40. Being with this company gave him a wholistic, foundational understanding of the television business, and excited a new passion that would, in 2001, lead him to relocate back to his hometown to join the Creative Services team at FOX owned WAGA FOX5 Atlanta as Promotions Coordinator, where he was quickly elevated to the stations key Marketing role. As part of the team to locally launch hit shows American Idol, X Factor, Arrested Development and others, Micheal learned a great deal about branding, marketing and event planning. It was also here that he developed a passion for helping mentor the next generation of industry professionals.
In 2011 Micheal transitioned to the telecom industry taking a regional marketing leadership position with mobile phone company Metro by T-Mobile before joining the national marketing team with 21st Century Fox in Los Angeles, California as their Manager Affiliate Marketing and National Radio Promotions in 2013. Having gained the experience of navigating and working in the second largest television market in the country, Micheal again returned to Atlanta to lead the sales/marketing efforts of then Meredith owned WGCL CBS46 and WPCH Peachtree TV. After the purchase of these companies by Gray Media, the leadership team thought that Micheal's skills, talents and vast industry experience would be instrumental in leading Peachtree TV, the former TBS Superstation, into the next phase of its evolution as Assistant Vice President/Station Manager. In this new role Micheal took on the challenge of not only reviving the aging Peachtree TV brand, but he also led the creative efforts to produce original prime time programming for the station. Serving as Show Creator and Executive Producer on several titles, he accomplished the feat of creating over 100 episodes of locally produced, unscripted television shows in just one year.
His efforts were noticed by Swirl Films CEO Eric Tomosunas, and an invitation to join the firm was extended. After one year and several accomplishments including serving as Executive In Charge and Producing content for BET (What's at Stake 2024, BET's Black Men Speak, BET Her's Design My Space: Atlanta), TV One (Chef Cheo's Celebrity Table, Celebrity Crime Files Season 4), Micheal has departed the company to seek new opportunities. He now employs his over 30 years' experience in media, and broad knowledge of radio, broadcast television, grass roots and digital marketing, and television and film production to generate scripted and unscripted programming to help drive the growth of his clients' businesses.
