Meet Alex Rose | Automotive & Fitness Influencer, High School Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alex Rose and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alex, how do you think about risk?
Taking risks has been a skill that I have struggled with long before I started my business. Over time, God has taught me that if He has put an opportunity or an obstacle in my path, that He will make a way for me to succeed. All I have to do is take a leap of faith and trust Him. Even though after then initial step it does not get easier to walk forward, He continually guides me to places that I never thought were possible.

Taking risks has played an integral part in my life. From the time that I began my videography company in college and posted my first youtube video, to moving to Atlanta to grow my business an further my teaching career, I have learned that putting myself out there into spaces that I was afraid to step into and making decisions that have a great impact on my individual success have been able to put me in places that I would have never dreamed to be possible.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Founded in January 2017, Barbells & Burnouts is a multimedia content wheelhouse that specializes in automotive and fitness content across multiple platforms. from its inception, Barbells & Burnouts has been focused on delivering high quality content that is both educational and entertaining. The content has been divided into two categories, Barbells, which consist of educational fitness videos educating viewers on different exercise techniques and introducing new exercises to help people progress towards their fitness goals as well as entertaining personal gym vlogs. These videos are meant to help build the knowledge and confidence of people who are new to the gym as well as catalog my own current fitness journey. The other category, Burnouts, consists of automotive reviews of different high performance cars, vlogs of working on my cars, Cinematic videos that feature different car builds, as well as cinematic videos covering auto shows across the country. This category showcases the automotive scene in the best way possible as well as connects the viewers with car culture across the country.

Overall, Barbells & Burnouts allows me to channel the love and passion that I have for both fitness and cars and share it with many different people across the world. I am proud that it also has put me in places where I have been able to build many new friendships and connections with people that I would never have interacted with and has allowed me to experience things and events that I would have never thought I would in my wildest dreams. Being consistent in producing content has never been easy and there were a few times where I had to step away due to various reasons, but the love of sharing the fun and exciting things that I do and the amazing experiences that I have with other people is what always brings me back. Trying to be consistent and eventually building a community has taught me to be patient with my growth process as well as how to deal with setbacks in life. It has also taught me how to build lasting relationships and connections that can be beneficial to both parties involved. As I continue to grow and put out content in the new year, I look forward to further growth both professionally and in my personal life.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If a best friend off mine was to visit the city, first thing I would do is take them to some of the great food spots around town! Monday we would hit Little Five Points to show them the OutKast Mural and then walk to different shops like Stratosphere and Rag-O-Rama and them make SURE they get some beef brisket at Fox Bros. Tuesday we would hit The Museum of Illusions in the morning and then explore Atlantic Station for the rest of the day. For dinner our go to spot would be MoBay Spice in North Druid Hills for an authentic Jamaican cuisine experience. Wednesday is skate night! so for lunch we’e hit the best Mexican food spot in the city, La Fiesta in East Point, then at 8 pm we’d hit Cascade for Adult Skate Night! Thursday is the day to make the drive up for the day to Dahlonega to visit Wolf Mountain Vinyards and see the views from the Blue Ridge Mountains. Then finally on Friday we would finish the week by visiting the High Museum in the afternoon and staying around for the High Frequency Fridays with cocktails and live DJs.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
During the inception of Barbells & Burnouts, my close college friends Seyi, Shock, and Geordi really were the ones who taught me how to use a video camera. We spent countless nights in the dorm rooms where they would go over basic camera information and techniques with me. We would also watch countless youtube videos on how to film cinematic short movies as well as automotive cinematography by other creators like Krispy Media and Halcyon Media. They would discuss with me how these content creators added certain effects and captured the best parts of the cars they were shooting. When it came time to shooting content, all three gentlemen would selflessly show up and help me film. whether it be driving with me from Huntsville to Atlanta or Huntsville to Memphis for a show, or allowing me to use their spare camera or gimbal during a shoot when mine just did not want to cooperate. I would not be where I am today without the three of them pushing me to become a better videographer in the beginning of it all.

Calin & Cliff Criston & Shad When I moved to Atlanta for my current teaching job, I was new to the city and had no community around me. just before lockdown I connected with Criston and from then up until now he has always been in my corner pushing me to put out more automotive content and to make sure that I connect with the right people to set myself up for success. Similarly, during Covid lockdown I was blessed to connect with both Calin and Cliff who are two of the most instrumental men in my life. not only do all three of us connect over owning Honda S2000s but I soon found out they were extremely reliable friends and amazing human beings to be around. Ive made multiple midnight calls to both Calin and Criston to help me get out of crazy situations, (there was this one accident that happened in 2021 after midnight that almost totaled my s2000 and they were both on the scene within minutes of finding out what happened). Cliff, who runs his own Honda car meet on the South Side of Metro Atlanta is also someone I can always count on. From the big brother conversations that he’s had with me about navigating life as a man to the COUNTLESS hours that he’s spent helping me fix my many problems that have arisen on my car and has added many many laughs as well as cherished moments that ill never trade for the world.

Also there is my close friend Shad, who I became very close with during lockdown. Even though we attended college together, the bond that we built was cemented when I moved to Atlanta. Shad has been the person that I bounce marketing ideas off of as well as designs for flyers and clothing. He has continually been the person that has been a listening and counseling ear for many big decisions with me about my business and has also shown up and supported me above and beyond with both Barbells & Burnouts as well as my personal growth as a man.

Last but not least, there is God, who has guided my steps from the day of inception where He placed this seed of an idea of a videography company and content wheelhouse in my heart. Without Him there is no Barbels & Burnouts, there is no success, and most importantly, there is no me so He forever has my praise.

Website: https://barbellsnburnouts.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbellsnburnouts/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BarbellsnBurnouts/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-SuAnpoIEnpUKE_mofQA4A/