Meet David White | CEO of Zion Productions, LLC

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

Hi David, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I’ve always had a love for music and event planning since being a kid. Music was a safe space for me, and everything made sense when I’d listen to it. I loved the way instruments sounded when a band would play in harmony, and I loved watching how the production of a show was put together. As I got older, I attended more concerts and live music events and I’d study how the singers would work with the musicians and que them for certain things they wanted while playing. This interested me even more and caused me to dive in deeper. I then started to make friends within the music industry, and they’d invite me to different shows they’d have and slowly began to teach me how things were done. I also sat in on several studio sessions of artist who were recording music and that sparked and even greater flame and caused me to pursue my dream even more. Slowly after I started pursuing my own business, I got invited to more shows and was able to sit in on sound-checks and gain more knowledge about how the magic would happen behind the scenes, prior to shows. I then took a leap of faith and produced my first show in 2019 in Washington, DC. The response of the crowd excited me and their eagerness for more shows pushed me to wanting to produce more events. Then COVID happened and stopped everything. During the period of COVID, I just began to brainstorm more ideas of how I’d pursue my business/dream. Once the world began to normalize, I had ideas on top of ideas and Zion Productions was birthed. The name “Zion” came from my Godson. He’s a very smart, 13-year-old boy who enjoys music and is always coming up with some type of creative idea so incorporating his name into my business made perfect sense. Zion Production has now gained notoriety in the Washington, DC metro area, Atlanta and NYC and it’s had the opportunity of working with some of the greatest names in the industry and many more to come.

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 think what sets me apart from others in the industry of production is my love for people, music and being able to use my creative mind. Often times I think people choose career paths based on how much money they can make; which is a smart and fair assessment. However, when you love what you do and love the people you serve, I personally feel that you offer a more authentic service.

My love for music and the sounds of instruments drove me to where I am today. I am very proud of my accomplishment as it’s been a dream I’ve had since being a kid. It definitely wasn’t and isn’t easy getting to where I want to be, but I understand that dreams take time and when you’re destined for a purpose everything in you will push you until you have achieved that goal.

The biggest lesson I’m learning so far is to have faith and patience in what I’m pursuing, because often times we want things instantly and when we don’t see it, we give up. I’m also learning to learn from people who have done what I’m doing and take all of the advice in that they give me.

I want the world to first know that I am not in the industry to become another “known name”, but I’m in the industry because I know it’s a God assigned calling. It’s a passion. It’s becoming a lifestyle, and it makes me who I am as a person.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
One of the first places I’d take my best friend would be to the Apache Cafe. The vibe there is always right. The food is good, and the drinks are even better. We’d enjoy a walk-through Piedmont Park to people watch and enjoy the sounds of nature and walk along the park’s trails. He’s a shopper, so we’d find a good mall to hit up and buy a few pairs of new shoes. I always enjoy eating at Negril on Piedmont, so we would add that to the list as well. I enjoy the Botanical Garden, Georgia Aquarium and touring Dr. Martin Luther King’s home, church and burial location. I am also a big “site seer” so I’d take him on a walk downtown, through Buckhead and probably even stroll through Midtown. We both enjoy theme parks, so Six Flags would be a stop we’d also make. Ponce City Market is also a big attraction in the city, so we’d go there and enjoy the scenery, food and shopping areas. The Atlanta skyline is what captured me initially when I moved there. I’d drive up and down 85 and become fantasied over the tall buildings and lights, so we’d definitely add that to the list for several nights of his visit as well.

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 like to dedicate my shoutout to my grandparents, who are both no longer with me. My grandfather passed August 2021 and my grandmother May 2023. They raised me from birth, and they were always a driving force in my life. They both always encouraged me to go after whatever it was, I wanted and that nothing was impossible. They instilled faith in me at an early age and taught me everything I knew about God and how important he’d become in my life. As I look back on everything, they taught me, my faith in God has been the greatest lesson as it’s allowed me to achieve so many amazing things, such as start my own business. The love they both had for gospel music was also a huge factor in how my love for music formed. They’d play gospel music almost every day and would enjoy those old gospel songs on the radio on Sunday mornings driving to church. I am grateful for their mentorship, love and overwhelming amount of encouragement in everything I’ve done. I am because of them.

Website: https://www.zionproductionsllc.com

Instagram: @zionproductionllc