Meet Sheri Johnson | Founder and CEO, Strong Voices Television (SVTV Network)

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

Hi Sheri, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The idea for SVTV Network began with the overwhelmingly positive response to “StudvilleTV,” the YouTube series I created about my love life and those of my friends. As black lesbians, we did not see ourselves on television. We decided that it was time that we did—and it turned out many others thought so too. Produced on my teacher’s salary, the show was one of the first to have a whole cast of masculine of center representing lesbians that explored love, relationships, friendships, and careers. “StudvilleTV” was an immediate hit eventually spawning four seasons, reaching over 39 countries, scoring millions of views, and selling thousands of DVDs.

Later, when we encountered distribution challenges in 2017, I decided to take control and serve my audience on my own platform. I also realized if I was having challenges sharing my story, other LGBTQ+ creators needed a home too. I flashed back to the apartment I was living in when I started “StudvilleTV” in 2012. I had painted one of the walls with black chalkboard paint, writing down ideas for the series, topics that could be covered and relationships scenarios that could be explored. I remember writing down “Gayflix” because Netflix was really starting to take off. I knew back then that LGBTQ+ people needed our own place to show the real lives and stories of our entire community.

I went back to that idea in 2017, launching Strong Voices Television (SVTV Network), going from 0-15,000 subscribers in 30 days. We turned our vision of a gay Netflix into reality. SVTV Network has grown exponentially since, embraced by members of our own community who are eager to have our own television home, one that tells our lives, our stories, our way on one network.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Founded in 2017, SVTV Network is the SVOD streaming service that champions the underrepresented in the entire LGBTQ+ community by amplifying their voices in TV, film, sports, and advocacy. We work to ensure that no story will be left behind or dismissed by the mainstream.

SVTV Network is available on iOS, Amazon FireTV, AndroidTV, AppleTV, and Roku, creating a reach of 40 million across the U.S. We deliver a fresh mix each month from our 10,000-hour library of original and licensed entertainment and sports content reflecting the rich and authentic diversity of all queer lives.

Part of our mission is to be the livestreaming home for LGBTQ+ sports. We’ve already had great success this past summer, exclusively streaming championship action from The Gay Softball World Series in Dallas; The WTFL (Women’s Tackle Football League) Legacy Bowl, All-Star Game, and Skills Challenge; the ASANA Softball World Series in Washington, D.C.; and the Hotlanta Softball League’s “Big Peach” Tournament.

We also have developed multiple original series in a wide range of formats including scripted (“StudvilleTV”), documentary (“Out In History”), sports (re-broadcast of the Compete Sports Diversity Awards), reality competition (“The Stud Model Project”), comedy (“Queer Comedy Jam”), and talk (“Shad Santiago Show”).

SVTV Network also delivers red carpet excitement from major entertainment and sports events, having interviewed major celebrities as Lena Waithe, Indya Moore, Wilson Cruz, Ts Madison, Don Lemon, and Adrienne Banfield-Norris at such premier events as the GLAAD Awards, the NAACP Image Awards, the Georgia Equality Gala, the WNBA Atlanta Dream Pride Night, and the LGBTQ Music Festival in Cancun, Mexico.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
The Atlanta Aquarium. My favorite food spot is the King Crab Atlanta. I also just found out about a Harry Potter-themed restaurant that I play on trying soon–The Wizarding World located in Inman Park.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My shoutout goes to God. Giving all honor and glory to God for giving me the vision, the courage, and the strength to follow my path and purpose. I would like to shout out my mother Dr. Brown for her support, my team at SVTV Network for sticking to the mission, specifically our CTO Brent Eaton, all the mentors who have shared knowledge with us from the Start Out organization, and all of the freelancers, partners, PR, and developers who work tirelessly to help us achieve our mission.

Website: https://www.svtvnetwork.com/

Instagram: @the_sheri_johnson

Linkedin: @sheri-johnson

Twitter: @thesherijohnson

Facebook: @SVTVNetwork

Other: http://www.thesherijohnson.com/

Image Credits
For the two images with the black background: Aric Thompson