Meet Simon John Thomas: Creative Consultant & Founder CEO

We had the good fortune of connecting with Simon John Thomas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Simon John, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
My original thought process was to simply create a platform for my creative friends, so other people can see how cool they are. I started by creating a podcast called Hip-Hop R.E.Ps, which focused on conversations around issues within hip-hop like depression, drug abuse, and other things like that but unfortunately, only one episode saw the light of day. That didn’t stop me from trying to grow my idea so I circled back to what I seemed to enjoy the most and seemed to be pretty decent at which was throwing events. So with the help of some amazing friends, we created “CTRL ALT” (Control Alternative) and launched our very own music festival project “Global” in Savannah Georgia. Since then we have been curating events and helping emerging artists get in front of crowds to show their talents, but because of COVID-19, I had to change direction and add on new branches to the business to keep things moving. So now CTRL ALT is a production & creative consulting company. We work with artists and brands to create promotional material (album covers, websites, photoshoots, etc.) we also create our own content as well and still do live events with CDC guidelines.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
CTRL ALT is a production & creative consulting company we work with artists, brands, and businesses to create new content to help them stand out on the great sea of the internet. We also at our core are event curators and content creators, 2020 caused me to go back to old ideas to navigate the pandemic. Well to what sets us apart from others would be my focus on creating great content in multiple forms. I do that through collaboration with my peers and old friends from my savannah days. We also have been shifting towards house music more recently with the creation of “Cloak” our bi-weekly house event at the Royal Peacock on Aurban Ave starting on March 24th, 2021. I’m most proud of was in Savannah about 2 years ago, we had our first P.R.I.S.M.S project event where and five other artists went to Savannah HS to talk to the 10th and 11th graders on life after HS and different creative options available to them. Seeing their faces light up from all the things we were showing them made me feel good. I started out in 2016, throwing house parties with my SCAD friends in Savannah, Georgia, while I was attending Armstrong State University before it became Georgia Southern. The more parties I threw, the more people I meet, the more I liked doing it. I wanted more from it. Soon after, in 2018, things morphed into a business! Not only did I find a way to generate cash but I also say it ass away to help those around me. In 2019 I made friends that would later become my business partners. We all help grow Control Alternative. (Gentry Jefferson, Jeremiah Adams, and Ty Davis.) It definitely hasn’t been easy doing this and getting to this point. In the very beginning, the idea was to create a podcast to discuss hip hop and its culture. I called it “Hip-hop Reps.” As soon as things were getting started, hardship after hardship hit from scheduling, police/financial problems, losing friends because I started to pour more into my work and spent less time with them, from losing my job. I never gave up, I decided to explore different creative mediums to gain an audience, so right now we have “Cloak” and other events where people can interact with the brand in person, we are working on other forms of virtual content to have a space people can experience our brand online. We also offer creative services as well to top it all off, with these three mediums in mind CTRL ALT will grow into one of the biggest brands in the southeast! During all the hardships one important thing I learned is that no matter how much you plan, the universe or “God” has its own time. Learning that has given me a sense of peace knowing that If I keep on working hard that in time I will reach my goals. I want the world to look at CTRL ALT as a powerhouse for creatives!

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?
If I had to take a friend out in Atlanta I would start by taking them to breakfast at Barneys, maybe spend some time at the High Museum, after we could spend sometime thrifting in midtown. for lunch at Fritties Pizza and after I would head over to OurBar on Edgewood Ave, so we could grab a few drinks and chill. Later that night we could hit the city and maybe find a dope event to go or if the timing is right we could go to one of my events. Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are lots of people that have had a major hand in my success and a driving force on how I approach being creative. First on that list is Shunelle Porcena she is a Fashion Designer and all-around creative genius. Next is someone I think of as a mentor, Chilly-O has views on the importance of creating safe spaces for creatives to gather and fellowship has helped me hone in on what kind of heart I want my business to have.

Website: ctrlalternative.com

Instagram: damnsohn & ctrl.alt_

Twitter: damnsohn