In the front cover of his notebook, Jerry Wayne, “JW,” Newson has a few lines scribbled. They’re reminders he learned from the book he reads daily: “The Power of Positive Thinking” by Norman Vincent Peale.
It begins, “I believe I am divinely guided. I believe I will always take the right turn in the road,” and continues, “It’s your attitude that counts. It is your attitude which gives obstacles their power or lack of power.” Finally, “I expect the best and with God’s help, I will achieve the best.”
Newson joined Hillsdale’s Audiovisual Department in June 2019, providing lighting and sound support for events and speakers across campus.
Newson first became interested in light and sound technology in his early teens. He spent his Sunday mornings at church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, either singing in the choir or assisting the sound producer. His mother bought him a Dell Inspiron computer, which he used to create tapes, CDs, and DVDs. His Nana gave him a four-foot high stack of old records.
From one record, Newson hand-cut a rectangle — a prototype for his business card. His lifelong friend, Jayson Case, helped Newson create these custom cards. This was the beginning of Newson’s music production company, Dem Ductions.
Case said Newson always carried around a camcorder.
“In the first grade when we ran into each other, there was never a time he didn’t have it in his hand,” Case said. “It’s his lifelong passion, making audio, being an entrepreneur. He made himself these cool opportunities … with his high spirits, and believing in Christ, and chasing.”
Newson and Case went to grade school and high school together and played on the same sports teams. While working for Case’s family jewelry and goldsmithing company in his early 20s, Newson told Case he was going to go to the 53rd Grammys. He didn’t know just how, but he’d get there.
Newson then heard of the Give the Gift of Music essay-writing contest, which asked competitors to write about what music meant to them. Newson wrote in, won, and made it to the Grammys that year.
“The 53rd Grammys showed me that I can do it, too,” Newson said. “There was a small probability, but I told Jayson I was going. I followed the sense or intuition that I was going. It’s that ‘believe it, speak it, receive it’ attitude.”
Newson said attending the Grammys was a crucial “pivot” in his career “from small-minded to an international level.”
Since 2009, Newson has freelanced for concerts, televised professional sports matches, and other events across the country.
From 2014 to 2018, Newson worked as the director of special projects at the United States Department of Education, where he and a team of researchers created a program that used music to promote literacy and math education.
He’s also worked at the 2019 NFL draft in Nashville, the 2019 NBA All Star Weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina, the 2019 NHL Winter Classic, the Cirque du Soleil Corteo at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Kevin Hart’s Irresponsible Tour at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, and Garth Brooks’ CBS Special at the Notre Dame Stadium. He’s worked for other artists, including J. Cole, Elton John, Justin Timberlake, and Shania Twain, and he once worked at a fashion show for Sperry. Most recently, he was on the production team for the 2020 NBA All Star Game in Chicago.
At last year’s NFL draft — an opportunity Newson credits to his friend Neil Crum — Newson worked on the “Hit Squad,” a group tasked with audio, video, staging, carpentry, and rigging equipment in NFL setup zones around downtown Nashville. But looking over a massive crowd of 200,000 people on Saturday night during the Dierks Bentley concert, Newson only noticed the people who weren’t there.
“I was looking out at the crowd, as a goodwill man, at 200,000 people, and my family’s not there,” Newson said.
The next day, Newson reached out to his mentor, which eventually led him to apply for his current job at Hillsdale.
“I wanted to slow down for my family,” Newson said. He and his wife Michelle have a two-and-a-half year old daughter, Naomi, and a six month old son, Evander.
Though he had never heard of Hillsdale before, Newson said he appreciated the college’s connection to Frederick Douglass, whom he admires (alongside Martin Luther King, Jr.) for his oratory abilities. Newson added it was important for him to have his family nearby.
“This man was a slave and he wrote and spoke so beautifully. He and Dr. King are my two favorite orators of all time,” Newson said. “I strive to have dignified speech like these men, I have worked at it my whole life.”
Newson said he’s received more pitches for sound and audio at large national events since moving to Hillsdale from Grand Rapids last summer.
Tim Wells, the executive director of administrative affairs, said he appreciates Newson’s work recording CCAs and College President Larry Arnn’s senior capstone lectures. He’s also provided support for SAB events and lighting and sound for Christ Chapel.
From finding work and jobs to growing his production company, Case said Newson hasn’t let anything get in his way.
“Adversity hasn’t slowed that dude down,” Case said. “From getting into college, finding work and jobs, riding the bus, or doing the work … he never expected or wanted a handout, and he brought integrity and his family along the way. He doesn’t want a handout, he just wants a seat at the table.”
Though he’s traveled the country shining the spotlight on starlets and professional athletes, Newson remains humble, placing his faith first, followed by family.
“That stuff doesn’t phase me,” Newson said. “It’s hard to remember who I’ve met. They’re not my God … I put God in front of all that I do. That’s key for me.”
