COREY JONES
Corey Jones is a man of many titles. College graduate, youtuber, corporate all-star, minimalist, and content creator just to name a few. Any yet, though he's a single bachelor with no kids, there’s one title that seems the most fitting of them all – family man. Born in small town Sumter, South Carolina, 29-year-old Jones is a southern gent through and through.
Though he may have no plans of moving back to small town life after transplanting to Atlanta, Georgia 3 years ago, the family dynamics instilled in him as a young child are still very much present in every word he speaks. In fact, sitting down to talk to Corey feels a lot like sitting down to chat with family over a home-cooked Sunday dinner. There’s a familiar comfort, that hospitable southern charm, playful banter laced with down-south colloquialisms, references to crazy (yet lovable) family, and a cool smile. Always a cool smile.
In fact, if there’s one thing I quickly learned in my two hours speaking with Jones, it’s that he never stops smiling. As he speaks about his transition to minimalism, balancing his corporate and creative careers, and a growing interest in relationship-centered Youtube videos, I can’t help but wonder about that wide, ever present smile. Maybe it’s his signature, a charismatic instinct? Or maybe it’s nerves, an involuntary response to ward away any discomfort? Or maybe, with several successful endeavors under his belt, a new home, and a growing audience who trusts his advice, maybe Corey Jones is simply happy to be here.
And while ‘here’ is quite the place to be, I can’t help but ask Jones how does a young black man, fraternity brother, and consummate southern gentleman, find his way toward making minimalism videos? Especially, in a generation where everybody’s concerned with flexing status on Instagram. For Jones, the journey started on Youtube. “I watched a video talking about how people live a certain type of way, choosing to buy a lot of fancy things just from a place of wanting to impress others and wanting to be perceived a certain way,” he says. “I asked myself, ‘Am I like that?! I don’t know, I could be.’” His self reflection led him down the rabbit-hole, researching minimalism and those who practiced it before making the decision to fully embark on the journey. He decided to document his transformation, switching what had been a Greek advice channel into a minimalist lifestyle. When asked if his followers supported the switch, Jones playfully rolled his eyes, “I did a little poll and they said they were going to support me.” He smiles wide, “They said, ‘we got your back, Corey!’. I started doing [minimalism] videos and I was getting 100-200 views coming from 3,000-4,000 average. I was like, y’all ain’t supporting me!” He laughs, but in good nature. Jones has no plan to stop his minimalism content. He truly believes in his new lifestyle, “I really think minimalism can help someone’s life,” he says. “It puts you in the right direction, and gives you the right framework. Minimalism has given me mental clarity, especially with financial decisions. I’m not spending money on materialistic things I don’t need. Everything I have is off pure intention and need rather than want.”
Watch Now: Corey Jones Shares His Top 3 Secrets To Happiness.
Intention, indeed. With many irons in the fire, intention must play a huge role in his daily routine. I ask how he’s managing to conquer a youtube career, a corporate career, a Patreon, and the debut of a new digital show, all in the middle of a pandemic. “Balance!” He exclaims. “You’ve got to have a tight schedule. My job ain’t getting no more than 9 to 5 out of me!” He laughs, “I’m sorry, but 5 o’clock, Corey is clocking out, off the computer, and closing the laptop! That’s when the rest of my stuff is going to start, because if I go past that I’m going to be behind on my own personal endeavors,” he shares. “Though, it is hard sometimes,” he admits. For Jones, hard amounts to missed sleep and a lack of time for family, friends, and dating. Yet, he appears undeterred, a gentle ambition resting firmly in his eyes as he happily speaks on the future. “Everything I’m doing now, people will see the return. I’m grinding it out now, but when I get to the place I’m trying to get to y’all can have whatever time y'all want!” he says, followed by another signature smile.
If grinding it out is a difficult process, one would find it difficult to believe looking at Jones, whose favorite part of making videos is the editing, and claims being disciplined as his greatest personal victory. His eyes grow wide in delight when he brings up his audience’s feedback, and he effortlessly spews out idea after idea for new videos. He genuinely enjoys what he does, “If something is in my head,” he says, “I want to be able to make it come to life. I’ll ask, how can I execute this topic? How can I bring this topic to life and have people entertained and add some comedic relief? Honestly, I really just enjoy the whole process of bringing an idea to life.”
It’s a process that requires focus, dedication, and, as Jones briefly mentioned, the sacrifice of time with loved ones. Yet, family has, and always will be, the tie that binds us - the thing we can neither fully separate from nor permanently attach to. As the daughter of a Texas-raised father and Tennessee-raised mother, maybe I’m biased, but I’ve always believed the importance and commitment to family runs especially deep in the South. Speaking with Jones, I feel an immediate kinship as he discusses the love for his #1 fans. For Jones, family is at the core of it all, always. “Family is what keeps me going,” he says with a wide smile, “They’re the most supportive and push me more than anyone I know. They made sacrifices for me to even be doing what I’m doing now. My family is my inspiration, I do it all for them.” He speaks fondly of those closest to him, sharing the traits he picked up from his two of his favorite people, “My mom was a marine,” he reveals, “so everyone thinks she’s a tough cookie but she’s actually a teddy bear,” he laughs. “Organization, being punctual, having structure, I learned that from her. Then my father, he never graduated high school, never went to college, but he opened up his own auto mechanic shop,” he says proudly. “He built it from scratch, so I grew up seeing him with that creativity, and an entrepreneurial mindset. I get that grit and that grind from him. So with those combined, I don’t have a choice but to be great!”
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And great is exactly how Jones' future looks. Yet, it isn’t a future measured in status and spoils, but rather by the wellbeing of his family. “I’m looking to make sure I’m building a legacy where I'm able to be successful enough to provide for my family long after I’m out of this world,” He declares. He mentions the term I’m not fond of, generational wealth – an ideal I think our generation has become obsessed with superficially pursuing without fully comprehending its weight. Yet for Jones the term isn’t about a family rife with fancy houses and nice cars. “It’s not about caring about the gleam, the flashiness, and [the things] people see on the outside. I feel like wealth is what you have on the inside. It’s things people can’t really see. I’m not the type of person that’s flashy,” he admits, “I’m not the type of person that’s looking to be flaunting. So to me wealth is having money without it being on your forehead.” To Jones, what’s riding on the line isn’t about the lavish house, but rather the people who reside within it, “This is about more than just me,” he says, “it’s about my future family and who I’m going to be with, while also taking care of my current family.”
Inevitable, as with any discussion about family, the conversation turns towards relationships. When a familial legacy is the goal, I ask him, how do you choose the right partner? “Well, I was married before when I was very young,” Jones admits. He’s quick to share the lessons from his previous relationship, open to discussing the trials and tribulations of merging two lives into one. “It taught me you have to be at a certain mental state to be married,” he shares. “You have to know what comes after [the ceremony], it’s not about how long you’ve been together, it’s not about the vibes, it’s about true compatibility. Can y’all co-exist and prosper?”
Undeterred by the past, Jones happily looks to the future. “I do want to be married again,” he says hopefully, “but not right now!” he adds quickly, laughing. “My next marriage though, I know I’m going to have the time of my life because I know what I’m looking for, I always want to feel loved and wanted. I want my wife to love me and want me, forever!”
Jones, who loves a good relationship discussion (“I enjoy talking about relationships, I could talk about relationships all day!”), feels inspired to share his love experiences with his community, recently adding more and more relationship content to his lifestyle and minimalism channel. “My relationship talks are kind of like barbershop talk,” he muses. “I think as a young black man out here, we need to talk about these things. We need to have a platform where we can talk about our experiences to each other.” His audience has responded favorably. In his video ‘Dating As A Minimalist’ (see below), he speaks about relatable issues such as preconceived ideas and poor communication, with comments echoing similar experiences. Our generation is no stranger to the woes of dating, and within the black community there’s its own set of issues. I ask Jones his thoughts on the disconnect in our community, something he’s happy to speak on.
“There’s this disconnect of what each other wants,” he offers. “Black men think black women want a certain thing, and black women think black men want a certain thing, and since those things are the complete opposite, it’s like we’re just going further and further apart. We’re not transparent, anymore. Everyone’s trying to play the game, but that’s the problem! Everyone’s playing the game to find love, but love’s not a game, it's about communication and transparency,” he stresses. “Both sides need to be more transparent about intentions up front.” When asked about his own experiences, he’s quick to offer up his own faults. “I had to learn that lesson, too!” he admits with a laugh. “I learned I haven’t been as transparent in the past. Now, I’m transparent. I’m communicating and I’m transparent right off the rip.”
Transparency is just one of the issues Corey hopes to explore not only on his lifestyle channel, but on his newly launched talk show, too. Self-titled, The Corey Jones Shows, features an ever-smiling Jones sitting across a docket of intriguing guests. He hopes, like with the rest of his content, to be a safe space for his audience to have genuine discussions. “I want people to feel my energy and my passion,” he says. “I’m a ball of energy! When I speak to people they’ll say, ‘I feel like I’ve known you forever’. That’s how I want people to feel when they watch my videos. I want them to come back because they see my video and think, ‘I can relate to that guy, he’s genuine’. I’ll add a little funny stuff, too!” he says with a smile. “I want to bring joy and humor to people’s days, so even if they’re having a bad day, they know they’ll get something fun, a sense of calm, or even relief from my videos.”
Not only is his audience walking away with joy and humor, they’re walking away with life advice, young black men, especially. Jones welcomes his influence, conscious of the importance of a good role model by citing the guidance he’s received from the older black men in his own life, “I think every male needs someone older they can get that wisdom from,” he says, “because the old heads know it! And you gotta be able to sit down for 3 hours to take it in, because they’re going to drop it on you. I’ve had some old head sessions with my father and with my grandfather before he passed,” he shares. “So, I’ve learned some things.”
When asked about the lessons he’s learned, he’s quick to share some game. “I can tell you what makes me respect another man is his demeanor,” he says. “Can we make eye contact? Do you have a firm handshake? Do you talk with a good tone? Can you go into a room and control the atmosphere? Those are things I respect. A lot of time people will tell you it's physical, but I don’t care if you’re 6’8, 280. It’s all about the presence, your demeanor, and how you present yourself. That goes a long way.” Advice when it comes it comes to women? “You’re going to deal with some craziness,” he says shaking his head, with a playful smile, “but always be respectful no matter what happens. And always go with your gut!”
But his most poetic advice comes when asked about failure. How does a young man bounce back? “Failure is needed,” he stresses, “but everyone tries to avoid it. You need losses in your life where you’re able to turn them into lessons, and learn to move forward. Things happen for a reason. You failed for a reason. You’re either going to take it and learn from it or you're going to dwell on it. Honestly, I’m looking forward to the next failure in my life so it can propel me to the next level.”
He’s got a lot of advice to give. While Jones is quick to share his viewpoint with the younger viewers in his audience, he can’t help but marvel at how time has shifted generations, placing him now at the point of aspiration. “Sometimes I think, dang these young people are really looking up to me and people my age, what do I do next?!’ Kids are looking at my age group as the standard, right now. Whatever we’re doing, they’re trying to get there. And I’m like, “you’re trying to HERE? You SURE?!” He gives a heart-warming laugh, his wide smile radiating. “But there’s no pressure at all with it. I enjoy it because it’s gotta come one day, and I feel like I’m at a place in my life where I can inspire. I’m not out here doing the worst,” he declares with his hands raised, “so if anybody is looking up to me so they should be getting somewhere eventually!”
As we wrap up our interview, I can’t help but feel as if I’ve just caught up with an old friend. Jones’ warm personality and playful banter decorated our conversation with lots of welcomed laughter. To an onlooker, it may have simply appeared to be just a pleasant conversation, but to Jones making a positive impact in someone’s day means the world. “When I wake up in the morning, I’m looking at how I can make an impact,” he says earnestly. “How can I add value to the world? What can I do to make sure this place is a better place from my perspective, given my background and the things I went through? I feel like my responsibility to each of my communities is to bring positivity and good character to the image of a black man.”
If that’s the goal, I’d say Jones succeeds. He’s got an audience who loves him, a job that respects his work, and a smile capable of charming even the most negative of nancies. None of which Jones takes for granted. “It feels good to have some type of impact,” he says graciously. “That’s my whole mission, to add value in some type of way in somebody’s life.” Being so concerned about influencing the lives of others, I wonder if Jones realized his own? Does he recognize his achievements? Is he proud of this work? “Oh yesssssss,” he answers joyously, “I’m very proud. It’s only going to get better. I’m proud of embarking on this minimalism journey, I’m proud of working in corporate America, I’m proud of being selected as a creator up next by Youtube. I’m proud of making it out of my little home town in South Carolina. My family is really proud of me, too. They think I’m Hollywood,” he laughs, “but I’m only scratching the surface.”
As we begin to say our goodbyes, it seems almost redundant to ask, yet I still can’t help but wonder if Corey is truly happy or is his warm demeanor and consummate smile all just an act? “Oh yes!” he exclaims. I’m 100% happy right now. Everything I have going on in my life, I’m blessed. I’m truly blessed. Honestly, I value family and friendships the most, so as long as I have [those], I’m happy.” It’s such an exuberant declaration, the kind spoken so broadly you’re apt to doubt it’s true (declared, of course, with a signature Jones smile). Yet, one look at his demeanor and instantly I’m convinced of his authenticity. His presence is calm, peaceful, and strong, but more than anything, open and warm. He really is just happy to be here. Suddenly, I feel happy just to be there, too. He saunters on, “I wouldn’t take away anything going on in my life right now, I’m in a good place mentally, emotionally, spiritually, physically,” he pauses. “I’m ready.”
He finishes, and assured, I finally throw him a smile of my own before commending him on his answer. He nods, reaffirming himself, his demeanor strong, “I’m ready to take on the world,” he says, clapping his hands together, leaning back, and giving one last signature Jones smile, “Let’s go.” •
Connect with Corey: Instagram, Youtube Channel, The Corey Jones Show.
