Jason DeMeo Reveals the Real Struggles Behind Creative Entrepreneurship

He Had $20,000 Outfits and Nowhere to Go: Manwell Reyes on Fame, Money & Real Identity

Manwell Reyes of Group 1 Crew sits down with Stewart White and Pedro LaTorre on the Stand Up Dude podcast for one of the most honest Christian testimony conversations we have ever recorded. Best known for his music with Group 1 Crew and for being the husband of comedian and actress Anjelah Johnson-Reyes, Manwell opens up about the man underneath the output. This is a raw conversation about faith, forgiveness, and identity in Christ for Christian men who are tired of performing. Manwell shares how he went from carrying guns in the streets to a vision of Jesus that changed everything, why he chooses to support his famous wife instead of competing with her, and how he learned that who you are is never determined by what you do. If you have ever wrestled with your worth, your faith, or your identity, this episode is for you. 🧢 Get a TN HAT — the ones we wear on the show 🧢: https://tnhat.shop/collections/frontpage 👉 Never Miss An Episode: Get Our Newsletter: https://missionxmission.eo.page/sud-newsletter 👉 Support Stand Up Dude and Mission X Mission: http://MissionXMission.org/donate Manwell's story moves from a military childhood in Germany to a brief life on the streets, to a senior-year encounter with Jesus at a church camp, to twelve years of grinding before Group 1 Crew ever got signed. Along the way he unpacks the vision of two roads that taught him to lead with forgiveness, the day a $50,000 loan turned him into someone else's villain, and what it actually looks like to be the head of a household when your wife is more successful than you are. This is a conversation about real manhood, contentment, and the freedom that comes from being loved by God before you ever earn it. CHAPTERS 00:00 A Vision of Jesus and the Night Everything Changed 00:29 The Man Underneath the Music and the Applause 01:01 When Your Faith Becomes a Performance 05:41 Who Is Manwell Reyes? From the Streets to Group 1 Crew 06:52 The Year Off That Led to a Million Dollar Record Deal 11:11 Learning How to Cry and Choosing Optimism 15:59 The Vision of Two Roads: Bitterness vs Forgiveness 22:22 Lending $50,000 and Being Made the Villain 30:13 Marrying Anjelah Johnson and Learning to Support Her 34:57 Writing His Wife's Hit as a Joke and the Warner Deal 44:51 From Carrying Guns to a Vision of Jesus at Church Camp 52:37 The Fight That Healed Him and His Father 56:09 Why He Refuses to Live as a Victim 1:01:53 Identity Given Before You Ever Earn It 1:14:37 $1,000 Shoes and Nowhere to Go: When Having It All Feels Empty ABOUT THE SHOW Stand Up Dude is a gospel-centered men's podcast hosted by Stewart White and Pedro LaTorre. Every week we sit down with men who are learning to follow Jesus honestly, lead their families well, and stop performing for approval they already have. Subscribe and turn on notifications so you never miss an episode. 🌟 LINKS 🌟 🧢:Tennessee Hats (as seen in the episode): 🧢: https://tnhat.shop/collections/frontpage Ready to recenter your life on Jesus? https://standupdude.com/standup Free tools for authentic growth: https://standupdude.com/be-more ⚡️ Connect: Has this episode exposed an idol or false security in your life? Share your story in the comments, like & subscribe, and forward this to a man fighting for his faith. Connect with the Stand Up Dude brotherhood: Email: dudes@standupdude.com Website: https://standupdude.com/ Instagram: instagram.com/standupdudeofficial Facebook: facebook.com/standupdude #StandUpDude #ManwellReyes #Group1Crew #ChristianTestimony #ChristianMen #AnjelahJohnson #IdentityInChrist #Forgiveness #FaithPodcast Get vidIQ to grow your channel faster! 🚀 https://vidiq.com/StandUpDude Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: Drop a comment, Like, subscribe, and share. 🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf

When Your Passion Has Become Your Idol | Pastor Daniel Morris Interview

What happens when the "good things" in your life like ministry, work, family, even your platform quietly become the thing that takes God's place? In this episode of the Stand Up Dude Podcast, hosts Pedro LaTorre and Stewart White sit down with Pastor Daniel Morris, Senior Pastor of Cultivate Church in Nolensville, TN and international missions leader, for an honest conversation about identity in Christ, church hurt, spiritual leadership, and what it really means to live as a son rather than a servant grinding for approval. Daniel gets transparent about his own path. Childhood wounds, ministry performance, rejection, and the slow grace of God dismantling every false identity along the way. If you've ever wrestled with people-pleasing, burnout from church culture, or the creeping suspicion that your worth is tangled up in what you do instead of who God says you are, this conversation is for you. It's a call for Christian men to stop achieving their worth and start receiving it. 👉 Never Miss An Episode: https://missionxmission.eo.page/sud-newsletter 👉 Support Stand Up Dude and Mission X Mission: http://MissionXMission.org/donate 👉 Discover Cultivate Church: https://www.cultivatechurch.org/ WHAT YOU'LL TAKE AWAY: * Daniel's unfiltered story of how wounds, rejection, and church betrayals nearly stole his faith, and how God redeemed all of it * A clear-eyed look at the subtle idol of "doing for God" and why God will graciously dismantle anything competing for your heart * Freedom from the pressure to scale, perform, and "build the brand," plus what authentic discipleship actually looks like * Biblical truth about modern idolatry and how to spot the false gods hiding behind success and approval * Why the desert seasons (failure, loss of plan B, being stripped down) are often God's deepest invitations * A practical roadmap for building rhythms of open space with God so you can lead your family and community from overflow instead of empty * Honest words for men carrying church hurt, and a vision for surrendered leaders who build communities that heal instead of harm WHO THIS IS FOR: * Christian men wrestling with identity, performance, and people-pleasing * Pastors, leaders, and entrepreneurs feeling the weight of "building the brand" * Anyone carrying church hurt who still longs for authentic faith and community * Husbands and fathers wanting to lead from intimacy with God instead of exhaustion This is a battle cry to abandon self-made performance, embrace sonship, and walk as dangerous men of faith in a culture obsessed with achievement. God doesn't want your résumé. He wants you. 🌟 EPISODE LINKS & RESOURCES: Ready to recenter your life on Jesus? https://standupdude.com/standup Free tools for authentic growth: https://standupdude.com/be-more Discover Cultivate Church or connect with Daniel Morris: https://www.cultivatechurch.org/ ⚡️ Connect & Take Action: Has this episode exposed an idol or false security in your life? Share your story in the comments, like & subscribe, and forward this to a man fighting for his faith. Connect with the Stand Up Dude brotherhood: Email: dudes@standupdude.com Website: https://standupdude.com/ Instagram: instagram.com/standupdudeofficial Facebook: facebook.com/standupdude Thank you for walking with us as we call a generation of men out of passivity, compromise, and false strength. Back to Christ, back to truth, and back to the real life only found in surrender. You were not made to juggle, impress, or build a platform. You were made for intimacy with your Creator. Stay surrendered.  Timestamps: 00:00 Fear of rejection and ministry motivation 06:40 Career pivot and self-reflection 12:25 Healing wounds through faith 16:51 Ministry as identity and idolatry 21:36 Questioning Personal Faith 30:17 Questioning faith and finding more 31:41 Finding unexpected community connections 36:46 Relating to Theo Vaughan's podcast rant 44:15 Struggles shape biblical leaders 51:32 The life of shepherds 52:43 Struggling with modern comfort expectations 01:00:35 Living from identity in Christ 01:04:01 Living with faith and tension Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: Drop a comment, Like, subscribe, and share. 🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf

The Raw Letter He Wrote His Wife That Saved Their Marriage | Lucas LeFevre

What if the version of you nobody knows is the very thing standing between you and the life God has for you? In this Stand Up Dude Podcast episode, hosts Pedro LaTorre and Stewart White sit down with Lucas LeFevre, founder of Holy Work and former design lead at Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University, for one of the most raw conversations we've ever recorded on Christian marriage, hidden addiction, hearing God's voice, and the spiritual discipline of daily journaling. Lucas opens up about the moment he was about to leave his wife Mandy at 29, the secret p*rn addiction nobody knew about, the supernatural "giant thumb" moment on a Nashville run when he heard "be still and know that I am God," and the raw letter he wrote his wife that saved their marriage — and changed his life. 👉 Follow Lucas LeFevre on Instagram & DM him "STAND UP" for the free HolyWork 7-day challenge: https://www.instagram.com/lucasplefevre/ 🧢 Get a TN HAT — the ones we wear on the show 🧢: https://tnhat.shop/collections/frontpage This conversation goes deep on how Christian men can quiet the noise, hear God's voice, recognize the 8 core feelings (from Chip Dodd's work), break free from hidden shame, and finally answer the question most guys never sit still long enough to ask: what do you actually want? 👉 Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode: https://missionxmission.eo.page/sud-newsletter 👉 Support Stand Up Dude & Mission X Mission: http://MissionXMission.org/donate 🚀 Get vidIQ to grow your channel faster! https://vidiq.com/StandUpDude WHAT YOU'LL TAKE AWAY: * A real-world testimony of how confession, journaling, and radical honesty restored a marriage on the edge of divorce * A practical framework for quieting the noise, hearing God's voice, and knowing what you actually want * The "epidermis layer journaling" technique that gets the surface chatter out so your deeper self and God can show up * A clear-eyed look at how hidden addiction and unspoken thoughts erode a Christian man from the inside * The 8 core feelings every man needs to name before they run his life * Why setting a real one-year vision beats chasing the next cultural milestone every time * A biblical reframe on work, creativity, and ambition through the lens of Bezalel in Exodus 31 WHO THIS IS FOR: * Christian men in marriages that look fine but feel stuck, restless, or distant * Husbands, fathers, and creatives wrestling with hidden addictions or shame they've never said out loud * Anyone who's tried prayer, church, and discipline but still can't seem to hear God * Men who chase the next milestone and quietly suspect they don't know what they actually want TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 The Words That Stopped Him From Leaving His Wife 00:17 Why Most Christian Men Are Quietly Falling Apart 01:30 Meet Lucas LeFevre: Founder of Holy Work 03:00 "I Dared God to Rock My World" — The Prayer That Started It All 05:30 Working for Dave Ramsey at Financial Peace University 07:30 Hidden Addiction, Discontent, and Blaming His Wife 09:45 The Run That Changed Everything: "Be Still and Know I Am God" 12:00 The Raw Letter He Wrote His Wife That Saved Their Marriage 14:30 5 Years of Daily Journaling — The Surprising Transformation 17:30 The Holy Work Framework: How to Quiet the Noise 22:50 Pedro's "Glass Jar" Analogy for the Inner Work Most Men Avoid 27:00 The Wife He Almost Left Got Breast Cancer 12 Years Later 30:30 The Sprinkler Brochure Story That Changed His Work Forever 33:00 "Your Family Isn't in the Way — They ARE the Way" 38:00 What Lucas Wrote About His Stepfather That Broke Him Open 43:00 The 8 Core Feelings Every Christian Man Needs to Name 50:00 Setting a One-Year Vision: What Do You Actually Want? 53:30 The Cultural Trap of Always Chasing the Next Milestone 56:00 Why Christian Men Shouldn't Fear Building Real Wealth 58:30 Bezalel: The First Person Filled With the Spirit (Exodus 31) 1:02:30 A 7-Day Challenge for Men Who Want to Hear God's Voice RESOURCES & LINKS: Follow Lucas on Instagram & DM him "stand up" for the free 7-day challenge: @lucasplefevre Holy Work platform: https://holywork.com Start your journey with Jesus: https://standupdude.com/standup Free resources for growth: https://standupdude.com/be-more Get a TN HAT: https://tnhat.shop/collections/frontpage ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: Drop a comment: what did Lucas say that hit you hardest? Like, subscribe, and send this to the man in your life who's quietly falling apart while everything looks fine on the outside.  🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf #StandUpDude #LucasLeFevre #HolyWork #ChristianMen #ChristianMarriage #HearGodsVoice #Journaling #DaveRamsey Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: Drop a comment, Like, subscribe, and share. 🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf

Hit Disney Music Producer Reveals What's Secretly Destroying Modern Artists and Men

What if AI isn't the only thing destroying modern artists, and what if the same forces are quietly hollowing out men, too? In this Stand Up Dude Podcast episode, hosts Pedro LaTorre and Stewart White sit down with hit Disney music producer, songwriter, and author Adam Watts — the producer behind Jeremy Camp's first two records, co-writer of Jesse McCartney's "Beautiful Soul," and the man behind hits for Switchfoot, High School Musical, Camp Rock, Miley Cyrus, and Demi Lovato. After 20+ years inside the machine, Adam pulls back the curtain on the corporate music industry, the spiritual cost of celebrity, the rise of AI in music and art, and the near-fatal health crisis that almost ended his life. This is a brutally honest conversation about creativity, faith, manhood, mental health, fatherhood, and why every man needs to rediscover what Adam calls "soul nutrition." 👉 Take Adam's free artist assessments: https://myartistdna.com 👉 Read Adam's AI manifesto: https://bit.ly/WattsAITheory 🧢 Get a TN HAT — the ones we wear on the show 🧢: https://tnhat.shop/collections/frontpage Adam opens up about the parathyroid tumor that took five months to diagnose and brought him to the edge of his own life, what it means to make art "as unto the Lord," and why he believes if Kurt Cobain and Jimi Hendrix had the tools he's now building, they'd still be here. Together, they wrestle with the addictive pull of AI, the danger of letting your creativity atrophy, the difference between a craftsman and someone who's just "crafty," the Myth of the Tortured Artist, and the daily fight against compartmentalization that's quietly killing the modern man. 👉 Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode: https://missionxmission.eo.page/sud-newsletter 👉 Support Stand Up Dude & Mission X Mission: http://MissionXMission.org/donate 🚀 Get vidIQ to grow your channel faster! https://vidiq.com/StandUpDude WHAT YOU'LL TAKE AWAY: * A rare, behind-the-scenes look at the Disney and Christian music machines from a producer who built hits inside both * A raw, unguarded testimony of hidden illness, mental darkness, and where God actually showed up * A clear-eyed framework for using AI without letting it hollow out your creativity, your work, or your soul * Why "art that looks real but is empty" is the spiritual warning sign for our generation * The "Myth of the Tortured Artist" debunked by a man who lived it — and survived it * A "balanced diet" model for the relationships, rhythms, friendships, and rest every man needs to stay whole WHO THIS IS FOR: * Christian men, creatives, songwriters, producers, and entrepreneurs wrestling with calling, identity, and the pressure to perform * Anyone navigating hidden suffering or a faith that feels thinner than they thought it was * Men who feel quietly empty in a season of outward success and don't know why * Anyone trying to figure out how to use AI without losing what makes them human TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 "I didn't know you could be alive and be this dead" 00:51 Meet Adam Watts: Disney, Jeremy Camp, Switchfoot, "Beautiful Soul" 02:30 Why entrepreneurs, moms, and tradesmen are artists too 04:36 Doing your work "as unto the Lord" 06:00 The creationist theory of art (and why AI breaks it) 10:00 The hidden tumor doctors missed for five months 13:14 At the edge — and the two things that kept him here 14:50 When you realize your faith was thinner than you thought 16:50 Where God actually shows up when everything falls apart 19:48 Why tears are a "beautiful confession" — and why men avoid them 22:50 The Myth of the Tortured Artist 24:00 Why pain has to go somewhere (the MMA analogy that nails it) 26:30 Art as "soul nutrition" 28:00 What he saw working with Miley Cyrus at 12 and Demi Lovato at 14 30:30 The uncomfortable truth about the Christian music industry 34:00 The 10 Artist Types and the new MyArtistDNA platform 37:50 Building an "electric fence around your humanity" 41:30 Watts AI Theory: a framework for the unprecedented 44:30 Why AI is more intoxicating than any drug we've ever made 47:00 Wall-E, atrophy, and the death of effort 48:30 The Golden Calf warning every modern man needs to hear 51:00 Heaven and hell aren't "out there" — they're already here 51:55 What art actually does for a man 55:30 The balanced diet of relationships every man needs 58:30 Why decompartmentalizing is the work of modern manhood 1:00:00 "If Kurt Cobain and Hendrix had this, they'd still be here" RESOURCES & LINKS: Start your journey with Jesus: https://standupdude.com/standup Free resources for growth: https://standupdude.com/be-more ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: 🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf #StandUpDude #AdamWatts #ChristianMen #AIandArt #ChristianMusic #DisneyMusic #Songwriter #JeremyCamp #MentalHealth #Fatherhood #Creativity #Vocation Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: Drop a comment, Like, subscribe, and share. 🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf

Jason DeMeo Reveals the Real Struggles Behind Creative Entrepreneurship

What does it look like to live a creative life rooted in faith, family, and real purpose, without losing yourself to the hustle? In this Stand Up Dude Podcast episode, hosts Pedro LaTorre and Stewart White sit down with contemporary artist and entrepreneur Jason DeMeo for an unfiltered conversation on art, creativity, fatherhood, entrepreneurship, and what it actually means to be a Christian man in a noisy, distracted world. 🧢 Get a TN HAT Designed by Jason DeMeo 🧢: https://tnhat.shop/collections/frontpage Jason opens up about walking away from a pastoral path, rediscovering his creative impulse, and learning to balance ambition with presence. Together, they dig into the spiritual disciplines that anchor a meaningful life—solitude, rest, meditation, self-awareness—and what it takes to build a legacy of substance over a résumé of noise. If you're a man wrestling with identity, manhood, work-life balance, marriage, parenting, or how faith shapes your craft and calling, this one's for you. 👉 Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode: https://missionxmission.eo.page/sud-newsletter 👉 Support Stand Up Dude & Mission X Mission: http://MissionXMission.org/donate 🚀 Get vidIQ to grow your channel faster!  https://vidiq.com/StandUpDude WHAT YOU'LL TAKE AWAY: * A clearer picture of what a creative, faith-rooted legacy actually looks like in real life—not just on Instagram * Honest tools for breaking the cycle of ego, idolatry, and burnout through spiritual disciplines that create rest and self-awareness * Real talk on marriage, fatherhood, and stewardship from men who are still figuring it out * How to cultivate a home marked by grace and the fruit of the spirit, not just rules * Raw stories on managing work, family, and the longing for impact—from pastor to creative professional * Practical rhythms for schedule management, silence, and intentional presence WHO THIS IS FOR: * Men navigating fatherhood, creative pursuits, and work-life balance * Entrepreneurs, pastors, and creatives chasing substance and legacy, not just hustle * Husbands and fathers hungry for connection, faith, and a purposeful life TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Meet Jason DeMeo: artist, entrepreneur, and dad 05:38 Why Jason walked away from becoming a pastor 06:16 Evolving your identity as an artist (without losing yourself) 11:41 Finding clarity and purpose in a noisy world 14:18 How to honestly evaluate your spiritual growth 17:45 The mindset shift that changes how you carry responsibility 19:46 When work and faith collide 24:35 The hidden cost of missing the present moment 25:49 Hard work vs. trusting God—is there a balance? 31:08 What actually gives life meaning 32:36 Kids, sports, and competing priorities 35:53 Why family time is non-negotiable 40:37 Laughing at our own forgetfulness 44:41 Discipline vs. human nature: the daily fight 46:57 Owning your agency as a man 48:27 Pursuing real transformation through faith RESOURCES & LINKS: Start your journey with Jesus: https://standupdude.com/standup Free resources for growth: https://standupdude.com/be-more Get a TN HAT Designed by Jason DeMeo: https://tnhat.shop/collections/frontpage ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: Drop a comment with what challenged you most. Like, subscribe, and pass this to a friend who's chasing meaning over noise. Join the Stand Up Dude brotherhood—where men find their voice, lead with courage and humility, and become men of faith, substance, and impact. 🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf Stay creative, stay rooted, and lead with purpose. #StandUpDude #FaithAndCreativity #ChristianMen #Fatherhood #Vocation Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-stand-up-dude-podcast--6143975/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. ⚡️ Engage & Take Action: Drop a comment, Like, subscribe, and share. 🔗 All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/standupdude 🎵 Theme Music: Prodigal by Arrows in Exile: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qbpjwsb1Z9XuES9yqKQoz?si=8deed3f6cd2548cf