Meet Alanna Luna | Executive Creative Director, Artist & Business Owner

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

Hi Alanna, how does your business help the community?
The absolute best part, and reason why I started my media company is making people’s dreams come true. Newman Media helps our clients take their business idea and turn it into a business reality. Many of our clients are women or single parents who started out with day jobs & dreamed of starting a business and creating generational wealth, as well as having more time to spend with their children and families. Or the client has an amazing product, but has no idea how to develop or market the brand, so they are stuck. Many people give up on their dreams of having their own business, being their own boss, or having their own product because they get overwhelmed with the seemingly unending list of things needed just to get off the ground. My business takes the anxiety out of that process by defining the brand’s goals, values, and audience to create a cohesive brand identity, stunning imagery, product packaging, web presence, and a professional visual language.

Rather than just getting a business/brand off the ground, we launch it into outer space!

Another awesome thing I love do with my business is to offer free services to non-profits in my community in Tucson, Arizona. Every year we give away over $10,000 worth of free services. One of my favorite non-profits to work with is Xerocraft MakerSpace & KMKR Radio, Tucson’s local makerspace, hakerspace and public workshop. This place is one of the best kept secrets for the artists and creators in my community by offering a collaborative work space and access to an insane amount of tools, everything from automotive to 3D printers, workshops, classes on tons of subjects, you can even learn to broadcast a radio show or have your music played on Xerocraft’s very own Low Power Radio Station, KMKR. Xerocraft is nothing less than amazing, if you are a creative of any sort you need to stop and get a tour to see what they have to offer, it’s a lot.

If you have a non-profit in Arizona, and would like to apply for our free services, please reach out! www.newmanmedia.biz

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?
Q: How did you get to where you are today business-wise. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges.

A: Starting my business was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Hundreds of mistakes made, right off the bat. I was on a tight budget and tried to do way too many things myself, mostly out of financial necessity but sometimes because of pure stubbornness. I was also in my senior year in college, had a newborn baby in tow, and I would get so burned out that I would have to take long breaks away from building my business. Because of this, I was struggling to meet my goals. I had a small handful of clients keeping me afloat but I wasn’t really able to pay myself. Then like a gift from the marketing gods, the most amazing thing happened. A business coach named Pollyanna Brown hired me to edit a video series for her, so I basically got paid to take her social media marketing courses. I learned so much and started implementing her methods with immediate results. Turns out, I already had most of the skills and factors I needed in place to successfully run a media business. I just really needed a business coach and some direction from an expert. Pollyanna was a powerful catalyst to my success and to this day I still use the tools and skills that I learned from her. Turns out, sometimes it just takes some knowledge from an experienced person to get you moving forward.

Q. Please tell us more about your business.. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about

A: As the Founder of Newman Media, a company that helps other businesses thrive, and as Executive Creative Director for CAAZ Records & B4C Distillery, what sets myself apart is: I know how much blood, sweat and tears go into starting up and operating a business, going through the process more than once myself has given me a unique perspective most service/product providers might not get to experience. Newman Media is also very unique in the fact that we provide multiple business solutions in house, so rather than having to manage 5-10 different businesses or vendors, we do it all in one stop. When you work with Newman Media, there’s no juggling communications between multiple agencies, and all of your vital assets are contained, preserved, and protected within our cloud.

1st and foremost I’m very proud of the strength & vision I have been able to bestow upon my daughter. Being able to see her Mom own and run a successful business is hopefully empowering to her. She has been literally working along side me since she was a month old. She’s about to turn eleven now, and she may or may not remember when times were tough and I almost quit, but I envision that my perseverance penetrated her soul and that someday when she faces adversity, that she will overcome. In current climate of the United States where women are getting stripped of their rights to have control over their own bodies, I am grateful to have the opportunity to teach a life long lesson to my daughter to “Fight for what you want & Love”

I’ve also been blessed & excited that I have been to be able to work with other artists, musicians, writers and visionaries. It’s extremely fulfilling to help others realize their dreams and create income from their passions, but most of all it’s truly incredible to meet and be a part of a genius person’s journey. Honestly sometimes I kind of pinch myself, wondering if this is real? My clients are so astonishing!

I have worked with some really incredible people, even one of my musical idols, the one and only Chaka Khan. I’ve also made lifelong deep soul/business connections through my work. My viral educational documentary with writer Eric Rankin “Sonic Geometry: The Frequency of Language and Form” has reached the world with multi-millions of views and is now part of several college curriculums. Eric is probably the coolest guy I’ve ever met and we have done so many insane things together (Since our docu-series Eric has been on one of my favorite shows, Ancient Aliens… twice!) The icing on the cake was that during COVID Burning Man had a fully virtual event and dedicated the ENTIRE Virtual Burning Man to “Sonic Geometry”

Flicka Rahn and The Icaros is another soul/business connection that I have. Flicka is like a Goddess to me, she is in her mid 70’s and is just an artistic machine, besides all of her 50+ years of accolades as an opera singer and collegiate educator, she’s still dropping music, touring as an artist and healer, writing books, developing apps, and doing sound healing research…LIKE A BOSS! Working with her has been one of the most rewarding, fun and artistically free work collaborations that I have ever been part of. She’s my ideal client and now a lifelong friend.

Q: What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?

A: One of the most important lessons I’ve learned along the way is to keep going. Even when it feels like you aren’t making progress, or if things get hard, keep going. Almost every time I almost threw in the towel, something amazing would come along and totally blow my mind. Years ago I had a bunch of weird turn of events and was super close to giving up and getting a day job, but then I had a 30K month. That was an eye-opener; I could have totally missed out on that opportunity. Owning a business is HARD.
Things are bound to go wrong and when they do, you just have to learn from it, be accountable and overcome. Even when you want to quit, if you love what you’re doing, don’t give up.
After all, most songs weren’t written in a day. The orchestra of your business is going to be composed one note at a time; some notes high & some notes low, just know when your song is finally finished, is will be a result of your own orchestration! That’s a beautiful thing.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Favorite Italian – Locale’

Mexican Food – Karichmaka & Guermo’s Double L

Places to walk/bike and see nature- Aqua Caliente Park, Saguaro National Park East, The River Walk

Third Thursdays At MOCA

Live Hip Hop at Thunder Canyon Brewery downtown.

In the fall or spring y0u NEED to do a Mural tour of downtown Tucson’s amazing murals.

Mt. Lemon October-Fest, also when driving up Mt. Lemon I highly recommend downloading the UA College of Science Mount Lemmon Audio Tour. Look for signs at the base of the mountain. It’s really cool “From the Sonoran Desert at the bottom to the pine forest at the top, the trip covers 6,000 vertical feet and is one of the most spectacular drives in the country.”

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’ve had so many supportive family and friends who have been there for me, especially my mom and dad, but there’s a stand out mentor and dear friend that I’m dedicating this Shout Out to, Jerry Stavreff.

Without his love, encouragement, guidance, and support, I could have never become a recording artist, model, started my first business, went to college, had an art opening, started a media company, created a viral documentary, started a record label, and most recently, launch a vodka company. When I met Jerry at the age of 20, I was a single mom and victim of domestic violence, I had low self-esteem because of the abusive relationship I had left, and was working a waitress. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life.
Looking back I know at that time I would have NEVER in my wildest dreams thought I could accomplish any of the incredible things I have since done. Jerry’s relentless belief in me and my art during a hard and vulnerable time in my life, gave me hope, drive, and self worth. His wise words were (and still are) always in my head giving me a reason to keep going even after rejection or failure.

“You’ve got to get back on that horse, because you aren’t a real Cowgirl until you’ve fallen 100 times.”

Jerry passed away from cancer at the age of 58 in 2014, so he was never able to see many of the amazing things I’ve done and have yet to do. I was out of the country when he passed and was unable to attend his memorial. I could have said so many wonderful things about him, He was the most brilliant person I have ever met. I should have thanked him more often for being there for me and inspiring me to “Do whatever the hell you want to do in life, because the only time is now.” – Jer

Thank and love the people around you every chance you get, because life is fleeting, and you never know when it’s your turn to go.
I love and miss you, Jer!

Website: www.newmanmedia.biz

Instagram: http://instagram.com/newman.media

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alannaluna

Facebook: http://facebook.com/newmanmediaco

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/alannaluna

Other: www.b4cdistillery.com www.sonicgeometry.com www.flickarahn.com

Image Credits
Main Photo (personal) MUA & HAIR Courtney Thayer McKinley Photo Jacquelynn Buck Billboard Ad for KMKR Radio -Newman Media Flicka Rahn’s Book Cover, APP & Artwork – Newman Media Roder’s Vodka – Newman Media Sonic Geometry: The Language of Frequency and Form (cover art)-Newman Media