Occupation: Film producer and coding developer
Children: Allysia, 22; Tyree, 17; and Amaya, 14
Hobbies: Playing piano, writing, reading, and bike riding
From a young age, Aaron L. Williams had a passion for music and storytelling. What began as a creative escape evolved into a journey that led him to working with MTV and building a thriving career in television and film. Beyond his professional achievements, Aaron’s most profound role is that of a father. Aaron shares how fatherhood has shaped his life, the lessons he has learned along the way, and the traditions he hopes will last a lifetime.
CAN YOU SHARE A BIT ABOUT YOUR JOURNEY TO BECOME A PRODUCER? WHAT INSPIRED YOU?
AARON: I’ve been creative for a long time. I remember when I was a little kid, I used to always have this recurring dream where I would see myself on stage playing piano. I remember writing songs when I was six years old, when I had these melodies stuck in my head, so I always wrote, and I was always reading books, and it just naturally happened. I started playing piano as an escape when I was younger, and then I got a call from MTV. I partnered with them, and we did this huge concert, and we had to do this commercial, and it got me into doing TV things. I started learning how to do commercials and producing TV broadcasts, and I got hired by a local station, and it kind of just took me on that journey to just being what I am in film.
HOW HAS BEING A DAD CHANGED YOUR OUTLOOK ON LIFE?
AARON: I’m thinking more about legacy—how I can leave an impact not just for myself, but for my kids. My goal in life is to create small films and stories that they’ll remember when I’m gone. I like to create experiences and moments that last, so that even when we’re no longer here, we leave lasting impressions on people. I believe it’s those moments and experiences that shape us when we need them most.
WHAT’S ONE LESSON FATHERHOOD HAS TAUGHT YOU THAT YOU DIDN’T EXPECT?
AARON: Patience number one, and two, learning how to be selfless, because I’ve learned what’s mine is not mine. That’s the biggest thing in life. When you’re a child, it’s all about what you want, your desires, and your needs, and then when a child begins to live and breathe and become with you, it’s less about what you want and more about the other person. So it teaches you to start looking at what you can do for others and less about what you need for yourself.
HOW DO YOU BALANCE WORK, PERSONAL TIME, AND BEING PRESENT AS A DAD?
AARON: I call it forced time, because sometimes it seems like work is never enough. So what I do is I try to force myself to be sporadic in the moments. I try to send my kids random texts throughout the day to keep the communication going, so that even if we’re not spending long amounts of time together, we’re still spending some time together, and we have chances to speak with one another.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE WAY TO SPEND TIME WITH YOUR CHILDREN?
AARON: I personally love traveling. I’ll have father-daughter trips, or father-son trips, where I’ll do individual trips with them, or sometimes we do family trips and we’ll explore different states. We’ll go rafting, we’ll go to the beach, or we’ll just go driving somewhere random.
WHAT’S ONE TRADITION YOU’VE STARTED WITH YOUR KIDS THAT YOU HOPE LASTS FOREVER?
AARON: I have little things with all of them, but me and Amaya have this thing where we’ll both just hold out our index finger and then we’ll just touch each other’s fingers. That’s something we always do. With Tyree, it’s the music. He learned how to play piano like me, so I’ll play something, and he’ll play it back. My oldest daughter, Allysia, she’s the one that we call and talk to about anything. She’s also my Christmas girl. Anytime it’s time to shop or decorate, she’s the one. We always do the decorating and shopping together.
IS THERE A PARTICULAR DAD MOMENT THAT MADE YOU FEEL LIKE, “WOW, I’M REALLY DOING THIS RIGHT”?
AARON: I think the moments that feel right, honestly, are really when I’m just spending time with them. It’s not about the gifts I give them or the places I bring them, but the fact that I can still communicate with my kids and have that connection even at an older age.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO NEW OR EXPECTING DADS?
AARON: One, be patient. Two, don’t mind sharing, and three, make sure you save up for the different moments. I believe that it’s not the gifts, but it’s those experiences that create the best moments. My kids never remember a single gift I give them, but they remember every moment that we create together. So my greatest advice would be to save and to make sure you spend more time looking for moments and less time looking for gifts.
WHAT’S SOMETHING YOU WISH MORE DADS TALKED ABOUT?
AARON: I believe dads almost need a support group. It’s hard to talk about personal things in your family when you’re supposed to be the leader and seen as the head of your household. I wish dads had a place where we can at least talk about our feelings. One thing I would encourage dads to do is to try to find a safe space to talk about their feelings and realize it’s okay to be you. You don’t have to be ashamed or afraid to actually have those emotions. I think that’s the best thing that we can do for ourselves, is to process those emotions and find ways to talk about how we feel.
IF YOUR KIDS HAD TO DESCRIBE YOU, WHAT DO YOU THINK THEY’D SAY?
AARON: I’m very serious, but at the same time, they would say I’m very goofy when it comes to them, because I crack the most random jokes, and I say the most random things.
Rapid-Fire Questions
One word that best describes your family…creative.
Favorite tv shows and movies to watch…Breaking Bad and The Matrix.
Favorite food…pasta and salad.
Hidden talent…doing voiceovers.
Favorite read…things that challenge my mind.
