Show Notes
We’re coming in hot with a conversation that matters: excellence in church production and creative leadership. Too often, mediocrity hides behind spiritual language. But let’s be real—excellence reflects the character of God. It’s not about perfection; it’s about intention, discipline, and grit. At Black Box, we don’t make excuses for half-effort. We sweat the small stuff because we believe worship deserves our best. And we’re fired up to introduce Brian Tru—a new voice on the pod and a vital piece of the Black Box crew. Brian’s cut his teeth through every production role imaginable, from semis and stage plots to FOH and broadcast. He’s lived it all, never settled, and leads with quiet strength and clarity. On top of that, he’s rooted in the Gospel genre, bringing the heart and heritage of that sound into everything he touches. This one’s for anyone who feels the tension between high standards and servant-hearted ministry.We don’t excuse mediocrity. We fight for better. Let’s move.
More from Black Box Podcast
Lee Fields, Stephen “Shep” Sheppard, Brad Bramer, and Tyler Kerpsack are BlackBox—an independent team helping churches strengthen production systems, develop healthy teams, and make wise technical investments. Today, they’re joined by Danielle Iselin, a passionate volunteer equipper inspiring the Church to double down on recruiting, developing, and investing in volunteers. Danielle brings a remarkable perspective on scale, having served as the sole production staff member supporting 20 campuses across eight countries. The conversation covers everything from which movie best represents running a production team to women in production, production gamers, building volunteer culture, and how to leave a church staff role well. Whether you lead church production, serve on a technical arts team, manage volunteers, or work in worship ministry, this episode offers honest perspective on leadership, healthy transitions, and equipping people for meaningful ministry.
What does it take to create content that people actually want to watch? Tyler Kerpsack, Stephen “Shep” Sheppard sit down with Channing Dubbeld—Creative + Worship Production Director at First Naples, audio engineer, production videographer, and one of the most recognizable content creators in the church-tech space. BlackBox is Lee Fields, Brad Bramer, Tyler Kerpsack, and Shep. Channing shares his journey from traveling in full-time music ministry to leading production in Naples, Florida, and building an online audience around the honest, funny, and occasionally chaotic realities of church production. The conversation covers content creation, social-media strategy, authenticity, audio engineering, worship technology, leadership, and plenty of hot takes from Naples’ finest. Whether you lead a church production team, mix live audio, create content, or simply enjoy an unfiltered conversation about the AVL world, this episode of the BlackBox Podcast is for you.
BlackBox is stepping into a new season—with new conversations, fresh collaborators, and guests from across the church & production industry. In this episode, Shep, Brad Bramer & Tyler Kerpsack get back to the fundamentals of production leadership: developing people, building healthy teams, investing in volunteers, and creating technical environments where others can grow. BlackBox exists to equip the local church as an independent advocate, trusted partner, and creative collaborator. From audio, video, lighting, and systems integration to leadership development and production strategy, we help churches make confident decisions, strengthen their teams, and build healthier teams and ministries. Whether you’re a production director, worship leader, technical artist, integrator, or church volunteer, this conversation is about leading people—not just managing equipment.
In this episode, Lee Fields, Shep, Tyler Kerpsack, and Brad Bramer get into what it really looks like to operate at a high level when things go sideways. We talk real stories—from stadium shows to high-pressure environments—where cues get missed, plans change mid-song, and you’re forced to make decisions in real time. There’s some Kanye conversation in here, but more from the lens of what’s actually happening behind the scenes and how teams carry those moments. We also hit on the tension of working in spaces where your values get tested—and what it looks like to stay grounded in the middle of it. This one’s about composure, awareness, and learning how to respond when the pressure’s on.
BlackPod is a no-fluff podcast for church production leaders, live audio engineers, and creatives who care about doing it right. Hosted by Lee Fields, Shep, Tyler Kerpsack, and Brad Bramer, BlackPod dives into real-world conversations around church audio mixing, troubleshooting AVL systems, leadership accountability, and building drum sounds that actually translate in the room. In this episode, we talk Valentine’s Day and life outside the booth, but we also get into practical production topics like: