Meet Sherry Lee | Publicist

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

Hi Sherry, how has your background shaped the person you are today?

I think growing up in the South had a profound effect on who I am today and why my PR company is so successful here in Los Angeles, New York, London, Atlanta, the Southeast and in Canada. I think growing up in the south gave me a different outlook. When we moved to Los Angeles six years ago, my son who is an actor, really wanted PR, but it was very expensive in LA. So, I decided to give it a try myself. I was working as an Engineering during the day so at first I thought of it being a side job. Now I think it was something I was supposed to do. I was able to get my son into some pretty great events like Media night at Knotts Berry Farms, the Queen Mary Dark Harbor and the Christmas event as well as InstaBeach and InstaSkate. I was so excited when my son was invited to the Party on the Pier at the Santa Monica Pier. Then my sons friends asked if I could do their PR. I was like sure, why not? So, I set up my company as a LLC.

I had many people that called me that were just starting in the entertainment industry that I would give advice to. Some not ready for PR, and I was honest about it and they were very thankful. They had called other agencies that wanted to charge them so they appreciated my honesty. When I started this company it was to help my son and then when I decided to make it something bigger and real, I knew wanted to treat others as I wanted my son to be treated. I think my grandmother who raised me would be proud of what I have started here in Los Angeles. I think if I had be raised anywhere else I might have looked at this differently. Sometimes, when my clients fly into LA, I meet them for lunch or dinner to get to know them better and offer to give them a ride back to their hotel because I know how expensive it is in LA to get transportation like Lyft or Uber. One client came to LA, she was nineteen and had hotel downtown LA. I did not feel it was safe for her to walk there so I drove her back to her hotel and picked her up for Comicon. If my son was in an area he was not familiar with, I would want the same thing done for him.

What should our readers know about your business?

I wanted a PR agency that is different from any other agency in Los Angeles.  I had been using an email address with my son’s initials, GTK (Grayson Thorne Kilpatrick),  and when I was setting up my agency as an LLC, people already knew me with those initials so I decided to keep the initials as the name.  I was officially GTK PR Talent Agency, LLC. I then though about what the logo should look like. My son, aside from being an actor, is a huge collector of the Rubik’s Cube so I used that shape and on three sides had the GTK initials. When I first started out, I had mostly kids, then slowly I started representing adults and that logo was too cartoony. I have a client whose mom is a graphic artist and she offered to help revamp the image to something more representative of who I am and what the company is.  I didn’t want something every other PR company in LA had, I wanted to be different. I have always loved old Hollywood especially during Lucille Ball’s era. I loved all the beautiful dresses, hairstyles from the 1940’s and as I researched I found pictures of Hollywoodland instead of the old Hollywood sign so I told my artist I wanted my theme to be old Hollywood/art deco style and she came up with the upgraded you see today of black and gold but still keeping the original central square shape of the Rubik’s cube. 

Then I thought about what else sets me apart from other agencies. I had started this company to help artist in the Entertainment Industry. I understand how hard it is to live in Los Angeles and I know that actors work some months and maybe not the next so I want to be flexible and understanding with my fees and I hope if they make it big they will remember me.

I have an in house Graphic Designer, Stylist, Hair and Makeup and writer if my clients do not have time to write their own interviews.

I think what I have learned along the way has mellowed me out, I don’t really let anything get to me. I use to get upset at the smallest issue but honestly it is not worth the wrinkles or the grey hair. So, I try to let things come as they may and deal with them and not stress so much and just go with the flow. This industry is very unpredictable.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

There are so many great places in the Los Angeles area it’s hard to do everything I would want to do with them in one day. Some of my top places would be the theme parks in Los Angeles. I love Universal Studios and City Walk has to be a favorite place for me. You can’t come to Los Angeles and not go to Hollywood, Hollywood Blvd, with the Chinese Theater would be on the top of my list. Taking them to the Griddle would be a must and Fresh Corn Grill on Sant Monica Blvd. If they wanted to go to a beach, my favorite one would be Redondo Beach or Laguna Beach. We have so much to offer in Los Angeles there is no other place on the earth like this town I call my second home.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I think I would like to thank several people for my success. First, my son, Grayson Thorne Kilpatrick, without him I would not be in Los Angeles or even thinking about being a Publicist. Then all my wonderful clients and supportive friends. There are some wonderful Publicist I would like to thank for their support and advice, Millennium PR, Lynk Public Relations, Bravo PR, Glory2PR, Monarch PR. These Publicist have always been helpful to me and have helped me learn and grow.

Website: https://www.gtktalentagency.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gtkprtalent/?hl=en

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sherry-lee-16475a200

Twitter: https://twitter.com/gtk_pr

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gtkprtalent/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZwys7ZnQ2NWPIscfE4naYw

Image Credits
Graphic Artist is Sally Packard