Interview of Tony Kemp

Sam Kirkpatrick: So Tony do you think you could first start off by talking a little bit about your background, where you are today, and then some different areas of leadership and projects you're involved in.

Tony Kemp: Background, grew up here in Franklin, TN, went to Centennial High School, and then went to college at Vanderbilt, and then drafted by the Houston Astros in 2013, and now currently with the Oakland Athletics. Sorry, what was the next question?

Sam Kirkpatrick: Different areas of leadership and projects you're involved in right now.

Tony Kemp: One of them is One Tree Planted, that has to do with the charity that is tied to all of my stats during the season. For example, every stolen base and extra base hit that I get, I plant 500 trees and have been doing that for the last two years which has been awesome.

Sam Kirkpatrick: And that's here in Nashville and in California?

Tony Kemp: Yeah, and in Oakland. So that's been a pretty good leadership project. I'd probably say the other one that is pretty awesome is the Player's Alliance that formed a couple years ago with Curtis Granderson, C.C. Sabathia, guys like Cameron Maybin. Pretty much getting more awareness around baseball to kids of color who are in areas that they necessarily can't buy their equipment. We've been funding and helping all these guys with a Pull Up Tour. A bunch of the Major League guys donate equipment, these kids pull up, and we would give them equipment. It happened a lot in COVID, so kind of a lot of non-contact, but I'd probably say that would be a great leadership project.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Were you at the one that was in Nashville?

Tony Kemp: So I actually missed it because I was out of town at a wedding, but I heard it had a good turnout. They went here, Atlanta, Ohio, and a bunch of places around the United States, so it was a pretty cool project.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Then what about the +1 Effect and the idea behind that?

Tony Kemp: Pretty much the +1 Effect started right here. It was during COVID after George Floyd, and I feel like everything kind of happens for a reason, because I don't think the whole initiative would have even started if COVID hadn't even been a thing. After George Floyd died, I felt like I needed to do something about it. That's when I started the +1 Effect and feel like we can just have a positive conversation with one person at a time and kind of have a trickle down effect of getting someone's perspective that you might not see or you might not realize. I feel like it's exceeded my expectations. I feel like it's obviously still going today and has a big, positive impact on the community I think.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Awesome. What part of your personal biography in your earlier years inspired you to take on these roles and start these different projects?

Tony Kemp: I feel like I've always been a person that doesn't necessarily have to follow the crowd. I feel like it was something that just kind of spoke to my heart, especially when I was in high school doing FCA, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and learning about charities and learning about helping people that can't do much for you, but you can help them out. Just being able to do things around the community when I was at Centennial was a big catapult into what I wanted to do once I got that platform in the Major Leagues. It's always been my heart ever since I was 16, 17, 18 years old and I kind of just went with it.

Sam Kirkpatrick: The MLB does a lot to recognize these efforts for their different players. Could you talk a little bit about what the Roberto Clemente Award is, your various nominations, and what that means to you?

Tony Kemp: So the MLB actually does a great job with matching donations, so say for example I wanted to start a charity. If I raised up to $10,000, the MLB actually matches up to $10,000 or $15,000 of what you generate from that charity, and they actually match it at the end of the year. The MLB is always very supportive of helping people out, doing charities, and things like that. The Roberto Clemente Award, to be able to have three nominations so far,

Sam Kirkpatrick: Is that in a row, three straight?

Tony Kemp: Yeah, so it's just such a blessing to have the awards down here, to be able to be nominated for doing good works around the community. I was just talking with my wife, she's a lot happier that those awards are down here just because it shows it's not baseball related, it's more of what you do to help people. What'd you do for your community while you were playing? Because a lot of people don't have to do that stuff, there's a lot of stuff you already have going on, so just to take some time out and help people I feel like is a big deal.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Who are some of the biggest leaders in your life that you've learned from, and what did you learn from them?

Tony Kemp: I'd say one of my biggest leaders would probably have to be my brother. He taught me every sport that I know up until this point. Him being able to not give up on me, I remember we used to be in the backyard, and I used to hit right-handed, and I was terrible, and he almost gave up on me. Then he told me to hit left-handed, and then I hit the ball.

Sam Kirkpatrick: I didn't know that.

Tony Kemp: It was kind of like ok, he's got some athlete tendencies. I'd probably have to say my brother, I always look up to him.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Is that him? (pointing at framed jersey)

Tony Kemp: Yeah, this is him right here. He finished out his college career at East Carolina, Conference USA player of the year his senior year, got drafted by the Brewers. It says "A1 from Day 1" just because that's my guy. He always taught me how to have a good mentality going forward, and kind of been my guy I can always go to and really rely on.

Sam Kirkpatrick: What experiences in your life do you think have shaped you most as a leader?

Tony Kemp: I feel like a big turning point in my career probably was how bad I was my sophomore year in college in baseball. I had a really good freshman year, and sophomore year at Vanderbilt I feel like nothing really could go right. I was nervous about having that year and then going into the Cape Cod League and had a lot of doubts in myself. You had the worst season you've ever had, collegiately, and then you're going to go up to the Cape Cod League and try to do the best you can against the best talent in the U.S. I had a pretty good summer, but I feel like learning about the challenges and how I would react when things weren't going my way was a big turning point in my career. I was able to learn a lot about myself, about character, and about how I treat other people when things weren't going well for me. I took a lot of time to reflect and realize what was going on around me and not be so selfish.

Sam Kirkpatrick: I think we've talked a lot about that too. Do you feel like after that really good freshman year, you set these expectations for yourself and put this pressure on yourself?

Tony Kemp. Subconsciously I knew that I was going to be the leadoff hitter, I knew that I was going to be a big part of the offense. I feel like my freshman year I just went out there, didn't think, and just played. The easiest part about it was that I had no pressure, pressure wasn't a real thing. My sophomore year I felt like I needed to do too much, and that led to a lot of bad mechanical habits at the plate, it led to a couple more errors in the outfield, and kind of just snowballed from there. Like you said, I feel like I learned a lot about myself just moving forward and man that was 2012, so ten years ago, so I've learned a lot since then.

Sam Kirkpatrick: That's pretty related to the next question which is about some obstacles and challenges that you faced and how they were able to serve actually as positive things that you were able to learn from and move on if you have any other examples of those?

Tony Kemp: I want to say it really started when my parents got divorced when I was younger. I felt like it wasn't fair and was sad because I was going to have to have split parents, and I'd always see other families together. I really had to learn the older I got that our parents are human too, and they're just people just how we are, but when you're younger you think that your parents have all the answers and they're pretty much perfect. Then the older you get you just understand that they're just human. So I feel like being able to understand that life wasn't fair at an earlier age helped me later on to realize not everything is perfect, but it doesn't have to be. I feel like when my parents got divorced in 7th grade, that was a big turning point to growing up a little faster than I might've wanted to, but I feel like in the long run it paid off.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Now how do you think you would characterize your own leadership style?

Tony Kemp: My junior year at Vandy for baseball I got voted team captain, and honestly I feel like I'm not much of a "bring you aside, let's have a confrontational talk," I'm more of like "lead by example, this is the way it's done, let's have fun." There are some times when you need to help guys out, but I feel like the biggest way for my leadership to show is just by example of just bringing energy to the field, or to be able to help somebody out in a way that is not deconstructive if that makes any sense. Everybody has different leadership qualities and how they lead, but I feel like mine is better by example.

Sam Kirkpatrick: What do you think your professional strengths and weaknesses are, and how has your leadership role developed as you've played more years in the MLB and been around more guys?

Tony Kemp: Let's start with my weaknesses, I feel like my weaknesses have been that confrontation, and I'm getting better at pulling guys aside. The older I get, the more years that I get in the big leagues, the more of a responsibility it is to help younger guys realize, "Hey, this is how things work, and this is how things have to be." I feel like my weakness is actually having that confrontation with people, so I'm getting better at that. But I feel like my strengths are off the field, being able to have fun with guys, being able to pick the brains of younger guys: "Why don't you see the situation in this way? You did this, how about you take a step back and see it from this perspective?". So I feel like I am able to reach people in a way that maybe they haven't been reached before. I feel like that is definitely a strength, but the older you get, the more and more you understand that not everyone's the same, and that you have to treat people differently based on their personalities. People learn in different ways.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Being open-minded especially too?

Tony Kemp: Open-minded, always, got to be open-minded.

Sam Kirkpatrick: A general quality of leaders is that they help to turn ideas into action, and use those actions to empower others. So how do you feel like you accomplish this?

Tony Kemp: I feel like that is what the +1 Effect embodies. It was an idea that was brought to action to be able to have these conversations, these uncomfortable conversations, with strangers throughout COVID and really just try to reach people. I feel like if I was able to reach them in a different way than they haven't been thinking of before, now was the time. It was just an idea that was brought together down here, and to be able to sell apparel and have it go towards charities, and to be able to have that action really brings some ways for people to say, "It wasn't just an idea, he actually brought this to life." The boots were on the ground, I wanted to be the person that was saying, "Hey, I'll take the time out of my day to explain my different stories of growing up, of getting pulled over by the police, and how I was treated maybe because I was black, or how was I treated once I got called up to the big leagues." Certain things like that I feel like the +1 Effect was able to really be able to reach those heights that I wanted people to see.

Sam Kirkpatrick: I think you actually have some custom cleats that say that on the side?

Tony Kemp: My wife wanted to do a giveaway, so I had a bunch of cleats and she wanted to do a giveaway with the +1 Effect on them. But I think I'm gonna have them on all my cleats from here on out, and yeah, it's been a special initiative.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Who or what do you think has been your greatest influence?

Tony Kemp: I think back throughout my career, and this just goes to show you how important brothers are, and I feel like my brother has been my biggest influence. He's been a person that never made the big leagues, but he got into coaching with his son and he knows how the game works, he knows how the process is operated. Through the Minor Leagues, he was a guy that I actually got to go with in A ball and stay in his hotel and understand before I got to professional baseball what this gets to look like. Going from Vanderbilt to an eight hour bus trip in low A is a whole different ball game. So I was able to actually see what I was getting myself into if I got drafted. I feel like I wasn't really blindsided. Once I got into the Minor Leagues my brother taught me how to act when the Front Office comes into town, or when a manager pulls you in his office, and how to be coachable and how to be understanding. I feel like being coachable is just 50% of it. It's being able to have an open mind like you said. My brother was my biggest fan and he was my biggest cheerleader, he was there in the toughest times. I know that you've gone through it, all of us go through it, we just don't really talk about it until things that you did, which was pretty awesome. So yeah, I'd probably have to say my brother.

Sam Kirkpatrick: With him being older and learning from him, and as you've matured through all these obstacles, how now do you feel like you measure success, and how do you learn from failure?

Tony Kemp: I feel like you learn more from your failures than you do from your successes. I feel like getting to the point where I am now, one year away from free agency, you take a step back and realize that you really have had a lot of learning curves through this journey. People will always see guys who are in MLB, the NBA, the NFL and say, "Ok, yea, it was smooth, it was easy. He got drafted, he went to the NFL, into the NBA. Through the Minor Leagues people really don't see the mental grind that you go through. I feel like it's kind of a taboo thing to talk about, but I feel like now the more and more conversations that people have, you learn to be more open-minded to realize not everybody is the same. People learn differently. I feel like I've been able to grow more mentally than physically over this journey, just because it's hard to just go out there and do it every day on a consistent basis especially when 20,000, 30,000, or 40,000 people are watching, including people on TV. It's just taking a step back and realizing that you just have to trust yourself, and believe in yourself. Because if you don't, then who will? Those little things start to show on the field little by little, but you just have to pretend like you're out there in the backyard in 4th grade, and no one else is watching with your brother. I feel like just being able to learn all those experiences has brought me to where I am now.

Sam Kirkpatrick: With those experiences now, what do you think are two or three specific steps that you believe are essential to enable others to be successful or for future leaders?

Tony Kemp: I think to help other people if I were going to give two or three things, I said in one of them that first off you have to believe in yourself, you have to believe in your abilities. Number two, the biggest thing, is you can't doubt yourself. You see guys who have all the talent in the world, but between their ears they don't see what others see talent wise. That has to go with believing in yourself. If you start to doubt yourself, you start to be timid in anything that you do. I feel like just putting your best foot forward and not looking back. I was just having a conversation with my wife, and you just kind of have to go out there and pretend like no one else is watching. That's when you're at your best, when you're just going out there, you're laser-focused, and you're just going out there to have fun. I think sometimes in the profession now you get so wrapped up in "it's a profession, it's a job" that you forget that you're playing a kids game. That's what I was trying to tell you when we were having a conversation. You don't want to look back and have those regrets of "what if." I feel like I just try to go out there and leave everything on the table.

Sam Kirkpatrick: That's one thing I learned too this summer in the Northwoods League, I'd never played before in front of that big of crowds, because obviously we don't get as many fans as you get in the SEC. But when I'd show up to a game and there were 3,000 to 4,000 fans there at first I was like "Wow, there are a lot of people." And then just the more you do it, you just start to look lower and lower and lower.

Tony Kemp: Yeah you're used to it. Northwoods League yeah, that's a grind. I was there in 2011. We used to have a joke once you get to the big leagues, "Don't look up." You're in a more enclosed space, and you feel like the fans are on top of you, but you're now starting to realize those things, that's good.

Sam Kirkpatrick: We got two more now. What advice do you have for building relationships and trust in others?

Tony Kemp: I think building trust in others comes from within, you can't start to trust people unless you believe and trust in yourself. I feel like the more and more that you give people, I feel like that's how you start to have friends, and you start to realize how these friendships can actually make you a better person too. I feel like being able to trust people is showing vulnerability within yourself. If you can do that then you can be more open-minded too, building those long-lasting friendships and relationships. I think that you have to be vulnerable, and open up your heart and give someone the ability to say, "Hey, here I am, and I'm not afraid if you see all sides of me."

Sam Kirkpatrick: Lastly, what do you want your legacy to be? If that's something you've even thought of, because we talked about how people want to be famous. Do you want to be remembered for something?

Tony Kemp: I feel like it's kind of a little morbid, but once you're gone, people will remember what you did for a couple days, unless you make this huge impact. I just want my legacy to be just someone who wanted to see good works in life, and it didn't have to be baseball or sports related. Just to give back in the community and give back to people that necessarily couldn't give back to myself, and just be a good person, that's it.

Sam Kirkpatrick: Thank you.

Tony Kemp: Yeah brother. No problem.