Building His Kingdom: How a Military Veteran is “Leveling Up” & Contributing to the LiveMe Community

Ellis aka King Cuz might be a little older than the average LiveMe broadcaster, but his age hasn’t stopped him from building a dedicated following. “I want to continue to do the things that make me feel young and fit… and I want to be that positive broadcaster. So far I’ve been on the right track.”

For many of the singers, dancers, musicians, actors, comedians, and more broadcasters that join LiveMe, the platform is a place to spread their talents, build a following, make money, and, if they’re lucky, become famous.

But Ellis King (King Cuz) is not your average broadcaster. Retired with a successful military career under his belt, the 49-year old from Virginia wasn’t looking for a way to make extra money or attain thousands of fans; he simply liked the app and the friendships he was making.

For our latest installment of LiveMe Spotlight, we talked to Ellis about his unlikely start to broadcasting, working out on LiveMe, and his advice for new broadcasters.

Discovering LiveMe

Before joining LiveMe, Ellis served in the military for 26 years. “My military career was great. I’ve been to every continent in the world, except for Antarctica. Don’t care to go there,” he joked. Since retiring five years ago, he’s worked as a contractor for the government, doing much of the same work he did when he was a cryptologic technician in the Navy.

In August 2018, Ellis downloaded LiveMe after seeing an ad when he was playing a game on his phone. He admitted that when first opened the app, he was a little confused. “I saw people putting on makeup, people sleeping…” It wasn’t until he came across a popular broadcaster, Princess Diamond, that he started to understand what people were doing on LiveMe.

“She was all about having a great conversation and meeting people. So, when I engaged with her, she hooked me up with another guy. His name was King Finesse, who knew the app inside and out.” The trio then started a LiveMe Family called KDK, which stands for King Finesse, Princess Diamond, and King Cuz.

Ellis’ fans send him virtual gifts and engage with him as he broadcasts live during his workout.

Broadcasting & Staying Fit at (Almost) 50

While he still is loyal to KDK, Ellis has since grown a strong individual following after months of consistent broadcasting. “Normally, as soon as I get off work, I start a broadcast. It’s around the same time everybody gets off work too, so everybody’s always on their phone around 5:00 to 7:00. So that’s a pretty good time to do my broadcast.”

“Sometimes I can’t broadcast as many hours as I would like to because I am committed to my job. I do a lot of traveling,” he said. “But I’m working on time management. That’s one of my New Year’s resolutions this year. LiveMe’s been great with me, and I need to dedicate more time because people are asking me so much [about it].”

Though he wants to boost his broadcasting hours, Ellis still manages to stream at least two to three hours a day on weekdays and some weekends. Three of those days he broadcasts his workouts. “I’m a retired amateur boxer, and I still use my boxing techniques as a workout routine to keep me in shape.”

Ellis shows off a medal he won after competing in a 5K race. The retired amateur boxer often broadcasts his workouts while fans interact and ask questions about his fitness routine.

When people tune in to watch Ellis’ workouts or meet him in person, they’re often surprised to learn that he’s 49 years old. “I think that’s the reason why I’m getting the recognition I’m getting. Because I’m not your average broadcaster…First of all, I’m sure not too many people are almost 50 on this app…So that part I get, and also, like I say, not too many people can say they’re retired.”

But while Ellis might have more life experience than his fellow LiveMe broadcasters, for him, age is just a number.

“When I tell people my age, I get a lot of amazement…I don’t act like I’m really old, I guess you could say. I still got a lot of energy.,” he told LiveMe. “But I like that, and I want to continue to do the things that make me feel young and fit.

Spreading Positive Vibes

Many of LiveMe’s top and fastest growing broadcasters have something in common: they constantly spread positivity throughout their broadcasts. They create supportive communities where people are free to be themselves. For Ellis, spreading positivity isn’t just a choice; it’s his mission.

“My vibe is always positivity. I tell people that when you listen to my broadcast, I want everyone to be uplifted, positive, [and] show love,” Ellis said. “I have this thing called the four L’s that I do on my broadcast. The four L’s stand for showing love, being loyal, keeping the broadcast lit, and catching levels. And those are my trademarks on my broadcast. Keep everything positive.”

Rather than focus on controversial subjects like politics or religion, Ellis keeps the conversation light. “You make everybody feel like they’re part of a family…We’ll just sit there and talk about, basically, how our day was…Everything’s just upbeat…People always tell me that I got a very strong positive vibe. That’s one of the things that people are attracted to me as a broadcaster.”

Ellis added that he enjoys making people smile, and based on his 50,000+ following, it’s clear that his reputation speaks for itself. “Just last weekend I was at the #LiveMeStarryNight Gala event where all the top broadcasters were…I was just amazed by people who knew me and recognized me and wanted to take pictures and socialize. So, I really felt like I had an additional family once I started using LiveMe.”

Ellis poses with a LiveMe team member at #LiveMeStarryNight, where some of LiveMe’s top broadcasters from around the world met and spent time together.

Ellis’ Broadcasting Advice

When it comes to broadcasting on LiveMe, Ellis has some simple advice: just be yourself.

“[They] shouldn’t try to pretend to be somebody that they’re not. Because, eventually, the fakeness will be revealed, and when people realize that you’re just doing something just to get followers or try to sweeten the pot, it stands out.”

“LiveMe is just a way for me to express who I am to the world, and the world to know more about me as an individual,” Ellis continued. “That’s the platform, and I tell people, if you want to use that as the platform, then this is a good way to do it because it’s more than just emojis and texts and photos. They can see you live and in living color, you know, you are actually broadcasting. It’s unedited.”

“What you do and what you say is gonna get out there, so take your time, be proficient, but be real. And I guarantee you, when people see the realness in you, then more people are gonna follow you because they’re gonna see you for who you really are.”

All images courtesy of Ellis.

Want to read more interviews with LiveMe broadcasters? Check out the rest of our Spotlight series here.

Download the LiveMe app on your iOS and Android device.