Business of the year

Wilson’s passion drives Mega Ace

By St. Clair Murraine
Outlook Staff Writer

When Vaughn Wilson decided three years ago to take an earnest attempt to get Mega Ace up and running as a production company, he didn’t procrastinate.

He’d heard about waiting for the right time, but never subscribed to that kind of thinking. So off he went, leaving his job as sports information director in FAMU’s athletic department to venture into the unknown.

Just about anyone who asked why he took such a chance gets the same answer.

“Just have the guts to do it,” Wilson said. “Just make a calculated decision to go ahead and do it. Some people get scared and they try to wait until everything is just right before they try to do anything. 

“That is never going to happen where everything is lined up perfectly. You just have to get it to a point and go with it.”

  Just this past weekend, Wilson set the stage with the Black Business Expo for others who bet on their ideas like he did. It was an opportunity for business owners to network and find resources to grow.

Today Mega Ace has become such a vital part of communication in the virtual world that the pandemic plunged the country into. Wilson’s constant presence on a contract job or just pro bono, has earned his company Business of the Year honor from the Capital Outlook.

“It was absolutely an honor,” was his response to hearing about the selection.

When Wilson decided to branch out, he wasn’t second-guessed. Not by his brother, Van, or his wife, Ty’ees – two of his biggest supporters.

His wife gave “100 percent support,” he said. “She pretty much said ‘what took you so long.’ ”

In fact, Wilson said the move he made to develop his own business was mostly about family. His daughter Laila and son Zach were engaged in extracurricular activities and he wanted to be there for them, Wilson said.

“To do the job right at FAMU would not have allowed the time I needed to dedicate to them,” Wilson said. “That was one of the best decisions I made in my life.”

When he saw what has amounted to an evolution of his younger brother, Van didn’t ask why. He had seen Vaughn make similar moves.

“He has always had faith in his own ability to make things happen,” Van said, referring to his early days as a disc jockey. “Being a DJ is the same as being a performer. When you’ve got a party coming up and you’ve got to be out there in front of people, there are going to be a few butterflies but you push through it anyway; knowing that something could go wrong, but I can work it out. That’s his mindset.”

Wilson’s will to push through was challenged, though, when COVID-19 struck in 2020, less than a year into stepping out on his own. There he was with the rest of the country, trying to figure out his next move. It didn’t take long.

“I was left wondering for just a little while, then it occurred to me that these churches would need to get on line,” Wilson said. 

He volunteered to assist churches that had systems in place and he worked to help others establish the link they needed to stay connected at a time when virtual services became the norm.

Like every other business, Wilson had to pivot with Mega Ace. Government and private sector agencies became his clients, although he set out to focus on events.

The road to building what has become Mega Ace started when Wilson and his friend Kenny Perry began spinning records as KV Disco, following the path that Van was already on. KV Disco played wherever they were called.

Perry planted the nickname Ace on Wilson. DJ Ace became a fixture at The Moon. By 1992, Wilson added photography and graphic designs to his resume. Hence, Mega was added to make the name that has become popular beyond Tallahassee.

The early years that Wilson spent at The Moon set him on a path that led to opportunities. Owner Scott Carswell put Wilson in a position to learn about things digital, video and producing music. He also paved a way for Wilson to try his ambitions in the recording studio where he worked with icons like George Clinton and Luther Campbell.

Wilson grew in areas where others before him had failed, said Carswell.

“People come in here and if they want to go somewhere they do it,” he said. “If they come in here and they don’t want to learn anything; hit the clock and leave then they do that. It’s really easy to see the ones that put the time in and have the aptitude. Vaughn is one of those that came over here and soaked it up.”

Indeed he did and when he was asked by former FAMU president James Ammons to take over as sport information director in 2009, Wilson unleashed his talent.

He moved quickly to create the Rattler Productions, with a multi-media focus on putting out top-notch graphics and interviews with athletes. Wilson’s ability as a producer led to FAMU athletics being featured on Fox Sports, with some games featured on ESPN3.

One of his biggest effort was production of “No Stopppin’ Us,”  a short film featuring the Rattlers winning the first I-AA national football championship in 1978.

When he went to join the athletic department at FAMU, his father, Roosevelt Wilson, had retired as owner/publisher of the Capital Outlook. 

The Wilson brothers had major roles with the paper. Van was responsible for production of the paper, while Vaughn worked as photographer/sports editor and eventually handling advertising sales. 

Both brothers were accustomed to working with their father by then. During the 1970’s when he was sport information director at FAMU, they were there assisting whether it was with the Sports Carnival or on football game days.

By the time the paper was sold to Rev. RB Holmes in 2009, the brothers had made significant changes to the paper, including developing a website and using digital photos.

Being in business means keeping up with the latest trends and equipment, something that Wilson does to effectively handle each production task.

“Vaughn is now a one-stop media shop where he can put together everything,” Carswell said. “He is so good at it.”