Meet Kimberly Greenwell, Host of ‘My Southern Home’
Now in its 20th season, Nashvillian Kimberly Greenwell's TV show — 'My Southern Home' — is all about bringing dream spaces to life. Image: Kimberly Greenwell
With a lifelong passion for media and homes, Kimberly Greenwell has built a career that blends both. She’s a home expert, realtor, and the host of My Southern Home. Now in its 20th season, her Nashville-based TV show educates and inspires viewers to create their dream spaces. Get to know this powerhouse FACE of the South!
You have a lot going on! How would you describe yourself in a few sentences?
That is a hard question; there are two sides to every coin. Everyone’s a little different from nine to five than they are with friends. I hope people find me friendly, open, and helpful in both environments.
Giving is part of my love language. I love sharing my home with friends and family, cooking for them, and using my favorite glassware and platters. It is my happy place!
Tell us about the path that led to My Southern Home.
My path has led me directly (and sometimes indirectly) to where I needed to be, like little stepping stones. When I started my own business, one of my first clients was the Home Builders Association of Louisville. It wasn’t until this moment that I realized how much I loved homes — everything about them, from footers and framing to the finished and staged design.
I was the publicist for all of their consumer-driven events. In 2015, a local television station asked me to host and produce a local television home show. At that moment, an old love and a new love joined: broadcast television and homes. My life hasn’t been the same since.
What’s your favorite thing about hosting the show?
My favorite part about what I do is helping people! Once, I was at a restaurant with a girlfriend, and a viewer came up to me and shared how thankful she was. She was remodeling her home, and I helped her find the right contractors and figure out what she wanted in her kitchen. That is my “why,” and my goal with every show is to educate and inspire on everything “home.”
What’s the most challenging aspect of what you do?
I’m the executive producer and host of the show, so part of my duties as the executive producer is to schedule and organize the shoots for the spring and fall seasons. I manage the entire schedule, from the topics to where and who we are taping.
For seven years, we produced 48 to 50 episodes a year and traveled back and forth between Louisville and Nashville. It was grueling and a lot to keep up with. Now, we produce half the episodes in just Nashville, and it feels like a breeze.
What are you working on or excited about right now?
I am really proud of the My Southern Home Tour of Homes. For two years, I have organized a scatter-site new construction home tour. The homes are all over Middle Tennessee and in various price ranges.
Homeownership looks different to everyone and starts at different price ranges. That is why I have townhomes and single-family homes that people can tour at various price ranges. I have already started working on next year.
What do you like to do outside of work?
I love hanging out with friends, volunteering, exploring Nashville, and spending time with my dog, Bailey.
What’s one thing you want people to know about you?
Sometimes, people get intimidated by the fact that I’m in a lot of luxury homes and think I have certain expectations of what a home should look like. But I wish they knew that for over 20 years, I lived in a one-bedroom condo that I bought in my twenties, working at WAVE 3-TV. I loved my condo; it was home, and I made it home by filling it with items that brought me joy.
A person’s home should bring them joy and make them feel safe; it doesn’t matter what the square footage is or the thread count of the sheets. It is all about the feeling it gives you.
What’s your favorite piece of advice for folks who are building or remodeling?
Be authentically you. If you want a purple kitchen, paint it purple. If you want a small home, get a small home. Don’t design your home or your life around what others think. It is your home and your life, so create the home and life you want.
What is your proudest accomplishment?
People thought I would fall “flat on my face” when I started My Southern Home in 2017. In 2021, I had not one, but four television shows. More than one person said downsizing to Nashville would be my biggest mistake. I work one-on-one with buyers to find their dream homes, have two successful home tours under my belt, and have a social life. I am helping more people one-on-one and love the life I am building here.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
My boss, Nick Ulmer, the General Manager at WAVE 3-TV, always told me, “You don’t get 100% of the things you don’t ask for.” I left WAVE 3-TV in 2007, and I say this to myself every time I’m scared to pursue something. You will never regret going after something and falling short, but you will always regret the what-if that comes with not going after a dream.
Aside from faith, family, and friends, name three things you can’t live without.
First is my dog Bailey. He is a three-year-old Morkie, and I can’t imagine life without him. This second one might sound odd, but downtime. I need time to myself to unwind and recharge. And I love adventure! I love weekend getaways to places I have never been to and experiencing new things.
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Lennie Omalza
Originally from Hawaii, Lennie Omalza is a Louisville-based freelance writer of over 18 years. Lennie is a yoga-loving foodie who travels as often as she can and enjoys writing about food, homes, and weddings. You can find more of Lennie's work at Eater, Hawaii Home & Remodeling, and The Louisville Courier-Journal.