In the gym by 5
My alarm goes off at 4:30, and by 5:00 I’m in the gym. HYROX training keeps it honest, for when an easy workout feels too easy. It’s the quiet hour before the phone starts ringing, and it sets the tone for the whole day.
Gulf Coast living, real estate and the music of Franky Cherry.
I grew up in Alabama, where music was always part of life. Somewhere along the way, I developed a love for the water, sunshine and adventure that eventually brought me to Florida’s beautiful Gulf Coast, a place I’m fortunate enough to call home.
Today, I’m a local real estate broker specializing in luxury waterfront homes and the Gulf Coast lifestyle throughout St. Petersburg, Clearwater Beach and the surrounding communities. I spend my professional days helping people discover the same coastal lifestyle I’ve come to love.
But there’s another side of me that has little to do with real estate.
Franky Cherry is where my imagination, personal experiences and love of music come together. The sound is big band, California surf rock and reggae, mixed with a little 2026 EDM. I write original songs about life, love, romance, friendships and the unforgettable characters we meet along the way.
Some songs are inspired by real adventures, others are entirely fictional, and a few fall somewhere in between. With a little help from modern music technology and AI-assisted production, I turn those stories and lyrics into music that blends vintage charm with a modern beat.
The music started long before Franky. As a teenager I worked as a DJ at WBHY Christian Radio, where I learned my way around sound boards and musical instruments, found my speaking voice, and picked up a bit of professional mixing. Today it’s just a hobby, and with the advent of AI it’s a whole lot simpler to produce.
When I’m not working or writing music, you’ll probably find me running along the waterfront at sunrise, paddleboarding with friends in Tampa Bay, cruising aboard my Regal, enjoying Clearwater Beach, or exploring the restaurants and nightlife of downtown St. Pete.
This website isn’t my professional real estate page. It’s simply a place to share the things I enjoy, the adventures that inspire me, the music I create, and a little of what makes life on Florida’s Gulf Coast so special.
Welcome to my world, where waterfront living meets a little swing, a little sunshine and a whole lot of stories.
Life provides the stories.
Franky Cherry provides the soundtrack.
My alarm goes off at 4:30, and by 5:00 I’m in the gym. HYROX training keeps it honest, for when an easy workout feels too easy. It’s the quiet hour before the phone starts ringing, and it sets the tone for the whole day.
By 8:00 I’ve traded gym clothes for a blazer. I’m a real estate broker with Coldwell Banker Realty, and I spend my workdays helping people buy and sell luxury waterfront and coastal homes from Downtown St. Petersburg to Clearwater Beach.
I also have a team of people supporting my clients, handling showings, listings and services, so nothing waits on me being at a desk. Whether I’m on a run, on the boat or up in the plane, I’m always just a phone call away: 727-944-8888.
It doesn’t feel like a separate life. Everything on this page, from the boat to the run club to the sandbars, is the lifestyle my clients are moving here for, and I get to show it to them firsthand.
By 6:30 the work phone goes quiet and it’s all play: beach volleyball until the light goes orange, with island and reggae playing, the kind that sounds like 90s Chili Peppers on a Saturday. Other nights it’s pickleball, a game I picked up from scratch and still can’t stop playing.
When I’m not on the sand or the court, it’s Pinellas Run Club, a pack of us running the downtown waterfront in the evening, or a paddle with St. Pete SUP and the Florida Paddle Tribe. Some of my best friends started as the person running next to me. Either way the evening ends the same: a drink, a good friend or a good date, and the sun going down into the Gulf.
Weekends are all play, and they start in the air. When the wind is right I trade four wheels for wings. I fly a Light Sport Cruiser as a Sport Pilot, and Tampa Bay from the air puts everything in perspective: the bridges, the sandbars, every spot I’ve ever dropped anchor.
The afternoon belongs to the boat. I drop the Regal off the lift, load up whoever’s around, and head for a sandbar. Music on, cooler full, nowhere to be. If you’ve been out with me, there’s a good chance you’re in the photos.
The newest thing on the list. Once the boat is out, it’s my turn behind it, learning to drop the rope and ride the wake. I’m still a beginner, and that’s half the fun.
The soundtrack is mine too: California Corvette (EDM) by Franky Cherry, timed so the drop hits right as I settle into the wave.
The day ends with headphones on and a new song taking shape, the same way it did back in my WBHY radio days, only a whole lot easier now. Franky Cherry was my grandfather’s name, and the music carries on our family’s Mobile musical legacy. A lot of these songs start on days just like this one. Hear a few of them below ↓
Although my songs are technically works of fiction, most are inspired by real-life experiences, with a little imagination and creative storytelling mixed in. But California Corvette? This one is about as close to the real thing as it gets!
The beautiful blonde on the album cover is my very real friend and model, Anna, who’s in her early twenties. And that gorgeous red convertible? That’s my very real C8 Corvette! But while the cover features a modern-day beauty and my current ride, the story behind the song takes us back nearly twenty years to a very different Corvette, a different girl, and an unforgettable chapter of my life.
It was the mid-2000s, and I was in my mid-twenties, living it up along California’s breathtaking Central Coast.
Those were the days of hanging out in Carmel-by-the-Sea, exploring Big Sur, running with the local surf crowd, and cruising the legendary Pacific Coast Highway with a beautiful girlfriend by my side. The ocean, the winding coastal roads, the sunshine, and the carefree California lifestyle weren’t just lyrics. That was my life!
And yes, the Corvette was real, too! Back then, I drove a manual-transmission C5 Z06 Corvette. The only little creative liberty? My Z06 was a hardtop, not a convertible. But when I wanted the wind in my hair and the California sunshine overhead, I’d trade the Corvette for my little 06 MX-5 convertible. Depending on the day, either car could be found winding its way along Highway 1.
Fast-forward to 2026, and some things haven’t changed all that much. There’s still a red Corvette in my driveway, still a beautiful coastline to explore, still a gorgeous blonde in her early twenties riding shotgun, and still a little rock ’n’ roll in my soul. Only now, it’s Florida’s Gulf Coast instead of California’s Pacific Coast, and my drop-top C8 Corvette has taken the place of that old Z06.
Different coast, different Corvette, different blonde—but the same carefree spirit that made those California days unforgettable!
And while Anna wasn’t part of those California adventures, she’s a close friend today and the beautiful young woman who helped bring those memories back to life on the album cover. Sometimes the best way to tell an old story is with a fresh face, a new set of wheels, and a little imagination.
The California coast was real. The cars were real. The girl was real. And the memories? They’re just as vivid nearly twenty years later.
California Corvette is my little musical time machine back to those unforgettable days of youth, freedom, beautiful women, fast cars, and the open California coast—all wrapped up in a little 1960s-inspired rock ’n’ roll.
And a special shout-out to Jeanette, wherever you are! Some memories are simply too good not to turn into a song.
— Franky Cherry 🎙️
Two songs for the paddle crew: St. Pete SUP and Paddle St. Pete. Same pier, same sunsets, same friends.
A special shout-out to Will, Patterson and the entire St. Pete SUP crew! You’ve created something truly special for all of us, bringing those Cali vibes to Florida’s coastline. These songs are my gift to you!
Every so often the Gulf boy in me heads for the hills. The Torch Red Corvette has run the Tail of the Dragon with the Fast Life Rally crew, which is 318 curves in 11 miles, and it never gets old.
Some trips it’s a convertible Mustang instead, top down on a back road with old country turned all the way up. That’s the Alabama in me. I’ll admit I get a little crazy-fun out there, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Downtown St. Pete, coffee in hand.
The best sunset on the coast. No argument.
Walk it, eat on it, watch the boats come in.
By boat, the only real way to get there.
Early beach before the crowds.
Dinner, live music, then wherever the night goes.