It's late on a Thursday morning earlier this month in New York and TV news anchor T.J. Holmes has been up since around 4 a.m.
He's appeared on "Good Morning America" and taped the day's episode of "GMA3: What You Need to Know," the hourlong afternoon news program he hosts with Amy Robach. He is now headed home, where he will take show-related Zoom meetings through the afternoon, pick up his 8-year-old daughter, Sabine, from school, help with her homework and do more show prep after dinner.
It's a long grind, but the 43-year-old West Memphis native and University of Arkansas, Fayetteville graduate loves it.
"I get to use my hard news chops and also have some fun," he says.
Surprisingly, a TV news career wasn't on his radar growing up.
"I know people have stories about when they were little they always knew [they wanted to a be a TV journalist], but I was never that kid," he says.
A mass communications class his freshman year at UA changed all of that.
"I got into the live element of TV and realized that I had attributes that went along with broadcasting," he says. "I was curious, I was a pretty good writer and a good communicator."
He started at KSNF in Joplin, Mo., as a producer, reporter and weekend anchor. In 2000, he began a stint at KTHV in Little Rock as a reporter and weekend anchor.
"I loved my time in Little Rock," he says.
In 2003, Holmes moved to KNTV in the San Francisco Bay Area, then in 2006 joined CNN as a news anchor and correspondent. He was hired by BET in 2011 and hosted the original series "Don't Sleep." From there, he worked at MSNBC, then joined ABC News in 2014, filing reports for "Good Morning America," among other duties.
Holmes, who has been married to Marilee for 10 years, has reported on two Olympics, the 2016 inauguration, presidential debates, the Democratic convention, five Super Bowls, NBA Finals, World Series and other major events.
"I've been lucky to get the call when a lot of big stuff takes place," he says.
In September, Holmes was named co-host of "GMA3: What You Need to Know." The program airs here at noon weekdays.
The chemistry he shares with Robach and ABC News' chief medical correspondent, Dr. Jennifer Ashton, on the show is evident.
"These are two of my closest friends in New York," he says. "We have gone through hell together and all kinds of life events with each other. I go to them for all kinds of life advice, and vice versa."
Holmes sounds perfectly happy with where he is.
"You work hard, you treat people right and things work out," he says. "I've been impatient, don't get me wrong, but everything had to happen exactly how it happened for me to be where I am now. I'm in a dream job."
email: sclancy@adgnewsroom.com