Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Shea Diamond. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Shea, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you feel you or your work has ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized? If so, tell us the story and how/why it happened and if there are any interesting learnings or insights you took from the experience?
As a young person I’ve always dreamed of being on stage, performing for millions of people. The only difference between my dreams and the dreams of every other red blooded American is that I’m a Trans woman that dared to dream in a world that deems people like me as something in society that is wrong and needs to be corrected, music in my mind’s eye is something spiritual, deeply connecting with the ability to change hearts and minds, when people listen to music they become deeply invested in the personal lives of the musician. I believe that my music and it’s powerful universal message gets lost in translation when people realize that their favorite song was written or sung by a Trans woman. Which by societal norms and the Transphobic powers that be deems to erase, minimize or demonize. At the end of the day you start to realize. She never even had a chance! Determined to succeed you keep dreaming as you’re reminded how many people are vested in your failure not because you’re not talented but because of what you represent they feel compelled to make it impossible for you to win. Because if people like me win, every underdog stands a chance of succeeding no matter how you identify!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Unlike most artist that had a support system, i found myself incarcerated in prison, it was there that i began to reclaim my life, thinking my life was over before i even got the chance to live, i began writing songs, while others in my position would go to yard, talk on the phone to family, play basketball or workout i found myself writing songs, changing my name, sending my songs to the library of congress and dreaming of a future i was told my whole life i could have, I’ve adopted a dreams never die, people do attitude, I decided that once i get out of prison i would reclaim my life and my dreams! Release was hard as realized i was alone. There was no support system and the world i knew turned their backs on me, i stayed focused, took everything that was set against in stride, what did i have to lose? I had nothing and no one, I left everything i knew and set out to venture the big bad world. I moved from Michigan to Newyork to pursue my dreams of being a musician. It wasn’t easy, i got distracted by the promise of love and commitment only to be broke and broken hearted. It was at my lowest point i received an email from one of the greatest writers in the world Justin Tranter who in this email sought to record one of the songs i wrote in prison called “I AM HER” not really convinced that this wasn’t a horrible hoax( cause good things don’t usually happen to good people) he invited me to come to Los Angeles to record the song, he had so much faith in me at that time, he created a label on my behalf that i was signed to and he was also the reason i was signed to a major label. As a black Trans woman i was in complete awe that maybe it was possible to succeed in a world that was determined to see me fail. What sets me apart from the rest is that when everyone i loved gave up on me, i found the courage not to give up on myself, In my life there was so much pressure put on me that if i was glass i would’ve shattered many times over, life started life-ing. I never knew what it was like to have people show up for me, music changed that, I’ll never be one of the chosen ones and that’s okay with me, i made it this far and that’s further than anyone gave me credit for, I make history everyday I wake up and dare to dream bigger than my circumstances. If I inspired At least one person, I’ve inspired someone that will eventually inspire others, if I empower one , they will empower someone else. There is no one quite like me. My story is wrapped up in my music, when you look back 20 years from now, you may have to dig through the trendy music to find that classic sound that spoke truth to power and was a staple to what was happening at that time, you’ll hear the free cries and the message of love and hope.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I feel like the most reward aspect of being an artist is that i get to inspire others that thought they were too different to succeed! When young kids that have been broken by their circumstances and environments contact me saying they wanted to be like me or that i inspired them to pursue their dream or live their truth, i know that my 15 minutes of fame is creating a world where those of us that aren’t the chosen ones get to not only dream but see those dreams come into fruition.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
In my opinion the best way to build your audience on social media is to be true to who you are and stay focused on your brand! Share not only your successes but also your failures, people want to connect with you not some false narrative that you think is more digestible. I sought out to allow my audience to experience me, the ups and downs and all the in-betweens. Reminding myself that i didn’t letter audiencehave to be serious all the time, i could show my silly side, business side and sexy side at the same time! I stopped focusing on likes and comments and started to focus on posting the chapters of my life and livelihood. People that have been watching you will see you grow not only on social media but also in real life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sheadiamond.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamsheadiamond?igsh=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iamsheadiamond?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shea-diamondllc-0676a06b?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
- Twitter: https://x.com/iamsheadiamond/status/1706466059908501682?s=46
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@iamsheadiamond?si=dYBfYPk3VMvL0A4G
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5blcro89qJueGv0DGQ2rsH?si=ytUiZSlwQHGsEpTJoFuSmw
https://www.tiktok.com/@iamsheadiamond?_t=8nBwNi78KUc&_r=1
