We were lucky to catch up with Helen Blondel recently and have shared our conversation below.

Helen, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Has your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?

As a professional singer, belly dancer, and content creator on social media, my career has constantly been misunderstood and mischaracterized. Over the past few years, I’ve obtained over 700,000 followers organically across Instagram and TikTok, mostly making content surrounding either my music or dance.

Many people think being an “influencer” is easy, but it’s actually very difficult especially if you’re self-managed. I do the work of a social media manager, planner, agent, choreographer, financial planner, brand ambassador, and artist, all-in-one. Getting a viral video isn’t just about making a good quality video with a trending sound. It’s about making several hundreds of videos and EXPECTING them to flop, having the tenacity to keep going until one finally gets a lot of views. Then from there, keeping up with the trends while staying true to yourself, your integrity, and your brand. Self-managed content creators typically spend hours upon hours just making content, THEN editing, THEN responding to emails regarding brand deals which is usually where a large chunk of revenue comes in.

As a singer and belly dancer, people often think it’s just dancing & singing around in a pretty costume, but again, so much of my career is behing-the-scenes, away from the stage lights and camera. There’s no one telling you what you gotta do. You just have to figure it out and on days where you’re not “feeling it,” you still gotta push through because this isn’t just a hobby. It’s your career. The difference between success and stagnance is your discipline during times where not doing the hard thing is the more attractive option.

I’ve been doing this my whole life and have only really started seeing the fruits of my labor in the more recent years. There’s no such thing as overnight success or luck for most of us independent creatives. It really is just hard work paying off.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a belly dancing and singing recording artist & content creator whose goal is to show everyone out there that they can sparkle no matter what their passion or career in life is. I first started singing in elementary school and participating in vocal competitions, then in high school I fell in love with the beautiful art of belly dance as I saw it being performed in my school. I’ve always fused my love for both art forms where it has led me to appear as a dancer on Univision and as a backup singer for artists like Robin Thicke, Shaggy, Olivia Holt, & more on ABC & Disney Channel. I now have original music out on Spotify, Apple Music, & all other music platforms.

I’m also the author of Belly Dance Business 101, have an online belly dance course out, and more music on the way. You can access my music, course, book, & more at the link in my Social Media bio on TikTok & Instagram.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

The best thing society can do to support artists & creatives is to invest in their work. We spend our money on major brands every day. It’s important to have that same energy for your friend who sells art or runs a small business that thrives off of their creativity. Another great way to support if you can’t invest, is to simply recommend and shout out your artist friends on social media. Up until now, the most effective form of marketing is still word of mouth.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is that I get to express myself in a way where it can be collectively shared– through my music. It is such a beautiful feeling to see others dance on the songs I wrote from the bottom of my heart, and be told they can relate to it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://tiktok.com/@helensingerdancer
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/helensingerdancer
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/officialhelenblondel
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@helensingerdancer
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/helen-blondel
• Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1k8mZjrDBT3ZhLX7hZiWKD?si=MEseAZyPTK6To6fXk326jQ