We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Vianai Austin. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Vianai below.

Vianai, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

From early in my work career, I spent the majority of my career working in entertainment, marketing and promotions for two companies, Power 106 (the hip hop radio station) and the 99 cents only store (cooperate). My main duties were handling social media channels, scheduling meet and greets, concerts, and making lower lift content. Even though I had a great time in my positions, I still felt like it wasn’t what I was supposed to be doing. It wasn’t my purpose.

In early 2020, right around the beginning of the pandemic, my position with the 99 Cent Only Stores was terminated. Our entire marketing department was let go abruptly. In the midst of all the chaos and shut down, I was feeling heartbroken and hopeless. I had no job, no income, no direction. I kept thinking to myself, “wtf are you gonna do, Vee?” I was so scared and anxious all the time because looking for a job during that time seemed impossible if I wasn’t an essential worker.

Two months go by, and I’m still feeling lost. I call my best friend, Brianna, one day to vent all my issues and to look for some guidance. We get into a really deep conversation about our passions, hobbies, and things that have always sparked our interests. I mention to her about my love for watching cooking videos, cooking in general, and how I always based my school projects around appreciation for culinary. Little did I know, that was the light bulb moment. We continued our conversation with her saying “well, why don’t you try it? I know you love food and you’re talented at cooking. You can really do it!” Now, it’s always been my dream to work for a food network. THE Food Network to be exact. I would watch hours and hours of Iron Chef America, Rachel Ray, and Everyday Italian with my mom. That’s actually where my love for food came from. Watching shows and also just cooking with my family growing up. Food was our love language, So, I still pondered for about a week to really sit on the idea. I thought ‘even though I love food, how am I gonna get through during covid?’ Moving on, I started doing research and I became convinced. I wanted to be a chef. Most culinary schools were closed at the time but luckily I found one open in summer. In the meantime, while I waited till my courses started, I began cooking. Day after day after day, all day everyday, I would test recipes, practice basic cuts, and read my little ass off so I could be as ready as possible for what was next. I also put my social media skills to work and started a foodie instagram page. Once my classes started, I was feeling confident enough in my skills that I couldn’t finally get my business going. Luckily, I had multiple friends who were successful in entrepreneurship to guide me through my venture as well. It helped tremendously. One person created a logo for me, another a website, another a business plan. In that moment everything was making sense. Everything was feeling worth it. The light above was shining.

Towards the end of 2020, the entrepreneur life was getting to me a bit. It’s tough and definitely not for the weak. I was doing fine but was still feeling like I wanted to do something bigger with my culinary career and I wanted something stable. I looked into working at restaurants, looking for mentors, and other catering companies. I was on LinkedIn one day, and came across a position to be a culinary assistant for an entertainment company called Mythical. I did some research on the company and loved their content and noticed they had a kitchen team. I was like ‘wow, this would be great, because I cook and have a background in entertainment’. I applied for this job, went through the interview process over a few days, and eventually got hired. And let me say receiving this job was one of the biggest accomplishments I’ve ever had. No only was I new to the culinary world, but I was getting an opportunity to cook for a huge YouTube Channel. To this day, I’m so grateful I decided to take my leap/risk into the culinary world. It might have been very challenging but worth every penny, every sweat, and every finger slicing from the mandolin (lol) to get to this point. Now, as a culinary producer under Mythical Kitchen and Good Mythical Morning, I’m more confident than ever in my abilities, creativity, and impact on the channel. The universe really works in mysterious ways.

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

I am a chef, culinary producer, and artist. I cook and produce food for two Youtube Channels, Good Mythical Morning and Mythical Kitchen. GMM is hosted by two legendary YouTubers, known as Rhett and Link. I am most proud of helping develop creative recipes for their show. Part of my job is working with a group of producers and writers to create amazing foods for a number of episodes. The other part is making sure any food is warm, safe to consume, and plated well enough for camera. I’m also known for being one of the many faces on-camera for GMM and one of four chefs on-camera for Mythical Kitchen.

I also paint and draw on the side with my own brand called Vía-art. It highlights fun culinary creations, food memories, and popular brands with mediums like pencil on paper and acrylic on canvas, The brand and website with my artwork officially launches January 25, 2025.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Your Worth is Tied to What You Do.

There’s an underlying belief that who we are is defined by what we do—our job, our achievements, or our roles. This can lead to burnout or a feeling of emptiness when we are unable to meet external expectations.

Unlearning this lesson involves recognizing that our worth is intrinsic, not dependent on external factors like career success or approval from others. We are worthy simply because we exist, and our value isn’t tied to our productivity or accomplishments.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative or producer often lies in the deep, intrinsic satisfaction that comes from expressing something uniquely personal and meaningful, and sharing it with others. The outcome always feels worth the struggle.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @vianaiaustin
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vianai-austin-0b23b985/
• Twitter: @vianaiaustin
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mythicalkitchen

Image Credits

Jason Shaltz
Andrea D’Agosto
Katrina Chaput