Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to LaShanna Price Tripp. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
LaShanna, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. One of our favorite things to hear about is stories around the nicest thing someone has done for someone else – what’s the nicest thing someone has ever done for you?
I can recall when I was about 36 years old, my husband and I had just been evicted from a rental property owned by a woman I was working for. She ran a non-profit and one day, out of the blue, decided to cancel a contract she was tired of filing reports on, not realizing it was the only contract that financed my position.
Our eldest daughter was just one year old at the time, and the day we had to be moved out of the home, we discovered we were pregnant with our now 14-year-old son. Fast forward a month or so, and we ended up staying at an Intown Suites, where we had to pay for the room every Friday.
One Thursday, realizing we didn’t have any money to pay for the room the next day, and would have to leave. We had no idea what we were going to do to pay for it the next day. My husband left, I cannot remember for what, and I was sitting on the edge of the bed holding our daughter. I suddenly became so overwhelmed and just began crying and praying, asking God to provide for us. I can remember just rocking her to sleep, holding her tightly to my chest, just rocking her back and forth.
Maybe 30 minutes later or so, I was checking my email and had an email from my good friend, Tracy Windley This sister has been such a warrior for her own children as a single mom, a war veteran, and a fellow New Yorker. I cannot count how many times this woman has blessed us and our children.
But this time, it was extremely different. She had emailed and simply said she had tried to call because she needed to do something, but I could reach out to her tomorrow.
The next morning, still uncertain of what we were going to do, I called her and she said she needed us to come see her. We were hoping nothing was wrong, so we headed her way and were just fellowshipping with her. When we were wrapping up, she suddenly placed some cash in my hands, about $500, and an envelope, and my heart jumped. She began saying that God told her to bless us, and she was just being obedient. She also told me to wait until I left to open the card. I immediately heard God tell me to pray over her, so we held hands and I began praying for her.
When we left, we opened the card she had given us, and there was a check for another $500. My memory is slightly fuzzy, and it may take Tracy and my husband to remember the exact totals. All I could remember was that it was over and above what we needed to cover the room for the next week, and allow us to eat. What I DO remember most is that at the time Tracy had emailed me, was the time I had been sitting on the edge of that bed praying for God to make a way out of no way, and He did exceedingly abundantly above what I asked for or thought He would!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is LaShanna, and I’m an actor, director, and producer, to cover everything that I do! I was able to begin working in the entertainment industry after taking a drama class at Bethune-Cookman College to study under the late Demetrius Wharton, who allowed me to explore so many aspects of my talents. After graduation, I struggled to pass the GRE to get into a Master’s program to pursue studies in film and television, not realizing that I suffered from test anxiety. So my mother encouraged me to look into Samford University’s undergraduate program in theatre. After meeting with the chair and auditioning, I was able to apply with loans and scholarships. From there, I worked in various summer stock theatre companies as a publicist, performer, and props designer.
I have previously helped artists discover ways to scale their brands into the community through specific outreach initiatives or promotions that they have not considered. In addition, I have provided production management for producers presenting live events who need logistical support and a strong hand to supervise multiple groups of people at one time.
However, I am currently continuing to scale my arts education skills into online program design as well as in-person training as a teaching artist. God is calling me to focus on education and training our young people in their reading, public speaking and performing arts efforts.
Have you ever had to pivot?
Where do I begin…I am pivoting even now! After being in this industry for nearly 25 years, I am learning that resiliency is crucial to survival.
The benefit I had following my studies at Samford was to take on an internship with an advertising agency and work under the world’s best boss, the late Michael Thomas Murphy, the most intuitive production supervisor, Giannina Stephens, and the incredible Luckie & Company family. The company leaders gave everyone a get-started package that included a copy of the book, “Who Moved My Cheese?” by Spencer Johnson. That book is one of the best gifts a company can give its new employees, because it taught me lessons and strategies I have had to apply to my life.
Everyone had to evolve during the pandemic, and that was the time I began tutoring online, and I absolutely loved it! Now, I have learned how to develop and design original programs with learning goals to instruct online, but do them on my terms while integrating varying components to diversify learning and increase engagement.
Although I love performing, there was a different calling God had for me because I didn’t achieve the level of success I had hoped. The resources and connections were available, and I competed for the artist grants that I was eligible for. And I have learned that what is for you is for you. So when the kids began coming and we endured so much loss during their early years, we always had to pivot to make ends meet and just trust God.
At this point in life, my desire is simple: to do what I am called to do and make an impact on our youth and others in my community. With that is my pivot towards content creation over the last year. So I’ve been learning to utilize those online platforms to connect with others, market my programs, and grow them exponentially over the course of the coming year.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
This is a timeless question, because most Birmingham artists do not receive respect financially in our city. Many show producers will request an artist to perform for free or offer an honorarium that barely covers gas, but expect that artist to arrive two hours before their set or performance and drive over 30 minutes to get there.
It has taken great organizations like Create Birmingham to bring artists and creative entrepreneurs under their wings to show them how to thrive economically. However, there remains a wide gap in the pay structure and what people value when it comes to creatives and the talent they provide, especially if they reside within the city. But that artist can go outside of Alabama and be paid twice as much and respected more than they are within the city limits.
I’m unsure if there could be a national pay standard for artists, but wouldn’t it be grand to have a pay rate sheet for artists across the board based on experience and training? If that is too far-fetched, we could at least begin with respecting every artist and their craft and not expect them to perform or provide their skill for free. From there, we can learn to value their time spent working to develop their craft as any other person would in their area of expertise.
At the end of it all, it’s about respect and value, and we must hold others to a standard. Even the artist must value and honor their gift enough to be resolute in what they will and will not accept if others are unwilling to honor their gifts.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.wordzandrhythmz.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sassieshanna
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lashanna.tripp/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lashanna-r-tripp-62b53b1/
- Twitter: https://x.com/SassieTripp
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MrsTrippBeTrippin
- Other: Outschool.com:
https://outschool.com/teachers/La-Shanna-R-Tripp?signup=true&usid=yjIsSvAr&utm_campaign=share_invite_link&fbclid=IwY2xjawK66o9leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFFQzJPcktIbXpEcENKczRSAR4qvWZL8XnC6FWwu-F19i6311_5Q0J2V0F-W1Y0yqOhmTGxegFv6mwGEX_4hA_aem_HYba3kNzOeQjK-7_D5MD-w
Image Credits
Copyright LaShanna R. Tripp