We were lucky to catch up with Yanel Rivera recently and have shared our conversation below.
Yanel, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
Abbysoul Productions was first founded in 2017 to create strategic management services for artists, creatives and businesses to be able to build resources and access services to others who need a middle man like us to help get the job done along with showcasing artistry, business, music, brands and resources. Our mission at Abbysoul Productions is to provide women and men the confidence and support they need to succeed in both their personal and professional lives.
The first major project was building Women Speak Up which is a non-profit that helps women get connected with services that help their business grow, donating to causes wrapped around helping research health issues in women, creating internships and job roles along with hosting our special annual event that we have been successfully running for the past 5 years. Its a meaningful event for us because we’ve connected with 100s of people over the last couple years and have raised over $2,000 in organic funds. There’s many women around the world that do not get to shine and we want women to feel safe, heard and valued as they accomplish what they need to reach their purpose.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
I’m 27 years old and I was born and raised in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. I have helped out in my community for the past 10 years and have worn multiple hats. I have been apart of holding the annual Autism Awareness events in my town, mentored students and was teacher for 6 years before going to into the Media and Communications field where I really fell in love with the idea of curating an idea and making it come to life but prior to even starting my career, I was always creative and musical. I’ve been around music and media industry people during my teenage years and learned what it took to take your passion to the next level being surrounded by like-minded people.
Growing up I was forced to become an adult and always struggled with my home life but I thrived in my work life in so many ways, When I stopped being a teacher in 2017 I wanted to fully focus on my degree and work in the Media and Public Relations industry. I was a Digital Media Manager while launching my first Women Speak Up event in 2018. By the second year in 2019, there were so many people in attendance that nobody had a place to sit and it was a full house. It was one of the most rewarding feelings because I made over $1,842 in sales from tickets alone. I gave back to Women’s Health services in New Jersey. This year we chose Magee – Women’s Research Institute and Foundation. Each year we hope that we can earn more and more to help women globally in any way we can. I graduated with a bachelors in Public Relations and Media at Kean University and in hopes with my knowledge, I can teach and pass the torch to interns to help interns understand how marketing can help grow online businesses.
Abbysoul Productions has a much wider focus, we help both men and women in 4 different ways:
– Create events like Women Speak Up, Fellas with Soul and other emerging events in 2023.
– Connecting businesses with freelance creatives.
– Developing PR proposals for clients/businesses to help expand their business/brand.
– Create college credit internships that have worked with schools like Kean University and Temple University while allowing them to help build our brand and create content for our website, social media platforms and blogs.
I’m most proud of being able to connect with women in a natural way. I know that being liked is not important in every day life but in business, sometimes people force themselves to be liked. I want my business to reflect who I am just as much as the work I do. Ive been rewarded with so many wonderful connections and people who trust the work we do along with what we give back to the community time and time again. I want to continue to build and we have an open global campaign going on in hopes that others can donate to our foundation as well. I am a Social Media Specialist for 3 major brands like Beach Camera, Buy Dig and Deco Gear while running my creative duties for Women Speak Up and holding my position as Human Resource Director at Abbysoul Productions while letting a team of almost 10 of us to help manage the day to day while I train myself and find more ways to make money and expand my business.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
This may come as a shock, but I began to start learning and using LinkedIN as a resource in 2020. It helped me build more of my business along with helping me get connected to the right people who were just as passionate as me. I wish someone pushed me to used it more in the past and it’s not often used by people around me so im now the one who says ” Go to linkedIN and I promise you will find what you’re looking for. I also wish that was exposed to a little more workshops throughout my journey, I was working full time, running a business full time and going to school full time and in so many ways it was enlightening to learn so much on a work cultured based platform.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
When I first started the Women Speak Up event, which essentially was the starting stone to my business, I said one thing:
“Using your heart and mind at the same time” it was meant to remind women that you can do it all when you put those things. I’ve given many women a space to perform their music. poetry, showcase their business and allowing a host to step in and lead the crowd and I want people who value authenticity over ego. There’s no room for anyone to dim someone else’s light at the Women Speak up, instead everyone leaves feeling more supported and inspired the moment they walk out the door. This year was a challenging year with rebranding and removing people, places and things that may not have lived by those values and while enforcing that, it taught me more about myself and the work I want to continue to do to make sure I am manifesting resources and services for others,
Contact Info:
- Website: www.abbysoulproductions.com
- Instagram: @abbysoulproductions @abbys0ul_
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abbysoulproductions
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/abbysoulproductionss/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@abbysoulproductions
- Other: To book appointments and schedule consultations: https://abbysoulproductions.as.me/ To personally connect with me, Yanel Rivera https://www.linkedin.com/in/yanelrivera
Image Credits
The photographer in the photo is @nicholemariephotos on Instagram.