We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Maya Rose Phillips a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Maya Rose , appreciate you joining us today. Can you take us back in time to the first dollar you earned as a creative – how did it happen? What’s the story?
The first rime I earned monetary value and generated revenue from my content creating, was from a natural hair business who saw one of my viral Instagram videos. It was the first time anyone reached out to me for paid promotions and it was exciting! I felt so blessed representing their brand as a natural hair enthusiast & content creator. Then I began to receive monetary donations from Instagram reel videos. I felt so empowered, blessed, and honored. Being a public figure, content creator, and brand ambassador, can be very rewarding. The monetary revenue, networking, & opportunities are motivating to keep creating new content. This is a lifestyle I embraced after unintentionally going viral for my natural hair and I’ve been able to connect with others internationally also. I’m excited to work with more brands, businesses, and companies in the future.
Maya Rose , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I got into the natural hair, brand ambassador, influencer, and content creator community when I first cut my hair in 2018. After dealing with an overwhelming amount of stress in law school, I decided to change my life in more ways than one. My hair wasn’t getting the TLC it needed and was damaged. I decided to do a “big chop” and realized my natural curl pattern is wavy/curly. After posting a video of my new hair style, unknowingly my Instagram went viral and I gained 4,000+ followers in overnight. I want potential followers and fans to know, that I am the “Rose that Grew from Concrete”. Therefore, I am not a traditional flower that grows naturally. Instead, I am a unique plant that never stops growing internally and blooms effortlessly in any environment whether negative/positive experiences. I am a master of many special gems so there will always be multiple content areas I can create from. The variety of elegant complexity in my personality allows me to have many different passions in life, including being a content creator/brand ambassador.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative is being able to connect with people all over the world. I’ve received messages where people are telling me how much I’ve inspired them or how they would love to meet me in person one day. I’ve networked with businesses and individuals in countries I’ve never visited before due to the power of social media. By being a content creator, natural hair enthusiast, & brand ambassador, I’ve received so many opportunity that inspire me to keep going. I’ve had young women and girls tell me that they look up to me, that within itself is truly rewarding!
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
I think non-creatives may struggle to understand how important time management is for content creators. I’m a brand ambassador influencer, that has over 10k followers & wants to continue growing over the next year. I’m an educator, administrative assistant, pageant titleholder, public figure, public speaker, and an advocate for Human Trafficking Prevention. I juggle so many things day to day that at times I’m too busy to create new content. By setting a schedule & having a plan, time management can be balanced as a content creator. My YouTube audience enjoys my videos, but they are not always consistent as I struggled with time management at one point. Once I mastered how to balance everything, I realized that organizing content weeks ahead is fundamental. I’m excited for 2023 & all of the new content I’ll be creating & new followers I’ll connect with.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/mayarosephillips
- Instagram: instagram.com/mayarosephillips
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maya.r.phillips
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MayaRosePhillips
- Other: Mornings With Maya Show Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/3uppfsUxbZSWnZEQAP2sk8?si=jXP8RH0CRJSov-evP0YXrA&dl_branch=1
Image Credits
Photographer Dexter “Scrill” Davis IG: @scrilldavis