We were lucky to catch up with  Spotlight Shanell recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Spotlight, thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

Since I was in elementary school, I knew I always wanted to be on TV or at least become famous. I always did the morning announcements, recited lines from movies around the house, etc. I have an extremely outgoing personality and feel like it was made for more than any old regular 9-5 job. I’ve always wanted to be in a field where I can be myself, make people laugh and show my personality. When I first moved away from home to attend college in 2017, I initially decided I was going to study Criminal Justice. That was my second passion. As I got older, I felt like my dream of becoming a star was too common and was something majority of the world wanted to do. I thought I should do something “more realistic” instead of wasting my time. One day right before my second semester, I went to go meet with my advisor to pick my classes and she asked me what did I want to be in life. I told her I always wanted to be on TV as an actress, have my own show, or something along those lines, but I wasn’t confident that it would actually happen so I’m going to get my degree in Criminal Justice instead. The advisor assured me that anything was possible and that I shouldn’t doubt myself. She told me if I wanted to be on television that I should be studying Broadcast Journalism instead of Criminal Justice. “If you don’t at least try and just let the opportunity pass you by, you’re going to always wonder “what if?””. That day, I changed my major to broadcast journalism.

I’ve always been pretty good with editing and creating content. Once I got to journalism school at Florida A&M University, I became a radio personality for 90.5: The Flava Station. That’s how I got started in the media personality and entertainment industry. Once I graduated and could no longer be on student radio, I turned my radio show into a recorded, in-studio show where I interview celebrities and musicians the same way I did on the radio. Instead this time, it was in front of a camera. The name of my show is called The Real Spill With Spotlight Shanell and it’s honestly one of the best things that’s ever happened to me. I got the opportunity to meet so many artists, get great advice from their management teams, attend star studded events and the list goes on. I liked for my interviews to be more so about getting to know the artist on a more personal level; giving their fans more insight on who they are as a person while still talking about their careers, music, and so on. Because I’m such an outgoing and bubbly person, I like for my guest to feel the same way on my show when they come. That way they’re more comfortable with speaking and being themselves. I think what sets me apart from other that does the same thing I do is that I always have the artist/ celebrity best interest at heart. Most celebrities hate interviews because if they say one small thing wrong, it could completely taint their image. Most interviewers go for the messy, drama filled interviews because that’s what society wants to see. But I never want my guest to have a bad rep after leaving my show. So during the editing process, I always go through and remove clips that’ll paint them in a bad light. If they have a great experience with me, they’re more likely to come back and it’ll make more artists comfortable with interviewing with me as well. I’ prefer longevity over a viral moment.

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

One of the most rewarding aspects of being a creative is the feedback I receive from people all over the world. I have supporters in completely different countries and I’m so grateful. I’ve never imagined this for myself. People comment on my videos or send me messages telling me how my videos of my brother and I make them laugh, helps them fight depression, help them smile when they’re having a bad day or just simply brings them joy. That’s the best feeling in the world. They’re so sweet and leave me all kinds of amazing feedback every day. Our (my brother Rodrigo and I) supporters are called The R.S. Mafia. They’re the reason why I keep going. Shoutout to them!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Growing up. I didn’t have the best childhood. I was extremely depressed most years of my life. I began running away from home at 15 because of things I was suffering from and dealing with in my household. For a long time, I hated my life. I hated waking up in the mornings. I hated knowing that tomorrow another day was coming and it was going to be miserable. It got so bad at one point, I attempted to take my own life. By the grace of God, I’m still here today. I thank God for saving me because had he not, I would have never knew the life he had waiting for me today. People look at me and just assume I was born with a silver spoon but I literally had to work my butt off for every single thing I had. I started working and paying my phone bill at 15-16 years old. After 16, I had no help from my parents. I lived with my Auntie Nikki until I left for college when I was 19 years old. When I left for college. I barely had anything to my name and only about $600. Today, I have almost everything I’ve ever dreamed of. Tough times don’t last forever but you have to push through them. With faith, strength and God, I was able to get through mine and I’m so thankful.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.k-shanell.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/spotlight.shanell?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/spotlight.shanell7?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/TheRealShanelll
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@SpotlightTV-SpotlightShanell
• Other: https://linktr.ee/spotlightshanell