Earning that first dollar is incredibly special and a moment many never forget. We asked some very talented creatives from the community to tell us the story of the first dollar they earned from their creative works.

Shayne Coles

I honestly don’t remember, but I believe my first payed modeling gig was with my friend Niki Thediva (@blond.bomber) with Moonlit Academy! It was such a fun shoot and one of favorites that I’ve done so far. They are truly a talented individual and I’m so happy they found me. Read more>>

Shellz Da don

So when i was about 15 i dropped my first mixtape it was called king of e.n.y thats east new york for short i already knew what i had on my hands and wanted people to take the music i worked so hard on perfecting serious so me and my mother would ride around blasting it loud to get people’s attention then whoever was interested would come to the car and we sold them the mixtape for 5 dollars that was people coming back to back it was crazy since then ive been selling music like candy Read more>>

Michael Caprarella

I auditioned for a roll that led me to a YouTube series over 2 million. Subscribers. Read more>>

Jalen Moffitt

My first time earning as an artist was in 2016. It was my very first stage play after making it my career choice. It was with Evans Production and we had “The Power of Love” at the Landers Center in Southaven,Ms. I made at least 200 from the show and I was so grateful for it plus the opportunity to perform on a stage as such. Read more>>

David Eichenberger

In high school I drew a portrait of a friends little sister to give to there mom as present. Other people found out about it and offered me money to draw there parents/pets/ girlfriend and it grew from there I ended up saving enough for my first car, a 500 dollar Plymouth reliant k car. Read more>>

Kylie Buckles-Hall

Murder Mystery Theater with SanZman productions in Glendora!! It was during the Holiday season so an added layer of fun and chaos! I’ve always loved singing holiday music and the show was beauty pageant themed so it was fun to sing them like it was a part of the competition. Read more>>

Michael Ryan

The first time I ever made money with my art was with my mom at the Jersey shore. I was probably around 6 or 7 years old. We used to collect seashells during the day and then we would paint palm trees, sailboats, and beach stuff on them. Read more>>

Matty Miller

My first dollar earned as a creative came from my first jobs in high school! One gig, painting faces at children’s birthday parties, led to my first entrepreneurial venture in college. Read more>>

Modupe Alatise Odusote

I started exploring painting during the 2020 pandemic. I am not trained, no art classes (except a few YouTube videos) and my last formal art instruction was at age 13 – I’m in my late 40s now. Read more>>

Leah Tribbett

The first dollar I ever earned as a creative was in 2011. I filmed my high school nurse’s daughters wedding on a flip-cam and edited the full length cinematic production to ‘Fergalicious’ by our lord and savior, Fergie. As if that wasn’t enough, I burned the video to a DVD with cover art. Read more>>

Nghi Lu

Earning money from hobby. Balance out between money and passion. Starting a brand isn’t hard but keeping it is a real work. Read more>>