One of the most daunting aspects of pursing a creative or artistic career for many aspiring artists is not knowing how to learn the craft. So, we asked some very talented artists and creatives to talk to us about how they learned their crafts and we hope their stories will help you in your journey.

Vinny Svoboda

I was very fortunate to start my musical journey at a young age through my elementary school orchestra program. This persisted through middle school, high school, and eventually getting my degree in Music Performance with an emphasis on classical upright bass from the University of South Florida. I didn’t realize how fortunate I was to have that early experience until I started teaching music myself. Learning music through structured curriculum isn’t necessarily better than learning music on your own, but it inherently keeps you working at it. Read more>>

Michael Rainwater

Many people who wish to take up the piano tend to find an instructor to take lessons with. I personally started taking lessons at the age of 3 with a private piano instructor, David Nash, who specializes in classical piano music and education. I learned classical piano first, participating in classical music competitions, judgings, and recitals. While classical music is fundamental to my style today, I decided to branch away from the practice, into piano arrangement about 6 years ago. Read more>>

Mawuena Dogbe

Recently, in addition to my tech and gaming YouTube channel, I’ve taken up photography, mostly of cars. I’ve always been into cars and recently got into the photography side of things after a friend of mine introduced me to a car show with lots of photo opportunities. As for how I learned once I got started? Honestly, it was just a lot of practice. Just getting out there with a camera and experimenting with different angles and scenarios is what helped me get to where I am with it now. Read more>>

Jess McKenzie

I am mostly self-taught in all areas of my creativity. I do have some college courses under my belt, but I have spent the majority of my creative career learning outside of a formal education. Some would classify me as a digital artist because I have a background in web and graphic design, but I also have a knack for photography, acrylic painting, music, and writing. Read more>>

Keosha Samuel

I am a self taught model. I used online resources such as YouTube, old America’s Next Top Model episodes, old Ru Paul’s Drag Race episodes, and most recently social media to learn the different skills and techniques of the runway. Looking back on my progress, I wouldn’t do anything differently. My family wasn’t the wealthiest and couldn’t afford the fashion schools that teach models. The way I chose to learn was the most cost efficient. The most essential skill isn’t a skill, it’s a mindset. Read more>>

Asuquo Eton

Honestly, when I was interested in videography and photography doing a few travel videos/vlogging, I didn’t have much knowledge in those fields. I literally was going with the passion and love for it (just mainly trial and error). It was like six years ago I sat down and asked myself “what I really wanted to do”, I spoke with a friend about going to a film school to further develop my skill and knowledge and then he asked me how much it was going to cost for the two-year programme and I told him it was going to be about $12,000. Read more>>

Jamad Mays

.That’s such a loaded question. For starts I feel, everyone has a gift within themselves. But it’s our job to find a way to access that gift, nurture the gift, then share it with the world. I never knew that there was an interest in acting before it found me. I was always a sports guy growing up. But it wasn’t until my neighbor said he saw something within me and told me I should consider acting. Again, something I didn’t think was an interest of mine. Sometime later, I took him up on that offer and we would later work on a monologue and from that moment on, I was bitten by the bug. Read more>>

Chris Mula

My parents started this business when I was around four years-old. Growing up, we didn’t really come to the gym, so I actually had no idea what my parents did when they were at work, I only assumed it was teaching gymnastics. After the death of my father, I stepped in to help with the day-to-day operations, classes, and anything else that my mom & the staff members needed. I discovered that I loved this job and developed a passion for the sport of gymnastics. Basically, I had to start at zero. Read more>>

Morgan Stroope

I started woodworking after becoming a mom for the first time to our oldest son in 2019. It came at a great time. I was a new stay at home mom and I desperately needed an outlet. At first, I had a few simple tools and little to no experience woodworking. I always loved crafting and being creative but never to this extent. My first projects were gifts for friends and family. It felt special to put time and energy into something I enjoyed and then gift that to someone I love. Read more>> 

Xavier Clark

I learned how to rap and song write from listening to artist like Rick Ross who is good at painting a picture with his words you visualize it in your head, Lil Wayne taught me more about punchlines and charisma and swag that you need to have to keep your listeners engaged, PARTYNEXTDOOR is a very good songwriter capturing lots of emotion while still being able to rap/sing his sound is very melodic and dark I found that to be very creative. Read more>>

Paul D’Agostino

When I was 14 I went to a friends house after school. This particular friend was a drummer and had a drum set in his basement. So he a a few of my other friends that played guitar all started jamming. Since I didn’t know how to play guitar or any instrument, I sat and watched them in envy wanting so badly to be playing with them. It was at that point that I knew I wanted to learn guitar. That was almost 30 years ago. Playing guitar opened up so many doors for me, in particular collaborating with other talented musicians and playing in a number of bands. Read more>>

Lacey Sombar Curtis

When I was 16 I learned how to use my mother’s Nikon 35mm camera while in high school. We worked only with film and developed it ourselves in the darkroom. Once I was in the process of earning my BFA in photography at the University of Georgia, I was taught a lot more of the in-depth and complex components of photography, like photoshop, light meters and strobes, and film development processes like creating contact sheets, color correcting using dials on a darkroom enlarger and printing with a C41 machine. These fine art features of my undergraduate courses only solidified my love for photography. Read more>>

Eadrict Ambrose

Started learning music at the age of 13 years old started listening to a lot of us and uk rap music at a young age and was heavy influenced by the American rap scene and listening to a lot of old songs from blues to the 80s music which I like to listen to. Didn’t start taking music seriously till then. My favourite producers where metro booming, Dr dre, Dj khaled,Quay global who produced for lil baby, and many more got more inspired by both uk rap scence and listening from the likes of nines which is uk rapper and fredo which where my favourite rappers of all time. Read more>>

King Judah

They say the greatest lessons in life are taught through first-hand experiences. For me, becoming an actor was the culmination of what I’ve experienced collectively throughout my life and the emotions that came with them. I came into the industry full of rawness just trying to hit the ground running but had no idea in what direction I should go. For months, I didn’t receive the slightest bit of work despite fully putting myself out there as an Actor. Read more>>

Briyanna Tiafoe

In high school, I took a photography and design class that was tailored towards learning simple photoshop functions and tasks. At the time, I took the class just because it seemed to be the easiest elective available, but that lazy decision fostered what would be my new found passion. I began to experiment with photoshop and dug deeper into the application, learning new things everyday as the years went by. I watched, and still do watch, a lot of Youtube videos and read a lot of articles to keep myself updated and challenged. There are numerous opportunities to learn new things and I try to take each one I get. I don’t like to stay boxed in. Read more>>

Morgan Wright

I’ve gotten my music talents from both of my parents. My mom is a singer and piano player and my dad was a drummer, music producer and DJ. I wanted to play drums also but I ended up getting a Casio keyboard from my grandpa one year for my Birthday or Christmas. With old notes and lessons from my mom in combination with self teaching, I learned the basics of the piano and practiced by learning how to play songs by ear. Read more>>

Clint Velazquez

“You know more than a beginner, right?” It is hard to emphasize just how much that question has shaped my life. During college, I was studying musical theatre, worked as a dishwasher, and played a little guitar for fun on the side. One weekend I took a trip to Kansas City and stopped in a guitar shop to look around. I struck up a conversation with one of the staff and soon found out he had gone to college at K-State as well, and during college, he had taught guitar lessons at the local guitar shop in Manhattan. He told me it was a great job and I should think about teaching, to which I replied, I’m not that good at guitar. Read more>>

Carita Miller

Music Supervision for me to date has been self taught, using several different avenues including online webinar, several online classes (free), reading different books, and I even picked up a “mentor” along that way that I could ask different questions for clarification if needed. Knowing what I know now, I’m not sure that I could have sped up the learning process. Its not the song selection thats the real skillset here, its knowing all the business tactics that come with placing a song in a feature film, tv series, commercials etc. Read more>>

Cole Hedgecoth

The biggest thing I had to learn was to be self-sufficient. When I first began making music, I wanted everyone else to do it for me. I thought making music was only about performing and using your voice, so when it came to producing, songwriting, mixing, marketing, etc., I wanted other people to do that for me. Then I quickly realized I wasn’t growing. Read more>>

Vicky Vee

At the start of my journey into drag, I learned almost everything from YouTube and Instagram. I found drag at a time when it was coming into the mainstream of pop culture, so there was a lot of digital content for me to use. I have been performing since I was little, so learning and perfecting makeup has been a huge focus with my drag. With the internet, I was also exposed to a lot of makeup from watching my mom get ready for work when I was little. Read more>>

Jackson Hill

When I was 15 I was obsessed with poetry and I tried to write my own. At 16 the group of guys I played in a band with made fun of me for trying to write a song, followed by the girl I really liked saying “ drummers should stick to drumming”. I got so determined to become better that I wrote 2 songs a day, every single day right up into attending Berklee College of music where I also took songwriting classes. Read more>>

Metrova

I learned through continuous practice, and adding my own flair. Knowing what I know now, I would have started to challenge myself much earlier. That would have helped me experience the typical hiccups artists go through without the stress! My drawing skills are most essential part of my process. I’ve always drawn and painted since a toddler but as a paper artist, drawing to scale is very important to make sure everything is proportional. The only obstacle in my way was my mind telling me “this is it”. Now that I have risen over that hump, I don’t that there is so much more to learn and experience! My craft just keeps getting better and better Read more>>

James Galey

Learning what I do was definitely through trial and error. I have always been interested in video production and all of the processes involved in it but never thought about actually getting started primarily due to the high costs of learning through colleges and the costs of equipment needed. I started small and kept working towards smaller more achievable goals. I had my fair share of failures at first. It was as stressful as you might think but I tried to press forward with the help of my then Wife. Read more>>

Austin Wallace

I studied and researched all things Photography. Things like YouTube and shooting with experienced artists helped me grow within my craft. Although I am much more knowledgeable now, I like the pace I learned at and I’m still learning. I will never stop learning. My learning process is purely by experience and I just try to get as many as I can. Read more>>

Riley Woodell

I learned about modeling through the lens of shows like America’s next top model and project runway. Initially it was something I enjoyed learning about through a birds eye view but wasn’t something I personally saw myself doing. That is until several people in my life coincidentally asked me if I’ve ever considered modeling around the same time frame. Knowing what I know now, I only wish I had jumped into modeling sooner. Read more>>

Justice Maxwell

I honestly learned how to model by saying yes, to more opportunities that came my way. I even had to learn to say no if I felt uncomfortable and I had to learn to ask questions when I felt unsure. The skills that were most essential to becoming a male model, where to be open, minded, and learn how to communicate with different creatives, and photographers on what they wanted to see and look, Read more>>

Russell Schaffer

I essentially taught myself the art of being a disc jockey. Growing up, I always around the art “Dj’ing” as one of my fathers’ life-long friend is a Dj. My father would visit him often when I was younger to exchange music with him and majority of the time, we would be there with my uncle as he would curate his own mixtapes. Around the year of 2014, I began to pursue a career as a disc jockey. While in college, I would practice a lot in my dorm and in the summer as well. Read more>>

Tara Brown

Back in 2014, I was looking for something fun to do, so I decided to enroll in a six-week comedy class at The Comedy Zone in Charlotte. It was there that I learned the fundamentals of comedy and how to write and structure a joke. I’m a native New Yorker, and there are times that I wish that I had begun my comedy career when I lived there, but I’m a firm believer that all things happen at the time that they are supposed to, so, I have no regrets about when and where I began my comedy journey. Read more>>

Kedryck James

Despite the amount of podcasts currently out there, creating a quality podcast is not an easy task. I had to learn the trade through various trial and error processes. I started with two USB cord microphones and used to record directly on to the Anchor App. But I wanted to curate the podcast my own way. I ended up buying an audio interface and four new mics while also utilizing a digital audio workstation (or DAW) to help edit the podcast the way I wanted. Read more>>

Daniel Guyton

For me, the best learning method has already been Trial and Error. I have failed more times than I have succeeded, but each failure has taught me a lesson which I have learned from. I know many people who are afraid of trying something new for fear of making a mistake – but I have learned that mistakes are sometimes the greatest blessings – because they teach us how to improve for the next time. For example, I am a scriptwriter and I have written many scripts that were not well received – but from their reception, I learned what to do differently on my next script. Read more>>

Christopher Anderson

I often admired other artist’s work, trying to imitate them. From there I was inspired to take an art class in High School and from there, furthered my education at The Art Institute. Speed up my learning process? Believe I could have been more consistent. I found by taking too many breaks, I was holding myself back. I learned some initial skills while taking an art class in High School and learned even more while in college. Read more>>

Gwendolyn Squires

Self-publishing is the act of publishing media, especially a creative work of art, as the author or artist, without the use of a publishing house or company. In terms of self-publishing books, I write all of my books and complete the entire publishing process myself. I do most of the editing, designing, and formatting of my books without the aid of a traditional publishing company. I have my own graphic designer who does all of my illustrations. Read more>>

Jose Simerilla Romero

Understanding the technical aspects of the voice and singing is only one side of working as an international opera singer. That aspect of the craft is mainly taught in schools and is build slowly as you bloom into an artist. However there are other aspects that aren’t taught in school and qualities that are essential and important into building yourself up and being successful. From personal experience, there are many qualities that have helped me gain some success in my field of study and expertise. Read more>>

Matthew Gerrish

Watching movies intently remains the best way to learn (other than being on set). When I was in middle school though I became obsessed with a game called The Movies. It was a PC game that let players create and run a movie studio. I focused more on the filmmaking feature though eventually making a forty minute Indiana Jones tribute. In high school, YouTube appeared, and I saw normal people with just a camera and few lights making short films. Read more>>

Aaron Bell

I would say that I was always outgoing and goofy. I was the kid who loved being animated and full of energy. So I guess I learned how to act by being a great imitator and entertainer as a child. As it pertained to the professional craft of acting and modeling, I really listened to what the trainers, coaches and industry experts would say and I’d watch and learn from people who were already doing what I aspired to do. Read more>>

Shak Zoola

I get obsessed with some things and ever since I was younger I had an obsession with both digital media and making my friends laugh but it wasn’t until the pandemic that I started to focus on comedy and media in a more concerted manner than before. As a comedian and a creative (if you can call me that, I’m more of a figment of one’s imagination), I feel it is my job to continue learning and to continue to adapt to what is happening today so that I can connect with people in real-time. Read more>>

Rashida Costa

I believe that everyone is born with that one thing that they are good at, most commonly referenced as our talent. For me my innate talents are writing and acting. From my experience, it is not enough to merely possess your talent. There are a set of skills that are both prerequisites as well as the core of the needed foundation with respect to the area of craft that your given talent falls under. So naturally, while I was good at acting I had to train professionally in order to develop my skills. Read more>>

Mike Diamond

Learning to do the things I do were never overly complicated, being that I’ve always been a quick learner, but I can say that I feel like getting the right information and talking to the right people was rather difficult. As far as music goes, it’s something I’ve always been around, but in regards to seriously taking on artistry I don’t really feel like I had anybody to look to who really was becoming big with the music thing in my area, so really it just took dedication and the confidence to do so. Read more>>

Constance S Prince

I’m an intuitive self-taught artist and for me there is always room to learn. To me learning is on going and in tune with my personal growth. Yes I purchased books and saved tutorials but in truth I’ve never sat and studied any of them in full because i want to find my own authentic voice. Also I appreciate the way my brain works to feel my way through each art piece I’ve created. In terms of creative process I don’t mind making mistakes and happy to explore curiosity as it surfaces. Read more>>

Niahmu Foggie-Brown

Originally I always had a love for Art, I grew up in a household of crafts and paintings due to both my mother and father being Artist. As I grew I had a desire to doodle and sketch as much as possible from favorite cartoon characters to beloved super heroes. As I transitioned out of high-school I started getting inquiries from friends on my services to sketch for them. From tattoo ideas to personal drawings they can hang on the wall I started seeing a market for my artistic services. Read more>>

Raven Richards

I always loved music and naturally studied it my whole life without knowing. As a child, when my mom and aunts would play music in the car or while cleaning the house I would listen and later sing my own version of those same songs for hours. As a child I remembered every lyric and ad lib of song very easily. To speed up my learning process I could have listened to my intuition more, avoided activities, and people from my life that distracted my peace of mind. Read more>>