We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Dazelle Yvette. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Dazelle below.
Dazelle, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
My most meaningful project is the creation of my passion project, Pretty Girl Certified®. I created PGC because I want to make sure that women and girls don’t feel a void with one another while navigating life. I believe there is a massive disconnect between women that stems from many things but mostly communication. My mission is to inspire, empower, and motivate women to manifest and become the best version of themselves. I aspire that with each woman PGC influences, she will influence another bridging that gap of disconnection.
I am currently working on projects to help propel and empower more and more women and girls in as many states as I can touch.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am an Actress that has worked on television, film and stage. I crossed over from the modeling world where I started at a very young age and definitely had my roller-coaster ride with it. We think that beauty and modeling go hand and hand. Unfortunately, self-hate pops up more than most in the industry would like to speak on. Beauty isn’t always truthful. I am a woman who struggled with the ever-evolving societal beauty norms. Sure, I walked around with my head high but inside there was a lack of confidence. I come from strong parents and my determination is in my DNA, it kept me going. It wasn’t until I began my healing, self-care, and self-love journey that I changed my perspective of myself and life. That all started with journaling. I remember taking a spiral notebook and on one-page top to bottom writing out things I wanted to accomplish on this journey we call life. As I wrote that page daily, I began checking victories off the list. With every accomplishment came more and more confidence and gratitude. I didn’t realize what I was really tapping into at the moment. That was the very first time I realized that, I was walking in my divine feminine energy. The first time I saw ME.
I accepted that people did things for reasons that had nothing to do with me. I chose to let joy and happiness be my guide while sitting on constant gratitude for what was in my life. It took me learning the lesson but now, I am in a beautiful state of being and growing day by day. I figured that I am not the only woman going through this so I started a Youtube page to share as I go through experiences and even my hobbies.
My state of being is what ultimately led me to the current mission of Pretty Girl Certified®. At my core I want to empower women and girls to be their best selves in their current moments. We have to learn to be okay where we are to grow. I don’t want little girls to become women before they understand what walking in their true selves looks like. I want us women to do the work to keep one another lifted.
It sounds cliché but as an Actress, I want a body of work that makes the viewer think and grow. I would love to be a TV Mom. That could be the ultimate teacher. I learned so much from Claire, Florida, and Harriette growing up. It’s not just entertainment. I truly want to make an impact with my craft. Everything doesn’t have to be rainbows and sunshine, however I want the viewers to feel something and start conversations.
Have you ever had to pivot?
As an actress, a pivot is normal and expected. It’s a natural occurrence in the craft. A pivot in business didn’t come as easy. However, this experience ultimately taught me a valuable lesson. One of my businesses suffered a setback when I had to change its name. Initially called The Pretty Girl Club in 2006, we hosted various events for women around the Chicago-land area. I assumed that everyone knew the company by this name and had no sense of urgency to register the name and file the business legally. However, someone else ended up using the name, which was a true eye opener. I learned the hard way that procrastination is dangerous. Having to come up with a suitable name with the same acronym took a little while, but one day while in conversation with my good friend Jackie, it just came organically. “Pretty Girl Certified®”. I registered the trademark and completed all necessary procedures. It was a lesson that ultimately helped me flush out my business purpose and passion.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Funny story, I was in the market for a new modeling agent when a friend mentioned that her agency was accepting new talent. She also mentioned that her agent was having a birthday celebration somewhere around Boys town in Chicago, I forgot the exact location but that didn’t deter me. I was determined to meet this agent (Wade Childress). He was the one to know. I put on my model black attire and made my way to the area. I literally hopped from bar to bar until I finally found the party. When I found what was clearly the celebration, I sat at the bar and observed the crowd because I had no idea what he looked like. When I spotted who was receiving all of the attention from and decided to make my move. Talk about having no fear! I approached him as if we were old pals, and I greeted him with a warm hug. He returned the greeting and then realized he didn’t know me. Though he didn’t recognize me, he appreciated my directness when I expressed my interest in working with him. He asked me to visit his office on Monday. I showed up at his office first thing that morning and signed with the adult commercial department in talent Stewart Talent Chicago. This led to my eventual signing with Elite’s fashion department. This was all thanks to my resilience and determination. Moral of the story, go for what you want. It’s not going to come find you.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://dazelleyvette.com
- Instagram: @DazelleYvette
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IAmDazelleYvette
- Twitter: @DazelleYvette
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DazelleLifestyles This is where you can see the other side of me. The everyday woman.
- Other: http://prettygirlcertified.com is my passion project I speak of in this interview.