We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Deidra Murphy a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Deidra, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

When I decided to pursue my career as an actress, my biggest risk was making a decision to drop everything and move to a whole different state. From Ohio to Georgia. I am very proud of my decision. Taking risk makes life fun! Life is so short and I decided not to live in fear anymore, to no longer allow everyone in my ear with opinions on my dreams, My dreams are mine. So I just grabbed all of my things, my children and just went. I was a bit scared of course at first, but then I decided to just live in faith and not fear. I have lived in fear for a long time… and I knew it was time to make a change. FEAR means two things Forget Everything And Run; or Face Everything And Rise. I made that risky decision to rise. I don’t run from challenges anymore. I knew I could and I did. It definitely was not the first risk I have taken, and won’t be the last.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am an actress, a content creator, a writer and an influencer. I made a decision to follow my dreams and focus on my craft. I am focused and won’t let anyone stop me, Its a challenge and I love it! I am also a mother and a proud one, I absolutely love supporting and helping others.

Through this process, I have gained so much knowledge of myself and how precious life is… through my experiences in life and my struggles I’ve decided during a pandemic to help people in real life… I created a platform on TikTok where I put together stories that are real-life stories; I just don’t put the name on them… I enjoy saving lives and I also enjoy being the gray for people that don’t have a voice in this black-and-white world. I have over 400,000 followers on TikTok and enjoy meeting new people… I also do the same on my Instagram and Facebook pages. I currently have 20k plus on IG. I use these other two platforms to help people be in a positive light. I wasnt really aware that my post were actually helping people until a few friends and my photographer let me know, It makes my day to know that someone out there needed me. I just want the world to understand they are not alone. It’s also been my dream to one day make a nonprofit organization for men women and children who seek help and suffer in silence like I once did. I also am in the process now of making my own film, I am very excited about it! I have an amazing team that has been supporting me through it. I even almost quit. I believe that you have to be sure you keep a small circle around you, and be sure they all have your back, and won’t let you fail. So I’m back to screenwriting and am excited about the process. I also have a couple of acting coaches, my main one is Dwayne Boyd. He in my opinion is the best. He has taught me so much! I even was able to recently host my first showcase with him. Learning is huge in this industry and you defiantly can’t have thin skin. I have had many auditions and many no’s. Its not something I focus on. When im told no, I take it with a grain of salt and move on to the next. I love my journey the good moments and the not so good moments. I am grateful for all!

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Of course! As far as TikTok, I started during a COVid lock down in Ohio. I was bored, had nothing to do. I decided to see why my kids were so into this app. I started it, and it was kind of fun, then I ended up bored. I almost deleted it one day then noticed people were sending me messages, liking my content etc. I made one video and it went viral. I was from that day called the Godmother, I kept making more content that my audience loved and started enjoying it. I even have a family from that platform. I again use it to help people and I’m very proud to have a whole new family. I noticed some content creators look at their page and see numbers. I have a whole new respect for all 400k+ they are all family and they always will be. My best advice is figure out what’s your niche on all platforms and do what you love. don’t look so much into the numbers. Keep posting be consistent and also comment back, interact with your audience. They believe in you for a reason,

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Well, first I would like to say I have many stories but I don’t want to fill this entire magazine, On a shorter note, I’ll say life. I have been through so many storms hardships. I am a survivor of a long domestic violence, I suffered in silence for years. I was lost… I lost who I was, and just needed to heal and find myself again. People around me didn’t understand and asked weird questions like why did you stay? First let me make it clear that I wanted to leave and tried on many occasions. when I told any authority my children were beaten, if my children told I was beaten, and amongst other things. I lived in a nightmare that I thought I would never get out of. A person who I will not name, came to me and told me to call the police and order a pizza. I know it sounds crazy I know… but it worked. Me and my children got out the following morning. The journey at first wasn’t easy. It required a lot of therapy and a lot of faith. I will say today I have forgiven him, I have even forgiven myself because. –That! — That is so important. This has made me a whole new woman, a stronger woman. It also opened my eyes to realize life is so very short and we has people have to stop taking advantage of it. If you have a dream career go for it. Its never ever too late! The things that happen in life don’t define us. They can be used to make us stronger. We have to stop using pain as a crutch. Focus on the now. That is where my resilience comes from. Life and struggles make you stronger not weak. Unless you let it. Your struggles build character. How you handle situations define you. I don’t sit in a potty pot in life. Its my journey and I appreciate every moment good and bad. I keep pushing no matter what. I made a huge decision to focus on my acting career and trust me it hasn’t been all roses. I have been on many sets and they either never made it anywhere or I was pulled from my team for reasons I will not disclose. I have auditioned for many roles and didn’t make them. I’ve faced rejection, after rejection, after rejection. This doesn’t mean quit, I keep pushing, I stay focused and never let rejection change who I am. I have to stay focused. This industry is tough! Its again not for the weak. I just keep going. Have I had days when I want to stop? Absolutely! Me quitting won’t make anything any better. I may get knocked down, but I just get right back up and do it again. I wake up everyday and give myself positive pep talk. I also pass it down to others on my platforms. Having a loving and caring support system, both in and outside the family, is one of my key components. Some advice for my readers is to write a letter to your future self, and reflect on what you might tell yourself about your present struggles. Include how you overcame them, what the hardest part was, and how you’ve grown. also keep trying hard. Recharge! Trying again!
A river will stop flowing if it is not recharged.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/actressdeidramurphy/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deidra.murphy80/
• Other: TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@deidra_thegodmother?_t=8X1YZFPoaJa&_r=1

Image Credits
Photographer Marie Thomas Makeup Artist Cheryl Thomas