We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Derek Kendall . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Derek below.

Alright, Derek thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Do you feel you or your work has ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized? If so, tell us the story and how/why it happened and if there are any interesting learnings or insights you took from the experience?

I’ve always been misunderstood for the most part. Whether in school , a new job or even just being at a family cookout. As a creative I feel like most people are what they look like. Most people’s personalities match to what they appear to be. But not in my case growing up. In my town or city as black youth we are encouraged to speak in a provocative obnoxious way & well me that wasn’t the way I wanted to present myself. I was always a bit more well spoken, like as if I had just read several books on philosophy or something. It made me stick out like a sore thumb & most definitely felt like I was misunderstood by my peers. They knew I was intelligent , to them it was the notion of “but for what purpose? those questions & doubts were all answered later in life once I’ve become this huge star I am today!

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.

Well my name is Derek Kendall, I’m an Aries sign which represents fire & dominance. Born a natural artist in the creative arts field. A extremely adventurous type with the ability to fully write out a project, sketch it , gather the resources & materials & build works of art ALWAYS from a young age. As a child I was very shy so without knowing, art was my peace & comfort. I wasn’t into the typical basketball & sports that most kids were into. The artwork had me , story writing, drawing & painting is where I excelled! Years later as an adult I took a leap of faith one day & signed up for a casting call for a fashion show. They loved my walk! After that show moving forward I would get sent even more casting calls from friends I’ve met in the industry to go on do more shows so as a result of that & loving the unexpected response from crowd I decided to go further. I began also by fully producing my own personal projects that I felt ment something to me. So those projects & those 1st 3 fashion shows is how I began + everything I put out I had to make 100% sure it was the best quality out there to get the right typa of people to see my work that I knew I wanted to work with. My 1st year as a model & illustrator won me my 1st award as well amongst my community in Brooklyn NY. My journey was accelerating fast!

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Absolutely! I wish I knew where to find exactly my audience of other creatives…like I knew they were out there but I most definitely grew up in an environment where being considered a “creative” was out of the ordinary. Drama/theater teachers were some of the most intimidating people for me as a child so I most definitely wish I gravitated towards some of those outspoken individuals. Including other students that would sometimes act in school plays. Overall I think I wish I had that person that said “ya know you really should consider becoming a movie star…you could really do it”. So that kind of resource is definitely something I wish I had along the very early part of my journey. In the current day I just wish I knew how to orchestrate a full show as well & who is responsible for running a great show from top to bottom.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Most definitely, I’d like to have generational wealth & upkeep that legacy for my family. To be that example of someone from the demographic I’m from that we can move mountains with just our passion for something which is usually our natural born talents. To also leave a powerful footprint in all of my childhood communities that “you can make something of yourself” we all can with the right people around you & a strong brain , cause one things for certain you gotta know how to play the game! Lastly just to leave an everlasting impression on the youth as the role model that I was looking for so that they know there Is a path to greatness regardless of what you love to do! Always be yourself!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Instagram.com/deetruth2484
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DeeModel24?mibextid=ZbWKwL

Image Credits
Sleep da creative Fresh Pixx NYC Isaiah Crawford Yesenia M. Scooby Zae Photography