Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Devante Lekendrick. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Devante, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I always knew. I dreamt it forever and never stopped dreaming of it. Even when I worked regular jobs I would be daydreaming.

I would naturally just act out movies, sing, rap, dance, and write around all of my family and friends to the point of annoyance. I would make songs, films, and commercials with my siblings and cousins and edit them on windows movie maker and I taught myself how to shoot, edit, and even photography and upload to YouTube way before vlogs and things like that were a thing. I always wonder what would have happened if I never stopped uploading but everything happens for a reason. My mother pointed out to me how odd that was for me to have the desire and patience to create without being told to do it and being so young. I would have my cousins over and we would be up till the sun came out just creating music, skits, taking photos, and even just figuring out how to really live our dreams. Now that I’m looking back, having those moments of hard work and dedication was preparing me for what I do now. It’s crazy!

I always looked at the world differently and sometimes I felt like something was wrong with me but the more I grew I understood that I felt different because I AM different. My mind just doesn’t process information and the world around me in a regular manner.

I see everything deeper and in a meaningful way. I get inspired by everything whether good or bad and I have a deep need to express what I see and feel.

I knew I would be either in a creative field or an entrepreneur!

It started to become real in 2015 when I just decided to never go back to a regular job. It was scary, but I never looked back. My last regular job was literally in 2015. I think I would develop severe depression if I had to go back into an evironment like that again because it sucks the life out of you if you don’t have a passion for what you’re doing so that was really when I knew I was meant to be free and creative.

Devante, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

First and foremost I am a human being and I’m authentically real and genuine with flaws and all. I think people forget that once you decide to live any sort of life that isn’t traditional 9 to 5. I love the fact that my life is always interesting and I never know what’s going to happen. I never know where I’m going to be, who I’m going to meet, or how much money I’m going to be making. Everything is extremely high or extremely low! You have to be mentally strong to withstand this business especially with the major ups and downs and sudden turns, cancellations, and so many things that are just out of your control.

I am an artist and entrepreneur so I just don’t like to box myself in with so many labels but I will say that everything I do just know that it comes from a real space. I have fought and sacrificed a lot of time and energy to be where I am today. I remember washing up in public restrooms while living out of my car so my hustle and passion is just very raw. I don’t like excuses or sympathy. That’s what sets me apart. I don’t wait around and whine about who doesn’t support me. In a perfect world I would love everyone to like me but thats not reality so I don’t waste time on it. I’m human so sometimes it can get to you but then I just remember that I’m not doing this to be liked. I’m doing this because I love it.

I am just proud of myself for how far I’ve come. A lot of things hurt me along the way but you heal and you move forward because everything is a lesson or a blessing. It’s all about perspective.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

Yes, people don’t understand how much time this really takes. I’ve lost friends and relationships along this journey because non-creatives are so used to getting instant gratification. They need to see results here and now or in their own specific time frame to qualify something as worthy or acceptable.

When you have big dreams and goals it will almost always require delayed gratification and thats what separates us from average. We are able to delay the instant gratification of a vacation, buying things, going to the club or traveling all the time then come back to a regular life you want to escape from. We work hard so we don’t have to escape our lives. We enjoy it, even the craziness of it. Every day is an adventure so the vacation and outings and large purchases are more rewarding when we get them.

I think non-creatives just see us as pipe dreamers with no real substance sometimes but then when people see things come to life they start to jump on the wave or ignore you because they think you think you’re better than them and that is the most annoying part of that misunderstanding but again it just comes with the territory so I don’t worry about it too much.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I went through phases with this one. I never cared about the number of followers just because I had always been popular and friendly so I never needed that type of validation from outside of me. I always knew who I was. I was always a leader.

It wasn’t until I started to get opportunities and one of the deciding factors were who had the most followers and it was very bizarre to me. I mean from a business standpoint I understand the concept of having a wider reach as to reach more people and or fill seats or profit. I didn’t like that but I understood it.

Then, when I began to meet people and get opportunities just from being myself and my work ethic I realized that its all just an illusion. It’s all about preference of who wants what from who.

At the end of the day as cliche as it is, whatever is for you is really for you. People can have 100,000 followers and you can have 5,000 or less and you can still be picked for a major opportunity if its meant for you. The size of your audience is totally different from the QUALITY of people in the audience.

There are so many people who have a lot of followers and being praised but have no idea how to handle business in real life. Have personality online but in real life they don’t even know how to communicate effectively or they are arrogant and blind so they aren’t willing to learn. So, my advice is to be yourself! Be professional. Always be learning. Nurture and respect the followers you have and it will grow naturally and it will be the QUALITY of people that belong in your tribe because all attention is not good attention.

I’ve gotten major opportunities with less than 5,000 followers compared to people who have 10,000+ so its really about how you’re portraying yourself online and it has to match up if not exceed the expectation in person.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.devantelekendrick.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/devanteforreal/?hl=en

Image Credits
Instagram: Wintaphoto