We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jarry Lee a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Jarry, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.
I consider myself fortunate that my parents not only invested in my education but also in nurturing my artistic skills. From a young age, I received classical training in piano, violin, and art, which laid the foundation for my life-long passion for music and creative expression. Moreover, my parents instilled in me a set of core values that have been instrumental in my journey. They impressed upon me the significance of perseverance and determination, instilling in me a hard-working mindset that has fueled all the successes in my career.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am a model, actor, musician, social media entrepreneur, and former journalist based in Los Angeles and New York City (originally from England, Wales, and Connecticut). I have a following of over 1.4 million+ across my social media channels, and appeared as myself on the Netflix documentary series Dating Around (season 1), and in commercials for AT&T, Audible, Dr. Brandt skincare, and various L’Oréal brands. As a model and actor, I have worked with Maybelline, Lancôme, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, Garnier, Revlon, Kiehl’s, Estée Lauder, IT Cosmetics, Pantene, BareMinerals, Victoria’s Secret PINK, Target, Apple, Google, Viktor & Rolf, Thayers, La Roche-Posay skincare, Patrón Tequila, Ben & Jerry’s, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Nike, and others.
I have been featured in Glamour Magazine, Marie Claire Magazine, VOGUE Italia, L’Officiel Magazine, Fashionista.com, POPSUGAR, Mic, Elite Daily, BuzzFeed, Byrdie, NY Daily News, AM New York, Women Fitness Magazine, 360 Magazine, VULKAN Magazine, Cliché Magazine, The New York Times, PAP Magazine, UNCLEAR Magazine, Thrive Global, Pop-Culturalist, CBS, FOX, Jejune Magazine, REBEL Magazine, BODE Magazine, The Inscriber, MESS Magazine, Mann About Town, and many other publications.
Previously, I was the Deputy Books Editor at BuzzFeed for 3.5 years, covering books and culture. I graduated summa cum laude from New York University as a Phi Beta Kappa Society honoree, and am an alum of Choate Rosemary Hall.
Have you ever had to pivot?
My first jobs were in digital marketing for book publishing houses Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, and Simon & Schuster. Then, I worked as a journalist and was a deputy editor for BuzzFeed News for four years, covering books and culture. In 2018, I changed careers entirely and pivoted to social media and the entertainment industry to work for myself. I’m now a digital content creator and social media entrepreneur with over 1.4 million followers across platforms, and I also act and model professionally.
I didn’t have any prior knowledge or experience in the industries I’m in now, which was a challenge at first. But keeping open-minded and adaptable helped me become a quick learner. I believe you can be successful in an industry you know nothing about as long as you are determined and committed to putting in the work. I also find challenges to be highly motivating so that only made me want to succeed more.
One reason I decided to pivot was because there are few Asian models in the industry — I’ve had many young women reach out to me and express that they felt inspired to see someone who looked like them working and succeeding. Representation matters! I never saw Asian models when I was growing up, so I didn’t even consider it as a possibility.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
Independence and the ability to express myself via the mediums I feel most passionate about. Creating music, art, or writing is more deeply fulfilling than any other kind of work I have known, and the freedom to set my own schedule is empowering (and gives me peace).
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jarrylee.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/jarrylee
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/jarrylee
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/jarrylee
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/jarry
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/jarrylee
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm9815618/
Image Credits
in the file names