We recently connected with Jerrick Thomas and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jerrick thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?

Yes I do wish I would’ve started my creative career sooner than I did maybe at the age of 25 years old instead of 30 but things have worked out great since. Over the last 7 years I’ve become a household name in my hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Although born Jerrick Thomas, Jrayis Deyond is an evolution of artistry that manifests in Literary works and theatrical interpretations. A Shreveport, LA resident, proudly born and raised, Jrayis remains open to exploration and expansion as a life learner and creative.

His journey into full time artistry started in 2020, but his creative journey has been in motion prior to 2020. He is a self-published author with titles emerging in 2017. His works include Coming Full Circle, Coming Full Circle 2, The Confessions of a Conceited Drama King, Catching Up with Me, and Quarantine Quest, with many more to come.

In Critical Mass Eleven 2023 Jrayis Deyond was an Honorable Mention by Literary Arts Critic Sanderia Faye for his poem Wishing Well. Jerrick was named one of Shreveport’s Regional Art Councils Roster Artists in 2023. ”

It is my goal to share my voice and talents with other creatives. It is also my mission to inspire and motivate members of the African American and LGBTQIA+ communities to share their voices and visions through our love of the arts”

I got into the industry working as an actor working with Cherie Grey of Lumpy Grits Artistry working on various projects including stage plays Elektra and Measure for Measure and some other event local events as well as Kristi Woodard on a web series #Situationships on YouTube and 2 films The Blind the Duck Dynasty and Never Alone for Christmas that were in theatres last year.

I offer a self-publishing workshop teaching future authors and writers tips to publishing their own books on Amazon Kindle Publishing website since 2021 as well as interviewing artists, business owners and promoting local events on my podcast A Lil Tea Time since 2021 as well.

What sets me apart is my authenticity and my love for promoting my city and hometown Shreveport, Louisiana. What I’m the most proud of is changing my narrative. There was a general idea of me as a person of color who happens to be queer and I proved that I’m more than those labels. I have my Associates Degree in Psychology from Southern University in Shreveport and working on obtaining my Bachelors Degree in Psychology with my concentration in the Criminal Justice field as a person of color who is queer while and a proud member of Beyoncé’s Beehive is since 1996.

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

I’m the host of A Lil Tea Time which started on the internet radio show with O.N.E. Dynasty April 13, 2022 which broadcasted in Philadelphia, New York City, New York and Ghana Africa. It was my introduction to my interviewing career which I expanded to Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Spotify after retiring from O.N.E. Dynasty to now have interviewed over 200 to 300 local artists, local business owners and promoting local events.

The biggest advice I would give to anyone starting to build their social media presence is go after if wholeheartedly. Be yourself and be unapologetic there is someone out there looking for a version of themselves and you may just be that version that someone is looking for in any and everyway.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me the most rewarding aspect of being an artist and creative is that I’m in control of my time to do things things I want to do and I’m free to pursue projects that I feel comfortable lending my energy to while collaborating with other local creatives in making their dreams to come true.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejrayisdeyond/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JerrickChoosenOneThomas3017
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCffG6FBsiLkhxvngGGlxeKw
• Other: https://culturalyst.com/jrayisdeyond_2021