We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Justin Uesugi. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Justin below.
Justin, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
I grew up in an immigrant household where pursuing art as a main source of income wasn’t even an option. Ironically, I grew up in Los Angeles where I was surrounded by the entertainment industry, but wasn’t allowed to pursue it full time. Instead, I was raised to choose a safe and stable career path (like becoming an engineer, doctor, etc), and everything else creative was to be at most an additional means of side income. I didn’t know it at first, but at the end of the day, my gut chose for me.
My best friend, Ari, asked me to be a photographer for a family event, and of course I said yes! I was still a senior in high school, and I went into it thinking I would be doing it for free, but then at the end of the event, her mom came up to me with an envelope and told me to take the money. I was dumbfounded, and it wasn’t until that moment that it clicked that it was even possible for me to make a means as a creative.
Soon after, I went into college with the mindset of taking the safe route: Go to college, get a 9 to 5, buy a house, raise kids, retire. I was so set. I started off as an Undeclared major, switched majors literally 5 times (which should have been a red flag that something wasn’t going to work out), then eventually settled for psychology. For the first two years, I was so adamant about keeping dance in my life, but when my third year started, I realized I couldn’t be a full time student, work 3 jobs, and be on a dance team. I had to let dance go – the first time taking a dance break in 7 years – and it all went downhill from there.
After graduating, I swore to never let dance go again, then joined another local dance team to have a sense of community and purpose again. At the same time, I was on track to getting a full time job in my field of study and worked at a crisis residential. It was honestly a great learning experience, but at the end of the day, I still felt unfulfilled. I got the 9 to 5 I always “wanted.” I had financial security and spent my money on experiences I thought would make me happy. So why did I still not feel happy? And this entire time, I’m working overtime and leaving work at 7pm, scrambling to get dinner, then heading to the dance studio for practice from 9pm to midnight.
A couple years into dancing with the team, I get a couple of paid opportunities that would come out of nowhere. One of them was dancing in a live show for a major Philippine TV program via my dance team, and another was a direct booking from a friend to choreograph and be featured in a KPOP music video – both of which were out of my wildest dreams at the time – and all because people knew that I was a dancer. This all then inspired and projected me to audition for a professionally paid dance team in Las Vegas. I had no idea what was happening or where the drive came from, but something was feeding my soul and all the steps I was taking just felt right. I didn’t make it past the audition, but I felt so fulfilled and had all this drive to be better. I was at a crossroads where either I let the passion run empty and fall back into the 9 to 5 cycle, or go against everything I was taught growing up and take the leap and pursue a creative career path. So what did I do? Quit my full time job, said goodbye to my loving and established support system in Northern California, then moved back to Los Angeles where I would be starting fresh.
Don’t get me wrong – I was absolutely terrified this entire process. Financial security and career stability was all I knew. But the universe kept pushing me out of places I didn’t belong and putting forth opportunities that drew me closer to where I was meant to be. The more I tried fighting against it, the more I suffered, and the more I let go and let live, the more I was pleasantly surprised at where life had to take me.
Justin, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Hello! My name is Justin Uesugi, and I am a Filipino-Japanese American dancer, choreographer, and photographer born and raised in Los Angeles. Starting off at my local dance studio in 2007, I eventually worked up to dancing professionally in the TV & film industry, international dance competitions, sports games, theme parks, cultural festivals, etc., and haven’t stopped since. I’ve received my dance training from all over California – Los Angeles, Sacramento, Bay Area – and currently teach and take class at studios throughout the LA area. I have an undying love for street styles like popping, locking, and house, and strive to keep the foundational styles alive. The identities I carry with me as a second generation, mixed ethnicity, neurodivergent, and social justice-driven individual heavily inform the drive, perspective, and pride I pour into the projects I am a part of. At the end of the day, my “why” is to give back to the community that has already provided so much for me – whether it’s through performing on stage to spark joy in others or sharing knowledge and acting as a mentor for movement.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
I was raised in a first-generation immigrant household, which was a tough dynamic to navigate. There was heavy emphasis on building and maintaining a stable life for myself and the family, understandably so. My parents immigrated to the US, both against their own decisions, and were forced into survival mode where their mental health and personal passions were ultimately suppressed. On the other hand, you have me who is growing up in a Western culture that centers individualism and self-happiness, along with being a part of a generation that emphasizes mental health – and you can see where there could be a conflict of interest.
I’m definitely not bringing down my upbringing. My parents did the best they could with the tools they were given. I just don’t think it was a cohesive environment for someone who was a creative at heart, and that was a tough circumstance to accept looking back at my creative journey. I learned how to be of great service to my family, but it came at the expense of my own wants and needs. I was the first-born breadwinner who graduated with the top of his class in high school, was co-president of three clubs in high school, and was the first in the family to go to a university. It wasn’t until I got to college and found myself more miserable than ever – taking STEM classes where nothing was clicking, forcing myself to work jobs I had no passion for just to make money, and not seeking mental health support until it was too late. I eventually reached an agreement with my parents where I would graduate with a major that didn’t mainly focus on logic and data, but technically fell into the STEM field, and limped my way to earn my B.S. in Psychology. After college, I had full autonomy of how I could spend my time, and that was probably the biggest adjustment of all. From having a set schedule in a fixed system for 22 years to having to make my own schedule from scratch and navigate life alone? I was a mess. There were no jobs in STEM I could bring myself to apply to, and I kept gravitating back to dance to keep me grounded and happy.
It wasn’t until I realized the universe was making my life miserable in areas I wasn’t supposed to be in (on purpose) and opening up opportunities unimaginable to me at the time, where I came to learn that unlearning was necessary to move forward. After my whole life of building structure and security, I learned to practice the process of releasing control, trusting the process, and meeting the universe halfway. Not to say I’m finished unlearning by any means. I’m fighting those demons every day haha. I’m continually learning, accepting, and finding new ways to move forward – and I think that’s all that matters, despite the background and circumstances I was given.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
Absolutely. When I was a kid and saw creatives who would make a full time living off of what they did, I always thought, “Couldn’t be me. That’s only reserved for the top 1% of people who were given the right circumstances and who have the drive to get it done.” Little did I know, it’s so much more nuanced than that.
First off, while there may be the best of the best (the Beyonce’s if you will), that doesn’t mean smaller artists don’t exist. It also doesn’t mean being a big name artist is the end all be all. Everyone started from somewhere, and for myself, it was important to set a realistic expectation that the pathway to success isn’t exactly what I painted it to be. Sometimes the result isn’t what I expected it to be either – but that’s the best part. I was so stuck on the idea of “Okay, once I fully commit to being ABC, I’ll just work really hard and end up in XYZ.” And I quickly learned that this model wouldn’t work out for my creative journey. I jumped into dance thinking the end goal was being an international choreographer, but little did I know I would be performing on stages more than I would be choreographing, and I have a newfound love and desire to continue my stage presence and be a backup dancer for music artists on tour.
Secondly, it’s such a reality to make a living off of being a creative. I feel like the idea of pursuing art as a career can get such a bad rep because of the stereotype of the “starving artist.” And while that experience may speak for some artists, it completely undermines the opportunity for immense success and disregards the other aspects of an artist’s life, good to bad. Being an artist can have different levels of commitment, all of which are valid, but fully committing to the craft yields such fulfilling results, including financial stability as one of the many byproducts. And while financial stability is amazing to have as an artist, I feel like it should be more seen as a “result along the way” than an end goal. Additionally, after speaking with other creatives, so many are booked and busy to the point where they have to decline their services. There’s a market and demand out there for artists. Whether or not people want to pay artists for their worth is a whole different story, but I can save that for another time.
Lastly, I don’t think anyone can truly comprehend what it’s like to live as a creative full time until they’ve taken the genuine leap and experienced it for themselves for themselves. I learned the hard way that if I want to reap the full benefits and joys of being an artist, I can’t be half in half out and expect a full harvest. It wasn’t until this past year where I fully quit all my non-dance jobs and fully dedicated my entire being to pursuing dance professionally. I had no clue what I was doing, but I was moving forward with full trust that the universe had my back. I had emptied out my savings and was thinking about falling back into old habits, but I resisted and blindly leaned into the trust I had in the universe. Even though my ego was screaming at me to get back to safety, my gut was stronger. And out of nowhere, major dance opportunities started popping up, and everything kind of fell into place. I’d like to think of it as a combination of, “You get out what you put in,” and “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”
Contact Info:
- Website: Photography Website: https://kazuyaphotography.myportfolio.com/
- Instagram: Dance Instagram: @JustinHasNoIG