We were lucky to catch up with Jyrek Royalty recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jyrek, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

In my opinion, learning about Art and pursuing it is a constant state of educating yourself. Rather it be from drawing to painting. I started out practicing writing in cursive at a young age (5-6). At that time I used my mothers signature as a reference. I eventually excelled in that so I gravitated towards graffiti. This led to me getting into sketching, drawing cartoon characters from my favorite tv shows. Fast forward to 2017 I chose to transition to paint. The beginning stages were rough but with constant practice and challenging myself things get easier. The growth in my Art represents how patient I’ve become. Paying attention to the details, adding my twist to things and remembering to have fun with it.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

The name is Jyrek, the owner/creator behind the brand Justify Royalty. I’m a self taught artist who happens to customize things as well. Art has always had a hold on me, I separated from it for a bit when I chose to play organized basketball for Middleschool and Highschool. At that time I was hesitant about pursuing Art due to a lack of knowledge on how to make a income from it. It was until I came back from college, after completing my freshman year in 2017 that I chose to lock in with it. I had nothing else to lose at the time. The vision was crystal clear after customizing a denim jacket I had, and right then I knew. It started out as customizing other people’ denim jackets to attempting to customize shoes. I failed terribly on shoes the first time so chose to try canvas art next. After noticing my growth, I made a second attempt on shoes. This time it went great, so I’ve been on a mission every since. I now customize Clothing, Shoes, Canvas while also making original Art of my own. Digital art grabbed my attention early 2022, helping me sharpen my skills in the other sections of Art. To me I’m just the middle man between you and your idea. I’ve never declined a challenge and I don’t plan to. All my art is one of one. Top tier quality is the goal in every piece. I truly believe the art speaks for itself.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

A lesson I had to unlearn was seeking validation of my art and plans from the public. Back when I went public with my brand in 2018, I expected more engagement and support than I received. Posting Art to receive more followers and to expand my audience. The first year and a half were the hardest. I was already down mentally from having to leave college and my art wasn’t receiving the love I thought it should’ve. After while you tell yourself forget the engagement just do it for the love of Art. It wasn’t til that shift that my business started growing. I keep that in my head at all times, it keeps me inspired to do my own thing. You may not receive the love or support from people you expect but there are over seven billion people in the word, somebody will.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

For me, the most rewarding aspect is the journey from each piece. It remind me of a rollercoaster. I always get nervous or anxious in the beginning, the middle stage is confusing at times and make you have to trust in your ability. Once you get close to the end you start to rejoice and sit back like wow, that wasn’t as hard as I thought. The cherry on top is seeing the clients reaction to the final project. Never fails.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/justifyroyalty?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jyrek.robinson.3?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@justifyroyalty

Image Credits
All professional photos taken by Parrish D Barnes //@dynamic_aesthetics