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

Karena, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

Ever since I was a child, I’ve had this BIG imagination. When asked: “What do you want to be when you grow up?”, I would say ‘typical’ things like; Lawyer or Therapist (which were still desires) because I didn’t think anyone would take my dreams seriously–cause no one really had. But when I wrote things down, or played pretend in my room, I was always this multi-faceted dreamer. I knew I wanted to sing, act, dance, model and write. Being an actress, having one of those cool shows on Nickelodeon or being in a Disney Channel classic while being featured on the soundtrack. Or authoring several books and scoring films while also directing.. All things Performing and Visual arts was my imaginary friend. It was my hope that I’d be discovered before my teenage years. After accepting that “this would never happen” and I would have to live within the normalcy that surrounded me, I stopped pursuing it beyond a mere hobby–until college. It was on the campus of UNCP that I began to take a chance and blossom. I decided to do an open mic, reciting a freestyled poem and from there I woke back up! I went by Rena Speaks. After that, I became heavily involved on campus adding what I didn’t know at the time would be intricate parts of my now brand. Things like Student Government and other Advocacy organizations brought the Activist, Mentor and strategist out of me. Being a Music Major and acting in Plays kept me in tune with my first love. Campus events helped bring the speaker and planner out of me. I fell in love with every bit of these moments. By the time college had ended, I knew whatever spark I had, I wanted to learn more about it beyond the version only my younger self knew. I have learned since then that I AM the brand. Literally being myself has brought me here.

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?

Rena Speaks began as just my stage name as a Spoken Word artist and Poet. It is now a brand dedicated to empowering the voice and challenging perspective. I travel to share my spoken word and motivational speaking, I have spoken at events, on panels, hosted events and taught workshops for youth and adults interested in perfecting their craft as speakers and poets. I have also done Activism helping strategize politically and holistically in my local community. Youth mentoring has also been a passion for almost 1o years now. I have lead youth groups, Girl Scouts and have taken on Mentees full time from ages 6-18 and college aged young adults. I released K For The Culture Productions in 2020–an extension of the Rena Speaks brand, bringing imagination and imagery to life. I both model and assist with models, working with photographers for creative concept photoshoots, I directed my first short film in 2020 and started my first TV style series on Facebook Live called Dating Stories With Kay. This has also expanded me into photo editing and graphic design. Services I have provided aside from these are writing Vision and Mission statements, professional bios and summaries and brainstorming mottos, slogans and Business/Brand name suggestions.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

Society says to find a good 9-5, 40 hour a week job with benefits that you’ll keep until you retire. Society says that survival is more important than fulfillment–you don’t need to love what you do but only tolerate it so the bills can be paid. It has been hard explaining why I chose a Music Business degree. The #1 question you get with most of your decisions is “what are you going to do with that?” and honestly it’s hard to explain. Now career paths are GREAT! We need dedicated people in every field that currently exists, but for those of us who literally thrive off the ability to create what happens, it has been hard to stick to the status quo. It’s not convenient. It’s uncomfortable. It’s unpredictable. Punching a clock for a set amount is easier and more reliable. I truly don’t feel that I was meant to only help someone else’s dream function but to create my own. I’ll be honest, I’ve spent 90% of my time at every job I’ve had, spaced out in my imagination, jotting things down, thinking of how I can change something I noticed around me. I see everything as content. Anything at any moment can inspire you, and that is the hardest type of mind to keep in a box. It’s a frustrating process because the main goal is to get paid enough from your dreams to not need any ol job just to survive. We’re not crazy, we’re just trying to follow our God-given path. But while we are at your jobs and in your fields or in your classrooms, give us the space and opportunity to contribute to the space around us and bring a fresh approach and perspective. Our fulfillment will never just be based on the dollar you give us, but on what we were given the space to do in order to get it.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Stop looking for support to come from “seemingly required spaces”. You would think that your Family, Friends and people from your Hometown would support you the most–but truth be told, as much as it would be a no brainer, familiarity is not where support is the strongest. I use to get upset when those that I expected to support me didn’t. This world is filled with strangers and new connections that will love what you have and who you are from a fresh perspective. Never limit yourself to those around you. The whole world is waiting for you to share your gift. A stranger is somewhere waiting for the perfect person to invest into! Let go of the fear and don’t take it personal even if it is! Focus on who supports you rather than who doesn’t.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kfortheculture/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karena.atkinson2
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karena-atkinson-speaks/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4Av7p0A0-hLbneQE_udloA

Image Credits
Mekeshia White- Evolvement Photography Nathan Davis- PhotoArc 247