We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kori Poe a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kori , looking forward to hearing all of your stories 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.

From an early age, I can recall my mother making sure that my older brother and I understood the importance of having Faith in Christ. Even before she became the mighty woman of Faith that she would eventually become, she would have our cousins pick us up for Sunday School and church. Later in life she became a staple in our church community. Not as a pastor, or minister, but as an usher. Her single gold tooth could be seen glistening as she welcomed people into the House of God. I witnessed her praise and pray for me as I chose a lifestyle of the streets. Her faith never wavered. She was generous and kind to all she encountered. I remember telling her that I wanted to become an actor, she paid for my acting classes, and before we knew what a professional headshot was,(lol)..she took an old school digital camera and snapped a picture of me gazing into the clouds while hanging onto a branch of a tree that we had in our backyard! She always believed that great things were going to be done through me. Her Faith in God and in her second born offered comfort to me in my darkest hours. I came to Faith later in life, but the demonstration and determination of my mother always drove me to pursue my dreams without doubting. Her work ethic was insane, my brother and I til this very day credit our mother for our success. We work hard, and pray harder. We carry the legacy of Faith, kindness, servitude, and diligence of our dear mother. These are the ingredients that have made us go further and harder.

Kori , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Kori Poe is the exuberant, larger than life persona of Corey Dixon, which is my birth name. I’m from a small town named Calhoun, GA, about an hour north of Atlanta. The name Poe is actually an acronym for P.romise O.ver E.verything. This speaks to that Gods promise and co-sign reigns supreme over everything in this world. I also use the name Poe, as a nod to Edgar Allen Poe. I love his poetic style and descriptive language in his writings. The Tell-Tale Heart is one of my favorite pieces of art. I used to be a rapper (everybody wants to be a rapper, right?), I was heavily influenced by 2-Pac, Bone Thugz-N-Harmony, Jay-Z, Nas, Eminem and OutKast. It was the way that they put words together, their unique cadences that inspired me. They reminded me of preachers. Saying that to say this, expressive arts have always been dear to me. As a former class-clown, I’ve always had a niche for “performing”. There was no school for the arts in my area, so the gift became a curse. I stayed in trouble, looking back, I believe the reason was because there wasn’t an outlet for my passions. I began recording music in my early 20’s, becoming a local celebrity. I was invited to tour out in Sikeston, MO. It just so happened that Yo Gotti was along the same circuit at that time, however; at that time, I didn’t know him to be who has become. A strange thing happened to me one night while performing. I was trying to “holla” at a young lady I met prior to hitting the stage. She showed zero interest. While performing, I threw my UGA jersey into the crowd. A small tussle erupted. After the crowd dispersed and I descended from the stage, this same lady brought my jersey to me neatly folded, and looking all goo-goo eyed. She invited me to her home after telling me her life story. At that moment I began running down the facts, I’m half-way across the country, it’s late, I’m a little wasted, and I was pre-warned that chicks were known to set up out of “out-of-towners”to be robbed, and in some instances Un-Alived. God had also been internally calling me to repent of my lifestyle choices, so this moment shook me to my core I half-reluctantly declined. From that moment I began reconsidering the life of an entertainer, and all of the challenges that accompanied it. At least in music anyway. Fast forward to February 2012, the year Whitney Houston died. This was the time I had began taking acting classes to pursue a lifelong dream of becoming an actor. I remember seeing a legend fall by the devices that stardom offered, so again, in fear of my own demons cutting my life short, I chose to leave the entertainment sector. Now, fast, fast forward to 2021. After years of allowing my Faith in Christ to develop, once again I entered into the acting profession. This time, things accelerated for me. Thanks to intensive training by Jibril Haynes, Angela Davis, Chuck Brown and Na’ Stubbs, along with receiving instructions from some of the Worlds best actors and actresses, doors flew open! God’s timing is always perfect. When preparation meets opportunity, success is birthed. This didn’t come by saying yes to every project, I denied some roles because they went against my core values. At this time in my career, I choose to only focus on projects that not only entertain, but educate. Especially projects dealing with faith and mental health issues. Not only am I an actor, I am a Minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. One of the hardest things that I’ve come to struggle with is the balance of being a Christian, an influencer, an actor, a husband, a father, and working a management position with a solar cell conglomerate. I’ve found that boldly stepping into the unique being that God has designed me to be “is” the balance. Being led of His Spirit is the best place to be at all times. My hopes is to be a light and encourager to those from backgrounds of obscurity, failure, and the likes. Life is too short and too dope to be lived in the shadows and on the sidelines, you gotta get in the game. From prison cells, to funerals, to church houses, to the world
of entertainment, I’ve lived a full life and more importantly, I’m still here to tell the story. This is what makes my sphere of influence more expansive and relatable. I’m for the whosoever’s of the world. I’m not for everybody, and that’s perfectly ok. For those to whom I’ve been called to serve, is all that concerns me.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

Prayer, seeing things from Gods perspective. Understanding that our vantage point is finite, and that His is eternal, opens our eyes and awareness to see the unseen realm of impossibilities made possible.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Transparency. Be transparent, also say what you mean and mean what you say. Be the example and set the tone. People follow what they can touch, when your vision is fleshed out by your actions, your team will follow the vision because of your own buy-in. Leaders are or to be more like thermostats, as opposed to being thermometers. Thermostats set the temperature, while thermometers reflect the climate it’s in. I hope that makes sense?

Contact Info:

• Instagram: _koripoe
• Facebook: Kori Poe

Image Credits

Justin Case Photography