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

Hi Marcus, thanks for joining us today. Can you tell us about a time that your work has been misunderstood? Why do you think it happened and did any interesting insights emerge from the experience?

For the most part, I believe it is second nature for us as human beings to paint the picture of a canvas that’s already been blessed with a beautiful creation.

We prejudge people before we get to know them. We already know how this person talks and what they’re interested in. We’ve all heard the saying, “Never judge a book by its cover.”

L.Y.L.A.H. promotes that being misunderstood doesn’t invalidate the authenticity of who you truly are. We see it as a representation of someone or something of its own unique value. L.Y.L.A.H. isn’t just an acronym for Love You Like A Human; it’s self-empowerment, beauty, and acknowledgment, but more importantly, it’s you!

You are the canvas; continue to let the brush of your life paint what some may continuously misunderstand, an image that I’m Human!

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?

L.Y.L.A.H. is a platform to share stories that captures humanity at its best. L.Y.L.A.H. is an acronym for Love You Like A Human. We are known for our annual photo event that brings all walks of life together to capture and frame that imperfect moment to perfection. Each month L.Y.L.A.H. shares a story of overcoming odds for individuals and success stories of celebrating diversity at its finest. We also highlight specific hot-button issues affecting minorities and communities needing a voice. With our photo events being a success, which brought different lives as one, I would say seeing genuine joy and happiness of those who take part in the event showed a glowing glimpse of what the world should and seek to be. What sets L.Y.L.A.H. apart is that we welcome and acknowledge the individuality of those we engage with. No life story is “better” or “worse”, it’s that person’s story that has formed them to who they are today. With being able to shine a light on that journey, with understanding, there’s a great appreciation. At the end of the day we are all human beings.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

At the time, as manager, Mike Ludwick, who is one of the Co-Founder, this was brought to his attention… “Two women, one college-educated who I will name June, the other a single mother of two I will call Mary for the remainder of the story. Mary was a legal resident but on a work Visa. June and Mary were talking on a break at work. June started to ask Mary why she did not attend college and Mary said that her priority is her children and that she could not afford to go to college. June said, well, you could get some grants. Mary said; “unfortunately, I do not qualify for grant money because of my citizenship.” June said, “well at least you don’t have to pay taxes.” Mary was a bit put off by this statement because she does pay taxes but gets none of the benefits of being a citizen like her. So June continued with statements that were offensive, such as June offered Mary to “hook her up” with a man to marry so she could become a legal citizen. This was all brought to my attention because I was their manager. So many injustices happened and I may be forgetting some of the details. I was driving home that night after work and was just thinking and was saying to myself, why don’t people just love each other like brothers and sisters. I said out loud, why not love each other like humans, the expression “love you as a brother” came to mind and I said, “Love You Like A Human.” chills ran through me and I knew then it was special. I went home and wrote my mom on Facebook about starting a clothing line called “love you like a human” L.Y.L.A.H. Not too long after that, the vision was shared with Marcus & Aiden… The catalyst!”

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The rewarding aspect about what we do is having the opportunity to share stories from all walks of life. Being allowed and able to hear some of the most delicate moments in people lives is something we consider a true honor. Love, race, religion, life preference; are all things that mode us to who we are. With that comes judgment, comes vulnerability, and emotions. However, this is where here at L.Y.L.A.H. we can project our mission, which is to accept and respect every flaw, every color, and all of our differences. We are more alike than we are different. So the “challenges” we will continue to embrace and accept as long as we can change the narrative when it comes to love, especially the encouragement of self-love.

Contact Info:

• Website: lylahuman.wixsite.com/loveyoulikeahuman
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/l.y.l.a.h
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/L.Y.L.A.H
• Twitter: twitter.com/L_Y_L_A_H
• Other: lylah-2.creator-spring.com/apparel

Image Credits
Co-Founder: Michael Ludwick Photos Credited to: Krysten Brown (Kryslynnphotography) Photos Credited to: Aiden Summers