We recently connected with Maria Fernanda and have shared our conversation below.

Maria Fernanda, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I’m an entertainment journalist and a professional dancer, from Venezuela, living in Miami since 2016. I have my own platform “It’s Maria Fernanda” where I get to interview music celebrities & currently I’m a soloist in “America Viva”, which is a show that delivers a powerful message about diversity and inclusion through incredible music and dances.

So the first time I knew I wanted to be a dancer, my mother told me I was 6 years old, dancing was (& still is) my everything, but the exact time I decided to pursue it professionally, I was 17 years old. I remember rehearsing and auditioning a lot to be part of the company, I’m now dancing with.

The first time I knew I wanted to be an Entertainment Journalist, I was in high school, loving every movie, tv-show and music celebrity out there. I dreamt of one day, interviewing them to get to know their stories, and now, still can’t believe it’s happening.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Six years ago, I arrived in this country with a temporary visa that only allowed me to study. I already had a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication with a minor in Public Relations and Advertisement, so my perfect option (as I wanted to be a tv host on Univision/Telemundo) was a Master’s in Spanish Journalism. While in classes, I decided to open a YouTube channel and started creating entertainment content just for fun until one day, I invited a friend over to appear on a video, and without realizing it, it became an interview. Then it hit me: I can use YouTube as my own tv show!

Since that day, I got so excited and started planning who can I interview. First, I went with all my blogger friends and since I didn’t have the right equipment to shoot, I rented them from my university as a “Class Project” every time I had an interview. Then, I started going to different types of events where celebrities would go. I introduced myself and asked them if I could interview them for my channel. Luckily they all said yes and connected me to their celebrity friends. Thankfully I had little angels that helped me with professional makeup and perfect outfits for each shooting.

Then once my work permit arrived, I created and edit my demo reel and sent it to every entertainment media outlet in Miami. Only one person gave me the opportunity and I will always be grateful for that. Since that day, I have been living my dream to the fullest: I have interviewed many Latin music celebrities that I have admired since I was little like Carlos Vives and Thalia; Hollywood movie stars such as Zachary Levi. In addition, I got to meet incredible people who work in the media industry and covered red carpets from shows that I used to watch on TV while lying down in my bed in my country Venezuela.

Now, in 2020, I decided to continue on my own and started “IT’S MARIA FERNANDA”, a media platform that helps and motivates other women to pursue their dreams through valuable content and inspirational talks, so they can trust themselves and get to be the rockstars they were meant to be! I want to inspire women and young girls around the world to be themselves & believe in their potential, to conquer their dreams.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Definitely, the most rewarding aspect for me as a creative, is that I get to entertain people’s life. You never know when someone is going through something difficult and the fact that I can make their day a little bit better or simply by putting a smile on their faces, means everything to me.

As an artist, is feeling free. Nothing compares to being on stage, doing what you love, and feeling the world disappearing around you. You feel like dreaming for sure.

: Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Of course! As I said before, my dream goal is to inspire women and young girls around the world to be themselves & believe in their potential, to conquer their dreams. I want them to have a voice of their own, to make every dream possible, and to be the stars they were born to be, in anything they want to achieve.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.itsmariafernanda.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsmariafernannda/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ITSMARIAFERNANDA/featured

Image Credits
-Marco Photoshoot -Ricardo De Azevedo -Ayanirys Photo