We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Quay Walden a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Quay thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
The first time I knew I wanted to pursue a creative artistic path professionally was literally all my life but I put action behind my thoughts and words May of last year. I’ve always been a creative , I’ve danced all of my life, I auditioned for every High School For Performing arts in New York ,was enrolled briefly then, Unfortunately I was forced into my zone school , later graduating college with a legal studies degree. However, I always kept dance close not wanting to be a professional dancer but somehow be able share my creative in a way that would make my heart full , fast forward last year is when I knew it’s now or never ,
Last year my fifteen yr old daughters were on a dance team , but somehow I found myself every week recording their sessions and teaching them step by step at home because they were not getting the attention they needed . The coach was not personable, the team barely spoke to each other, it was so QUIET in the studio, it seemed like the first day was EVERY DAY, in my opinion I felt the girls with more experience got the attention while the others were left to in my opinion keep up and wing it. I started to feel like this establishment was more about the dollar than the dancing. Being more personable, creating bonding experiences with the team, minimizing the team’s or teammate’s struggles for example a toe touch until they can maximize it ,could be a key factor in the teams success. Nine months later, recital fees are due in total of $650 . I picked up the girls recital uniform from the dance school , the uniform look to have been ten dollars , very tacky and delivered in a white garbage bag to serve as the plastic the cleaners use , that day I got a full refund for the uniforms and withdrew my daughter’s.
For months I searched my town for a dance team for my girls, I came across three total. One being out the way, one being way to pricy and the last not being very diverse. Weeks went on and again my daughters came to me stating “Mom we miss dancing, when are we going to dance again” , Me knowing the search was not going so well I took that moment and said to myself “Ima Start my own dance team”. I went on the NextDoor app with no resources in place and no real plan and I posted about starting a dance team , the Mcdonough Flame Aura Hip Hop Majorettes . The feedback I received was so overwhelming , my anxiety rocketed and I started to second guess myself and my potential to pull this off . On that post some beautiful beings reached out . First Kerra Miller whom her and her husband Mike Haskins are the owners Of TotalFit Lifestyle , they provided the team with an absolute wonderful space for us to practice. Deanna Gills whom reached out and took the role of Ass’t Coach, along the way bringing Nina Goss & Kaylah Lovelace-Huddleston. All three ladies have extensive dance resumes. Deanna Gills is professionally trained in lyrical , jazz & majorette , also dancing middle school throughout college. Nina Goss attended Jacobs Dance Academy dancing nationally and competing in jazz , hip hop and modern dance , she also trained and danced with Clayton State Laker Dance team . Kaylah Lovelace -Huddleston is an active praise dancer at First Breakthrough Ministries , professionally trained in a jazz , hip hop and contemporary/modern dance, she has also been a dance instructor since 2018 . Lastly the Manager of Operations Colby Greenlee , my partner . Colby makes sure literally everything operates smooth each and every practice while we’re tied up with the girls . I can always depend on whatever I may forget on the agenda , her to remind me , and anything that may be of a distraction her to handle so I don’t have to take away from the team during our limited time to practice. She’s does so much behind the scenes and I’m grateful to have her.
God really has blessed me with the four of them , as he aligned my stars to step into my divine purpose as the Director of the Mcdonough Flame Aura Majorettes.
Quay, 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?
My Name is Quay Walden , I am the Founder & Director of the Mcdonough Flame Aura Hip Hop / Majorettes Dance Team Est 2022. Flame Aura, a vibrant colorful quartz with a meaning of energy, excitement and motivation! The FAM was created to provide a diverse sisterhood for young girls ages 5-15 in McDonough . Here they are able to express themselves through creative majorette and hip hop dance in an environment of trust and respect. Flame Aura encourage positivity, empower, uplift and instill values into our young queens, teaching them to
always hold their heads high so that their crowns never tilt. We are FAM(ily)!
Flame Aura Affirmation “Young Queen Your Aura Exudes Confidence” and always remember “Progress over Perfection” . I am most proud of the confidence and love instilled into the girls at Flame Aura. We are a team who accepts all beginners, intermediate, advanced, shy , introverted or extroverted. I’ve noticed some of the girls who came in super shy and introverted have grasped onto their Flame Aura and they are a joy to watch and I feed off that energy . I see it and their parents see the confidence illuminating them .I am proud of the Love in the room , how when the girls walk in they greet me with the warmest hugs , and are elated to see one another . When it’s time to leave they don’t want to go , and I can see the excitement for next practice . These girls make me so happy to see their want to learn new counts and stands , how it excites them to learn new things , grasp it and add their spice to it . I look forward to the girls every single week , each and every one of them . Not to mention the support of the Flame Aura Parents , whom goes by the F.A.Mily . Their support is unmatched and I appreciate them wholeheartedly!
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
The goal for me right now with Flame Aura is to one day have my own dance studio. I want to be able to have more freedom with the girls as far as practice, meetings, unscheduled meets , etc. Often the girls ask why can’t they practice more and that’s because it does cost and as of right now I am pouring everything gained from Flame Aura back into Flame Aura, Im not complaining, this is where my heart is , however that’s a goal of mine, to have my own studio where I can lock and unlock the doors as I please and can literally be our home studio. I want to brand Flame Aura to where all of Georgia and the rest of the world Knows about us, not just the town of Mcdonough. Also any opportunities to perform and/or partnerships feel free to email us at [email protected] , follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
There are multiple rewarding aspects in being an creative starting with I can take it wherever I want it to go. It’s really an unexplainable feeling seeing your vision come to life. As the director what I don’t like we can scrap , what I do like we can maximize it , and often I look to the team for their input . Flame Aura had their debut public appearance at the Mcdonough “Coming Together At Christmas “ parade 2022’ and they really put on a show and dominated the crowd. In that moment I was reassured internally that Flame Aura is going to touch a lot of lives ,another rewarding aspect was seeing all the hard work they put in, show forth. Hearing the crowd chant and holler for them was AMAZING! Honestly it felt like I won a Grammy that night . Being able to help each girl individually exude confidence and strength will always be the target , and the rewarding aspect is being able to be apart of such journey.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/flameaura_f.a.m?igshid=MDM4ZDc5MmU=
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089600568512
- Other: https://instagram.com/quays_way?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ= https://www.tiktok.com/@quays_way?_t=8ZL4u2pl8yA&_r=1 https://instagram.com/deanna_sierra_?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ= https://instagram.com/hnmbynina?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ= https://instagram.com/gloryspaces?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ=