We recently connected with Qui Talks and have shared our conversation below.

Qui, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

As a media personality, it’s either you got it or you don’t. Yes, you can learn the techniques of being on camera as I did with Marki Castello’s Become a Host program and Patricia Stark’s On-Air Anchor courses, however personality is a talent that comes naturally. I could’ve sped up my learning process if I first majored in journalism or communications instead of graduating with a fashion and marketing degree. But then again, I never thought I’d turn my personality into a career. The skills I believe were most essential to me were hosting and camera techniques. Learning the correct ways to handle a mic during interviews, stances, piggybacking and more. The common obstacle that stood in the way of learning more was money. I needed money to pay for classes, equipment, travel, and a team. I could only do so much on a zero dollar budget.

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?

My name is Quisha Joacin, best known as Qui Talks. I am a media personality, bringing 10+ years of experience as a correspondent and host. I have graced many red carpets from the east coast to the west coast to get the real from our favorite celebrities and sat down with many like- minded entrepreneurs to talk about the hurdles they overcame to get where they are right now.

I started this brand back in 2012 during my final year in college. I had an internship with a celebrity stylist and my boss was starting a show named Style TV. He approached me about being his correspondent. He sent me to my first event, NFL Pop-up Shop in Manhattan, to interview NFL players about what they wear off the field. After that day, the rest was history. I received many emails and calls from various public relations company asking me to attend their events, conduct interviews, and even guest speak to create brand awareness, generate new leads, and get customers through their funnel. This was before the era of influencers. I made it a point to become the best at what I do, so I enrolled into many host, tv reporting, and camera technique classes to perfect my craft.

Since then I’ve been hired to cover and vlog about all things that relate to fashion, entertainment, and lifestyle. Qui Talks provides the following services:

Red-Carpet Correspondent – Outgoing, friendly, able to work in a high stress environment and create an easy red carpet experience. Qui Talks is an experience red carpet correspondent that can cover, report, and conduct one on one interviews at your red-carpeted events.

TV/Podcast/Radio Host – As a TV Host/Podcast Host, Qui Talks creates show formats, sketch out questions for guests and coordinate with producers, designers, and other staff members that will appeal to your listeners and keep them engaged?
Qui Talks will plan your show, research the topic for discussion, edit the final version of each episode, including adding transitions and music, and work with advertisers to produce lead-in copy

Emcee/Event Host – Qui Talks an emcee that will help move your event program forward by conducting a welcoming address, introduce special guests and other various acts of the event? Qui Talks will warm up the crowd to prepare them for the program ahead, while making the main stars of the show look good with smooth transitions between different segments of the show and keeping the crowd entertained.

On the Scene “Talker” – Come with Qui Talks as she explores, test, try, and creates brand awareness for events, festivals, brands, and more. Qui Talks is here to give your audience the hands-on experience to get more insight on the products or brands.

I am most proud of how far I’ve come with my brand. Never did I think as a child that I would be here today. I have been able to travel the world, meet and work with amazing people and brands, experience things many probably will never get a chance to do, and created my own black-owned company.

As I always tell all of my new and nervous clients, trust me and the process, I promise to make this the most comfortable and fun experience you’ll have on camera.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When I first moved to California in 2017, I was extremely excited and hopeful for my future, however, God had other plans. Although everything was perfect in the beginning, it quickly crumbled towards the end. Upon arriving to California, I had majority of my career mapped out. I had companies already sending black cars to pick me up for events and getting invites to the most exclusive events. My social media numbers were rising quickly and people were learning more about Qui Talks. Six months later, my finances were depleted, the show that I was producing had to be shelved because all the footages from the past six months disappeared, I became homeless, and I lost all of my contacts. I started to rethink my purpose, ambitions, dreams, and more. I was in a very dark place. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do this anymore.

I later moved back home to New York in 2019 and went back to school to get another degree in direct and interactive marketing. I decided that I will just work in marketing, but I wasn’t truly satisfied. I started a new season on my iHeart radio podcast after being gone for a year and my listeners were more than excited to have me back. My viewership grew quickly but at the same time covid knocked me off my pedestal. I was right back in a funky place. I started to think that this may not be my calling. During that time I got a call to come back to Los Angeles to help with the vaccinations for Covid. So I spoke with God and asked him if this was my sign to start again. He answered yes, so I went to Los Angeles to help with the vaccinations and filmed season 7 of the Qui Talks show. That season was the most stressful yet exhilarating season because I realized that the camera is where I was meant to be. I traveled back and forth between New York and California for the next two years covering events and interviewing fashion and entertainment celebrities.

Now my brand is 10 years strong and growing as more invites pour into my inbox and request for hosting and speaking gigs continue to grow. This past NYFW Fall’23 was a huge success and my team and I are working on traveling to Los Angeles and Miami to cover events as well. Many new brands are hearing of the way I grab the audience’s attention and wants to work with me in helping them build brand awareness for their company and products.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

A lesson I had to unlearn was not trusting my instincts. I had to learn to listen to my guts and move accordingly. Although I am responsible for the downfalls I’ve faced, many people had hands in altering decisions when it came to my career. Before I would just trust anyone that knew more than I did in the industry and assumed their interest was based on mine; I quickly learned that everyone is out for themselves. However, their are a select few people who are not only looking for self gain but to help you rise along the way. Those are the people who see a win no matter who wins because they too believe in the mantra “one hand washes the other.” Its unfortunate, but it is very hard to find those select few who really want to help you thrive and reach new levels. That is where I learned to trust energy and follow my instincts. I won’t really get into those stories but I can say that the losing of all the footage from my show in 2018 was a prime example of learning who is really in it for the whole versus the one.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.quitalks.show/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quitalks/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quitalksshow
• Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/quitalks
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVJ3WNkHg76iDi_2U5QHgAA

Image Credits
Photographers @silverdisobedience and @charlottereardon at Studio @creativecontentloft Photographers @bussalenz Photographers @fxcusedproductions Photographers @olsibeci_