We recently connected with Shara Kirby and have shared our conversation below.

Shara , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

Going from part-time to full-time work as a creative, let alone as an actor, came at an unlikely time. I was still recording auditions from my old home in Michigan a few years ago when my agency sent me an ASAP audition for a TJ Maxx commercial. Mind you, I had been submitting for commercials for a while at that point, and nothing stuck. So, I sent this particular audition out thinking it would be the same deal.

Only to get an email two days later from my agent asking for my avails.

I wasn’t exactly knowledgable about TV commercial spot rates, so when I got my first residual check in the mail? I nearly toppled over! From there, the reoccurring checks were enough to allow me to move to LA and continue my work as a performer and creator full time.

All I can say is that: If you put in the work, you’ll find what you want will come to you a lot sooner than you think.

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.

I’m a multi-hyphenate creative born and raised in the 313 (Detroit, what up dough?) At the moment in my career, I’m more well known for my performances in voice-over, bringing life to characters in animated series, video game titles, and more! An example of a notable role of mine would be portraying the English voice of “Candace” in the award-winning game “Genshin Impact”. I love my performing work, especially with my background in theatre when I was first starting out.

However, I’m not just a voice actor. I’m also an actor on camera and on the stage. I’m the creator of a few stories and even a comedic urban fantasy series that is in development. I’m also a new independent music artist under the stage name NICOLE-LYNN (I just released my very first single 80’s Dream Boat, out on all music platforms!)

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Believe it or not, my pivot happened to be voice-over! I’ve always admired the work done in cartoons and games that I grew up watching and playing, but never saw myself in one of those kinds of projects as there wasn’t much representation for young Black girls and women making it in that field.

Then, the pandemic happened. My dreams of moving to LA were dashed momentarily, and I was stuck at home without much to do creatively besides write. But I wanted to perform, so I started looking into possible options online. Twitter was a great source of information at the time (before the Musk invasion) and there were online remote workshops being offered to learn more about building your craft in voice-over. I used my unemployment to pay for classes, built up my indie demo reel, and soon booked my first job in VO within a months. My professional career as an actor had finally begun!

We’d love to hear your thoughts on NFTs. (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

Boo! Down with NFTs! I don’t think I’m in the minority when I say they’re not really great for the business of art nor for the planet’s health as a whole.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sharankirby.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sharanicolelynn
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharanicolelynn
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@sharanicolelynn