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

Tony, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

The way that I learn to be a visual artist and designer was through years of self-practice. In high school, I took a graphic design course but it just touched on the basics of the tools in Adobe Photoshop. I decided to take it ti another level and teach myself the full Adobe Suite as well as Procreate. Studying various artists on Youtube and taking notes on their techniques while implementing my own creative thoughts into a design. Most times, I can view a design and tell you exactly what the artist did step by step. Knowing what I know now, I would have studied more diligently. Not knowing this was the exact route I wanted to go until a few years in, I elevated my skills at a slower pace than I would have liked to. The obstacles that stood in my way in the transition of becoming a visual artist/visual illustrator was myself. I thought it would be easy and I jumped in with no knowledge of techniques but quickly had to take a step back to learn the basics as I did with learning graphic design.

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 Tony “HiTone” McDaniels from St. Louis, MO, currently residing in Atlanta, GA. I am a graphic designer, marketing strategist and visual artist. Getting into this industry started in 2011 when I was pursuing to be a music artist. I watched one of my friends design my cover art for a project I was working on and I realized it was easier than I thought, I just didn’t have the program on my computer. The next semester, I enrolled in the Photoshop course where I excelled quickly then went on to be a self-taught designer diving deeper into the design world. By college, I had begun my own freelance business and by the end of college, I was known across the Midwest and the designer to go to for event flyers, business logos & more.

I specialize in flyer design, logo branding, motion visuals, presentation designs, web development/user interface, music artist visual/rollouts and marketing campaigns. I help clients creatively market their brand to ensure their target audience is captivated. Most clients do not have a creative idea but they know they want to do something in that realm and that’s where I come in. I provide quick turnaround times, faster than most designers while still providing quality work. I always let my clients know, I treat their brand like my own because indirectly it is. When someone asks them who designed this, they have to mention me and I want both of us to have a great reputation for what we have done collaboratively.

As far as becoming a visual artist, I want future fans of my work to know that there is a story in everyone. Your story can resonate with somebody out there who is ultimately your target audience. Focus on them. Not the people you don’t have as fans!

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

At this moment & I can honestly say for the next few years; my goal that is driving my creative journey is to showcase my artwork in museums across the U.S. then across the world. Selling exclusive 1 of 1 art pieces to collectors. Art has many disciplines and whether a painting is on canvas or digital, it still holds value if there is a story connected. I strive to be that artist!

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

After the pandemic, well even during the pandemic, was a time I had to pivot my career/business. AI was emerging and I was one of those who was in denial about it taking over. I still am but it can only replace so much. When a client is looking for that personable interaction to bring their brand to life or a collector wants to know the story behind an art piece or how long it took you, quoting AI will hurt value. This is when I had the idea of jumping into the art space and creating my own pieces. If AI were to take over the graphic design industry, it’ll be hard to step into the true artist industry and we all view art as an asset.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.hitone-dma.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/lil_freddy
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/_hitone_
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@Hitone7?si=VqjBfYemQp6lBV_5

Image Credits
Quality Lenz