We were lucky to catch up with Yelena Rodriguez recently and have shared our conversation below.
Yelena, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
I knew I wanted to pursue an artistic path professionally, since I was seven years old. I’ve always known that my purpose was to become a singer someday, but I didn’t know how I would get there. One day, when my dad came home from work, he brought a dvd and the dvd was “Selena” the movie starring Jennifer Lopez and Edward James Olmos. At this time, I had no clue who Selena was and how she passed at the age of 23, way before I was born, so I never got a chance to see her live or truly get to know her, but once I watched the movie I felt amazed,I felt like I knew her, and felt her story was so relatable. The reason why I fell in love with music, was because of Selena. Selena truly inspired me to wanting to become a famous singer like herself someday, and to just inspire others, just like she did. From there, I realized I knew how to sing, because I would sing along to her songs, and mimic the way she sang, and then from there I figured out that I had a voice. Also, I would mimic her dance moves, and would do the same with other artists that I felt inspired by at that time. Unfortunately, at this time, I realized I had a bad case of stage fright, and I wasn’t able to conquer it until the age of 15. When I finally decided to take the courage to sing in front of others, and then from there the rest was history. In all, I truly feel my purpose is to become a famous international latin artist and to use my career as a way to inspire others and create a legacy. Music has always been my first love, and that will never change.
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?
Yelena is a Cuban- Dominican Latin soul artist and Boston Music Awards 2022 Latin artist of the year and 2023 Nominee. Born in Boston, MA and growing up in Orlando and Cape Coral, Florida, she has been singing since the age of 7 and performing since the age of 15. She began recording music in 2019, and since then, her music career has taken off— and continues to prosper. Throughout her life, Yelena has overcame obstacles, traumas and adversities that make her who she is today. Yelena is a survivor of domestic violence, has experienced relationships where she dealt with emotional, psychological and mental abuse, and with this she hopes to help other women and men in the future who has dealt with similar experiences, and wants to create a safe space for them to where they can tell their story. In the future, Yelena hopes to go around the world and speak on the serious case of human trafficking and domestic violence that occurs nationwide and internationally.
Also, yelena throughout her life has struggled with body image issues, and has grown to learn how to love and cherish her body, and showcases that a lot in her music and brand. Yelena hopes to help others who have deal with the same thing and help them see their own beauty within themselves. Yelena is known to have a very deep rooted soulful voice, causing one to feel all types of emotions. These emotions resonate with you to the point where you may fall in love too. Once you listen and see her perform, you see the goosebumps come out and emotions heighten. Yelena’s biggest goals as an artist are to continue connecting with her listeners and inspire many individuals through her story and lyrics and to become an award-winning multi-platinum international sensation. Renowned artists such as Selena Quintanilla, Toni Braxton, Snoh Alegra, La India, Christina Aguilera, Adele, Hector Lavoe, La Lupe, Bob Marley, H.E.R have been some of her greatest inspirations and influenced her music style today. Yelena truly wants to help others through her music, and everytime her fans listen to her, she wants her fans to feel empowered and feel that they are more than capable to achieve anything in this lifetime. What sets Yelena apart from the rest, is that she has a unique sound to her and a unique voice, and many people feel attracted to her energy and essence. Yelena is most proud to be the first latina in massachusetts to win the boston music awards “latin artist of the year” in 2022 and nominee in 2023. The award was last given over 30 years ago!
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
The particular goal or mission that is driving my creative journey, is the knowing that I was brought into this world to create an impact and inspire others through my voice, platform, and speak to those about my learned experiences, so that they could feel that they aren’t alone and that they are more than capable of creating the life that they want.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creative, is being able to connect with those from all walks of life and being able to see the smiles on their faces when performing and speaking to them. It’s truly a beautiful experience to just be able to share your music with the public and see how react. I am truly grateful for those who have reached out to me stating to me that my music helped them, because I never thought my music could ever help those, especially when I am so hard on myself and feel that I could be better, but it truly makes me happy when those felt that I helped them in some way, and I want to continue to do that as an upcoming artist.
Contact Info:
Image Credits
@Jmicaphotography
@brunoortet
@Graineydazestudios
@javi.x.gutierrez