Often, those who tread off the beaten path are misunderstood or mischaracterized and so we asked folks from the community to reflect and tell us about the times they’ve been misunderstood or mischaracterized.

The Pennsoulvanians

When we say The Pennsoulvanians, we’re not just talking soul as in the style of music we play, but also the core of our being. The thing that truly makes us who we are. We genuinely create from our SOUL and as a band, we are as diverse as the people that reside within our community. So naturally the music we make is diverse too. Read more>>

Joe Hughes III

I remember hearing strange responses to my writings: “The speaker sounds like two people, one educated and one low class,” (because the two are mutually exclusive, right?) “Some of the terms are foreign; can you explain them to your readers more?” They’re questioning my experience! And I took that personally, too, like “Damn, I need to step it up!” Meanwhile, it be the same folks asking me to do the work that they refuse to do. I caught on, though; had to start listening to me and trusting that I knew what I was talking about. Read more>>

Goonie Jay

As an artist being misunderstood is a blessing and a curse. The misunderstanding of who some of us are as people, and the stories we tell sometimes scares people away, but this year I began to see if used to leverage the right way, those same stories can become inspirational rather than confusing. Read more>>

Kymbra Li

I’ve always been misunderstood and the difference now that I’m older is that I don’t fight with people to try and make them get me. I am a very direct, real, open and honest person and with the current state of the world, it seems people would rather be lied to than hear the truth, so people will label me ‘rude’ when I’m simply stating a fact. It’s like if your dad is Charles Manson, and I say your father was a murderer, you will get mad at me for being rude- instead of getting mad at your father for being a psycho! Read more>>

Timothy Hoey

Folks often see me in the middle of the day out and about and assume that being a self employed artist has plenty of free time. Truth is I am up by at least 5, painting in the studio, and then often painting again late into the night. A ‘regular’ job would give me more free time I imagine but I think I might just be a little too ruined for that kind of thing now. Read more>>

Rohini Chandra

Misunderstanding comes in some forms in relation to my experience. Read more>>

Ariana Harbin

Everyone has been understood at one point or another. In my experience, this phenomena of mischaracterization has been centered around my blackness in relation to the music I create. I’ve been performing music for years with various groups and have dabbled in genres like jazz, rock, pop, rap, electronica, and more. Read more>>

Kidarah

My whole life I have felt like an outcast. Growing up as a mixed girl in an all Jewish private school was confusing and caused a bit of an identity crisis for me. Constantly being surrounded by people who looked nothing like me but represented half of who I am helped me learn much about my moms side of the family and, of course, about Judaism. But as I grew, I fell into more confusion because being surrounded by so much religion taught me that I am not a religious person. Read more>>

Angela Gómez Durán

My debut art show was a smashing success. Among the twenty pieces displayed, I managed to sell fourteen. Since some couldn’t attend the opening, I arranged personalized showings to display the artworks to them. I even invited a friend from the acting world (yes, I’m an actress too). With enthusiasm, I shared my achievements with him and asked if he’d like to see my creations. Read more>>

Trent Longo

Throughout my life I have always felt projected upon. It happens to all of us constantly. These projections of who we are thought to be are often based on our individualistic choices are in how we dress, the type of music we listen to, how we look, how we talk, or anything else seemingly perceivable about us. I’ve always really disliked the idea of being put into a box or category of person. I’ve never felt like any one category. Read more>>

Erin Marie Hurley

Very often I feel overlooked or not included for acting and modeling jobs due to having Down Syndrome. Read more>>

Sweet Myths

We are a rock band, a jazz band, a funk band, a disco prog-pop band we will make and write anything that we wanna write we don’t wanna be trapped in one label and while people in the music industry would say that’s not marketable. I feel like this idea of branding as a “genre” band or artist is becoming less important these days. People wanna see the artists they follow change evolve and develop. I think that’s a beautiful thing, we don’t really fit anywhere and maybe that’s a good thing. Read more>>

Christopher Leyva

It is very difficult still to this day in America to be recognized for being a performing artist – they seem to pigeon hole me as almost a lower artist due to my latin heritage! Or pigeonhole me as a latin music maker when my craft is Rock N Roll! – yet our culture are seen as criminals or uneducated creatures and yet we have some incredible literary poets and dreamers, yes we may be a bit unruly but that is in our blood on centuries of oppression. Read more>>

ozzy the grouch

My brand has always pushed to be on the fringe of what’s acceptable to the average listener. I’ve gained a lot of fans in the process but it’s also driven a lot of people to view me as an uncaring sort of person. That couldn’t be farther from the truth as I genuinely live my life hoping to help as many as I can. Read more>>

Nicole Eckenroad

When have I been misunderstood or mischaracterized? First, I’ll say, this is unique to me, we all feel misunderstood at some point or often and it’s one of the most isolating experiences a human can have. For me, it has had one of the greatest impacts on me throughout my life. Read more>>

Priscilla Moy

The biggest thing that I represent in my craft is that I do not fit in. The biggest pride that I have in my work is that I am living the dream and message my younger self set. Back when I started it was less inclusive than it is now. You’re looking at a 5’2 petite Chinese- American looking to be a fashion model and film actress who is starting out doing school plays. If I were to walk into an agency with nothing except myself, I knew it would be laughable. Read more>>

Idris Veitch

This is such a challenging topic to condense as I have experienced this in some form or the other throughout my life. Read more>>

Elisha Floyd

Considering yourself part of an alternative fashion community can come with a lot of misunderstandings from all different sides! From folks thinking you’re wearing a costume of a character- when you’re actually just a person expressing your personal daily style, to folks making assumptions that maybe you’re an oddball, or someone who must not be a professional in their work life balance. People forget hobbies are an important part of finding who you are as a person, and they come in all types and don’t look just one way! Read more>>

Trentino

I often feel my skill set is too wide for my own good. Winning the Red Bull 3style USA Championship put me in a category I never intended to be in. I was already making a living playing and creating dance music in Chicago and around the Midwest, but suddenly I was sent around the country and globe as a hip hop DJ. Read more>>

Brielle Galekovic

“What do you do?” is a question I get asked frequently, as I am sure a lot of people do. My response: “Where do I begin?” To put it simply, I am a creative professional in this new-age social and digital space. I am an on-air host and lifestyle expert, founder of my own lifestyle brand, content creator, writer, creative director, blogger, producer, event producer, branding expert, and entrepreneur. As the days change, so does what needs to be created, whether that’s content for my brand, The Gilded Bellini or for other brands. Read more>>

Clash

As you begin to reach for your dreams, you will often miscategorize yourself. I know I have. I wanted to be “that rapper”, “an underwear model” or so many other things that didn’t properly show the people what I have to offer. This becomes apparent when you study your peers. Read more>>

Paida

I’ve had some sudden growth lately while pursuing this career path, which means that my style and music has reached a lot of new eyes, many of which who were outside of the intended audience. Of course, this is the goal for many artists so we can expand our reach a lot of like minded and open minded people. In tandem with that, is a rather vocal minority of people who simply do not understand what they’re seeing and do not care to. Read more>>

Leslie Hidalgo

After joining the military, I began to feel a decline in my comprehension and cognitive abilities. During my second technical training school, which was a 46 week basic Russian course, I was really struggling. I would work really hard to remain average in my performance. I started to question whether I was the dumbest of the smart kids or the smartest of the dumb kids. It was a very troubling internal dialogue to have over and over. Read more>>