Are artists born or made? To help answer this question, we asked some of the most artistic folks we know to tell us about how they knew they were going to pursue an artistic or creative path. We’ve shared highlights below.

Krak Baby

I was born to be an artist. I came out of my mother already humming melodies and beat boxing lol. I was hooked on listening to music I couldn’t fall asleep without playing Madonnas album. And the older I got the more I saw the power that music had. You could reach the world and change the world. Impact people’s lives in a positive way. I knew it was my destiny from day one. Read more>>

Christopher Brown

While my mother encouraged me to take piano lessons at age five, a real commitment towards music–and drums in particular–didn’t begin until age 12. And since my father had just left Diana Ross’s band as her drummer of 11-12 years, I was suddenly afforded an opportunity to observe his lifestyle more closely. And since I liked what I saw, I chose to create the same music-centered life as well. Read more>>

Rocio G Montiel

The fact that I realized that I couldn’t be happy without making art, is what moved me to pursue a career. It is unfulfilling and painful not to be doing what really makes your essence vibe and feel alive. The idea of living with the “What if” thought, was pretty daunting. It came to a point in my life that I realize I couldn’t continue making art just occasionally, there was something missing and I realized it. Read more>>

Isaac Rubio

From a very young age, I was a fan of stories, comics, and animated movies. I would spend hours drawing my favorite Disney characters and fill my school notebooks with sketches. My dream was to become a comic book artist. When I first saw the movie “The Lion King” in theaters at the age of 6, I was blown away and knew that I wanted to bring my drawings to life. Read more>>

Layken Urie

From a very young age! I’m incredibly thankful to have a family who noticed my love of music as a child, and began performing when I was four. (photo attached) From that moment on, music was just apart of who I was. I’m so so lucky to be able to pursue a professional career in something that means so much to me! Read more>>

Share Cherrie

I knew when I was a child watching reruns of Gillian’s Island and Land of the Lost that I wanted desperately to be in the filmmaking business. Back then, I wanted to be a star like Ginger! I learned later in life that my true passion was behind the scenes. Thinking, building, dreaming, and creating. Read more>>

Raichl Davenport

I knew that I wanted to take this hobby to the professional level after the support and positive feedback I received after creating my first piece for someone else. In 2018 I had been making small art pieces for myself: fabric flowers, Black faces in a natural setting, and simply exploring with African fabrics that caught my eye in the stores. Read more>>

Hans Hernke

This all started for me when I was in High School. I went to The Master’s Academy, a Christian school in Oviedo, Florida. I was encouraged to go to drama class by my peers and some teachers. I’ll never forget my drama teacher at the time, Sarah, Thomas, asking me to play the lead role in a play called “Harvey”, playing Elwood, P Dowd. She told me it’s going to be a challenge and I said I’m up for it. Read more>>

Sam Morgan

In the spring of 2022 I visited Bend, Oregon for the first time to meet my husband’s extended family and embark on a road trip to the coast. During my stay, I had the pleasure of lodging with Janet, a talented quilter whose house was lovingly adorned with various pieces of her work. I learned that she first began quilting as a means of expressing her creativity and nourishing her soul and spirit. Over time, she discovered that quilting also served as a powerful medium to forge connections within her community. Read more>>

Ruthie Sutter

I have wanted to be a professional artist for as long as I can remember. I discovered I had a talent for drawing at a young age, and my parents always encouraged me to pursue it. I took every art class that I could through high school and enrolled in college as a fine arts major. I was introduced to more mediums and fell in love with pottery. My only regret is that I did not learn more about the business end of being an artist while I was still in school. Read more>>

Joshua Cousin

I’ve always appreciated art, and there’s rarely a time where you won’t find me carrying a comic book around! “Batman: The Killing Joke” was one of the first comics I bought in middle school, and I remember my mind melting at Brian Bolland’s extensively detailed illustrations. Everything just popped from his linework. My love for art only continued to grow through high school, especially in 2013 when we moved to San Francisco. Read more>>

ABRY

I can remember as early as the age of four being so captivated by Hilary Duff and the Cheetah Girls. They were the first “pop stars” that I fell in love with, along with Hannah Montana/ Miley Cyrus. After getting to see all of these artists perform at the rodeo, everything began to crystalize for me. I just knew music from then on music was going to play a huge part in my life. Skip forward to high school, I began taking my musical aspirations more seriously, doing everything I could to shape my sound, boost my confidence, and get in front of audiences. Read more>>

Sarah Borroto

For as long as I can remember going all the way back to elementary school I’ve always liked art. I had it as an elective up until I graduated high school but I was also in love with everything that had to do with beauty including hair, nails, and skin care. Growing up the nail designs and nail products/equipment that we see now did not exist back then, so I never thought that the nail industry would become what it is today. Read more>>

Miriam Kuhlmann

My earliest memories take me back to the tender days of my childhood. I was a shy and introverted soul, sheltered and cautious in my own cocoon. However, there was a spark within me that ignited when I found the means to express myself—through drawing, crafting, writing, performing, or styling. Hours would slip away effortlessly, and my parents would struggle to tear me away from that captivating train of focus. The thrill of performing, of stepping into different roles, also held a special place in my heart. Read more>>

Linsey Urrea

I always had a love for music and singing. In elementary and high school I sang in every music program that was offered. However, when I was 19 I heard people singing my lyrics in a crowd for the first time and was hooked by the feeling. Around that time was when i started to take music seriously. Read more>>

Josiah Bishop

I first learned that I wanted to go pro as an artistic roller skater when I learned about all of the roller skating opportunities in LA. I saw a music video with some amazing roller skaters in it. I then started picturing myself j the video and well and I had never felt more excited to pursue something. It was in that very moment that I decided this is exactly what I want to do, too! Read more>>

Kasey Harris

I prayed to God to provide me with a passion and He gave me the desire to sew and embroider…Initially, I started sewing with the intention of creating custom outfits in the fun prints that I love to wear. Little did I know that I was discovering a gift that brings me so much joy! I always enjoyed surprising my loved ones with handmade gifts. My loved ones would always say, “You need to sell this on Etsy.” “People will buy this!” Read more>>

David Marino

I’ve always been a creative person. When I was a kid I liked to write short stories, especially scary stories. I’ve also always loved music and movies. From a young age I was fascinated with horror films, specifically the slasher films from the 1980s. As far as music goes, I played the viola and the piano in middle and high school. When I got to college, I ultimately majored in Communications. I loved writing and telling other people’s stories. Read more>>

Fredericka Meek

Although I was raised in the arts, singing and dancing from a wee tot, with both of my parents heavily involved in the music industry, I never really considered pursuing this professionally until my senior year in college. I was never specifically told this, but I had it in my mind that college was mandatory, with literal jail time if one didn’t go to college right after high school! I remember senior year, one of my friends told me she was taking a semester off after graduation to work My response to her was “Oooh! Read more>>

Kaiza

I think I knew from the moment I first realized it was even a possibility. There weren’t too many peers around me with my creative aspirations growing up. I don’t think it’s necessarily because those kids didn’t want to follow their passions, they were just told from a young age that they were expected to become doctors or lawyers or to take over family businesses. Read more>>

Ralph Geffrard

I started dancing at a young age and it was the main thing that i would excel in. It’s my passion , my Hobby, my life. It wasn’t until my junior year of high school i decided to go and make into a career. I started doing my first stage performances around that time and i had this joy and i Instantly knew this was what i wanted to do. Read more>>

Meola Jackson

I enrolled in the BFA program at Medgar Evers in 2020 where the latter give me a chance to envision how to create my own art. However, before that, I always wanted to do something special. Read more>>

Devonta Carroll

I have always wanted to show what my mind can come up with when it comes to music no matter if it’s singing, rapping, playing the snare and etc. I’ve always took music as a stress reliever for me it’s just something about expressing myself on a track to and elaborate how I’m feeling at times even if it may cause concerns or rumors. Read more>>

D’Angelo Weston

I knew I wanted to pursue a creative path professionally since I was little. I never wanted to be a football player or doctor or lawyer. I’m not saying those aren’t great paths because they absolutely are great paths to pursue, but I have never had an interest in those. Art & creative things like acting & fashion has always sparked my interest & eventually I grew a love & a passion for them. Read more>>

Jayla Ford

I knew I wanted to pursue a creative and artistic path professionally at the the age of 19 when I dropped out of college. Honestly, it wasn’t because I couldn’t do it but because I couldn’t afford it and being from the city of Chicago anything can happen honestly, more bad than good at that. I really wasn’t the type to have a regular life. I have so much talent and such a big personality, it was like I was destined to be great and it really hit me after I left college. Always take risk you never know what you can get out of life being fearless. Read more>>

Nkenge Major

It was 2008, I wanted to make a change. I want to master my talents and teach others how to over come their environment. Dance has taken me and show me so many places and k want to continue that. My first dance crew I seen was rock steady crew on a new year party from Madison square garden after that I was hook. Read more>>

Chuan Ching Ho

Probably in my third year of working in the industry, I began to have this thought and tried to develop and expand it seriously. It’s all about the feedback I received, and the way I work with clients, agents, and employers has gradually changed. Read more>>

Milda Aleknaite

I’ve always had an innate passion for creating and expressing myself through art. The desire to explore creativity and bring my artistic vision to life is a driving force in my decision to pursue art professionally. These are the reasons: Read more>>

Whitney Skauge

I don’t think there was a moment in time when I didn’t want to be a filmmaker. It’s one of the most inherent parts of who I am. As a kid, I always had a camera in my hand. I basically ran our family’s VHS-C camera into the ground, making “music videos” with my siblings (these were more just us lip-syncing to 90’s pop music and trying to use my dresser as a tripod without cutting our heads out of the frame). Read more>>

Varun Patel

I believe that a part of me always wanted to pursue a creative and artistic path from a young age. However, I didn’t know what it would look like, or when or how it would happen. My journey has as much to do with running away from being an artist as it does embracing the calling to be one. My experience has been that the universe will conspire to bring you towards your calling whether you like it or not. Read more>>

Linxin Lu

From an early age, my passion for pursuing a creative and artistic path professionally was ignited. It all started during my time in kindergarten when my family frequently organized outdoor activities. Among those experiences, one activity stood out to me the most – being in control of the camera. As a child, this was my first true canvas, and I found tremendous joy in capturing moments through the lens. Read more>>

Yungbc

I first knew I wanted to be an artist right around my sophomore year in high school. I always played piano and did shows growing up, but I feel like there was a surge or artists from my high school, and I felt like I could make music as good if not better than theirs, and I felt like my stage presence could be something I can bring to the table. Read more>>

Amaya Smith

For me, it was a gradual realization that came about during my pre-teen years. I had always been interested in the arts, whether it was modeling, dancing, or singing, but I never considered it as a viable career path. It wasn’t until I started exploring different creative outlets more seriously and receiving positive feedback from others that I began to consider it as a potential career path. Read more>>

Denzelle Simmons

When I was 9 years old my Older brother wrote my first rap and gave my my first rap name lil Denz Influenced by lil Wayne because he was only 11 when he started rapping for cash money. Watching some of the greatest artists to ever do it on tv over the course of my childhood I wanted to be just like them . Performing at my family reunion at 10 years old was the first moment I noticed what my dream would be and now I’m living it my own way Read more>>

Rollin Jewett

As a child, I loved music and loved to read and draw. Other kids would be outside playing and I’d be in my bedroom drawing pictures, reading or listening to the latest music on the radio. During my first year of high school, on a whim I took a drama class and it changed my life forever. My drama teacher was likely the most influential person in my life. Read more>>

Zara Teleg

In my earliest memories, I wanted to be an artist who wrote their own books. As a child, I would create stories and illustrate them. Growing up, art was my focus, but I always loved to write as well. Raised in a family-run business, I knew I wanted to work for myself, which has been the case since college. I struggled for many years because I am defined as a “multi-passionate” entrepreneur and I always need to be doing something creative alongside business tasks. Read more>>

Rod Martinez

I was drawing comics and writing short stories since childhood. It was always just a fun hobby and a way to pass the time. It wasn’t until my son – who was in the 6th grade at the time – challenged me to write a story “Like the Goonies, but based here in Tampa, with me and my friends from school.” I accepted the challenge. It grew from a 20 page booklet to a full fledged novel (because I was pushed to ‘keep the story going’). In the end, I pursued publishing and it became my 1st published book. That’s what got me to where I am today. Read more>>

Carole` Feuerman

I knew I wanted to be an artist at three years old when I used shoe polish as my paint and my mother’s white linoleum kitchen floor as my canvas. I graduated from the School of Visual Arts and began my career as an illustrator before pursuing sculpture. I am passionate about the medium of hyper-real sculpture for its ability to resonate with people on a personal level. Read more>>

Lucius James IV

Since my early childhood, creativity has always flowed through me. Even as a young kid, I would ingeniously repurpose old or broken toys, transforming them into something entirely new. I vividly recall the time when I constructed my very own surround sound system using the on-and-off switch from a lava lamp and speaker wire connected to the speaker in my tube TV. It was during my high school years that my passion for the creative path became crystal clear, especially when I delved into music production. Read more>>

Donna Frost

I knew from the time I was a little girl that I wanted to be an artist. I grew up in a musical family and was singing on stages with my parents ‘ gospel group when I was a child I had a passion for music. It was always in my house and always in my heart. I took piano lessons at the age of 9, guitar lessons when I was 11 and began playing professionally at the age of 13. I started traveling at age 16. I have been doing this for 52 years and never stopped. I have written, recorded and released 10 CDs of original music since 1998, 5 of those in the past 3 years. Read more>>