We asked some insanely talented artists, creatives and makers to tell us about when they know they were going to pursue a creative career.

Terrense Lott

Having a voice in this world is rare. I believe that if we can teach others to stand up, hold there ground and speak with love instead of fear; We can become better human beings. The power of the voice can make or break peoples spirits. To use the voice in a righteous manner can heal one another. Pursing my music career can allow me to reach my higher callings that i have been given to do from the Father who art in Heaven. Read more>>

Afton Prater

Two things have always been true: I have always loved to sing and I have always loved country music. I can remember walking around the Christian childcare I went to singing songs that my dad would sing to me before bed which included songs by John Denver and Garth Brooks. Where I’m from in Seabeck, WA riding around the backroads in my dad’s Toyota listening to Ol’ Red on repeat was something I always looked forward to. Country music was something I grew to love so naturally and I can’t remember a day without it! Read more>>

Dr. Kerry Ann Zamore

I have an amazing opportunity to do what I love; teach at the University level as well as write and produce stage plays and films. I fell in love with writing at an early age and it truly has framed who I am and what I do today. I continued to write for theatre even while pursuing my Ph.D. in social work because I love telling stories and creating spaces for healing, advocacy, education, and awareness. Writing allows me to combine those worlds. Read more>>

Gracie Silvas

Sometime in middle school I learned a few high schools offered cosmetology courses. I knew immediately I wanted to sign up. I hadn’t ruled out college. I was keeping an open mind. I just saw this as an opportunity. A jump start on a flexible career. One I could see myself really enjoying. After all, when graduation came around. I could still go to college and explore different career paths. Read more>>

V Skye

I knew I wanted to pursue music professionally in September 2018 when I went to my first studio. – I had started posting short 15-30 second videos on my Instagram page (@vskyeofficial) for a couple months in 2018. A man had wrote me through Instagram inviting me to the studio to work with an independent artist by the name of Rev The Artist. We recorded a couple songs & I fell in love with the process of creating music out of nothing & the rest is history. I haven’t been able to stay out of a studio since. Read more>>

Zenovbia Adams

When people reached out to me for positivity and advice to better they situation Read more>>

Tiffiney Davis

My early professional years had nothing to do with the arts, and my personal history of growing up in public housing and shelters, might not have hinted at the arts leader and executive I would become later in life. But my two children were among the first students at the Red Hook Art Project (RHAP) and I saw their growth via the arts and the empowerment and confidence that they experienced once they found their creative voices, I knew that I wanted to be involved in using the arts to uplift all of the people in my community in the same way. Read more>>

Ivelisse Vázquez

Since May 8, I started to like makeup, it started as entertainment and today’s Sun, July 28, 2022, I love makeup. Read more>>

Kxng Cardo

I started singing from a young age while in school the encouragement from my peers and relatives help to drive me. singing take me to new level of consciousness. Read more>>

Stephanie Herman

At the age of 12. My gym teacher discovered I was destined to dance Read more>>

Ebodio Cuenca

Ever since I was young I wanted to be a famous singer/rapper. I’ve always dreamed of seeing my name in lights and people screaming for me. I’ve always had the music in my heart and soul. Even in elementary school my music teacher said he knew I’d be a great singer. I’ve just been learning and grinding my way to the top. Read more>>

Erikka French

I have been an artist since 2009, I started performing at the local clubs and the music scene here in Kansas City. I have been singing since I was 3 yrs old and rapping since I was 12 years old. Read more>>

Nicole Houff

I’m a Minneapolis photographer that lives in a plastic world inhabited by an infamous resident. My love for the “even less accurate than Barbie” realities that 50’s and 60’s entertainment portrays complements my stoic muse and my sense of humor. Additionally, my photographs have strong design and color elements, often referencing 50’s and 60’s aesthetics. With her introduction in 1959, Barbie is right at home. Read more>>

Scott Leisler

As a kid, I started skateboarding in the mid 1980’s and was exposed to a subculture of art, music and all types of people. Skateboarding connected us and it didn’t matter what neighborhood you were from, what race or religion. This really opened my eyes to what life and personal expression could be. In a lot of ways it taught me to think differently about the world. Becoming a creative was an accidental career path (25 plus years ago). Read more>>

Bonnie Marie Williams

I grew up showbiz adjacent in Southern California with family friends in the industry, and my grandparents worked at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles, and I was always involved in theatre growing up. My parents also did theatre growing up, and my mom listened to a lot of musicals while she was pregnant with me, so the love of the arts was always there. I was writing my own plays, planning musicals and little plays, performing them wherever and whenever I could, and so I kind of carried that with me into high school. Read more>>

Larissa Lien.

The funny thing is, I didn’t ever think I would be a content creator/influencer for companies. I refused to get Instagram for the longest time because it was “popular” and I’m that person that likes to go against the flow with popularity. When I began working as a Beachbody coach, I set up Instagram and even though plans changed, I continued to be authentic and share my story on social media. What started as me sharing my story with nutrition and fitness, turned into being an inspiration for others. Read more>>

Lynn Sanchelli

I had just moved back to MN from CA, with my little preschooler. My nursing career was cut short due to injury at work, Not knowing what’s next for me, I painted things and brought them to small church boutiques with my Mom. I would come home empty handed everytime. So I painted more, and sold more. I had an epiphany. I could be creative, make stuff and bless people with my art…which in turn blessed me. My art opened the door and I walked through it. That was twenty years ago…and I’m still showing up. Read more>>

Marissa Combest.

I have always been interested in the arts ever since I was a little girl. I was told by family members that I was always dancing, singing, modeling, etc. I would throw random outfits together trying to express my interest in fashion and play around in high heels that were too big for my little feet. I do recall a lot of those moments and there are plenty of pictures and videos to prove it. Whenever I was asked what I wanted to be in the future the answer always was something pertaining to the arts. Read more>>

Amanda Salvato

I had just given birth to my first son and I was working part time at a local bank. I loved my coworkers and I felt obligated to go back after my maternity leave. After leaving my son in the morning, I cried all the way to work most days and that is when I knew something needed to change. I have always loved art since I was a child, so I started exploring my options because I knew a creative career would suit me. I started an Etsy and dipped my toes in the professional creative world. After that my business evolved and I was hooked. With my husband as the main bread-winner, I was able to step back from my bank job, and move into a creative role while being a full time at-home parent. Read more>>

Steve Sherrell

This was 1968. I was eighteen years old. I was starting college at Ball State University in my home town of Muncie, Indiana. My father was an artist, a window trimmer and visual merchandiser for the local large department store. He suggested that I study architecture but my grades were not strong enough. The counselor said that maybe I could try an art class. I didn’t know at that time in my life that I was artistic but I thought it might be interesting. I signed up for Drawing One. Read more>>

Amanda Von Riesen

It’s complicated with the whole music and art thing, I feel as though IT chose me! I was just a little girl when I began singing and annoying my brother and sisters by belting out a tune at any moment. I kept notebooks filled with lyrics I wrote down to songs that I heard. I enjoyed writing poetry and lyrics at that very early young age as well. I loved creating, which led to always being found with a colouring book and markers and crayons. Read more>>

Joshua Phillips

I was completely ignorant to the concept that I could make money creating art until about 2002 when I took AP art with Diana Olencki at Woodruff High School. Until then, every artist to me was a starving artist, no one was actually very successful except for the very talented and lucky. I loved creating art, but I also wanted financial security, something I just didn’t know how to do. Read more>>

Braden Detelich

I started doing music after breaking my femur in 2014 playing LaCrosse. I ended up having surgery to repair it and would listen to musical artists Avicii while recovering. To help me occupy my time I started to play around DJ’ing and producing. Eventually I would start playing for family parties and events before moving into local events. I started performing at larger events and eventually released my debut single “Voices”. Once I released it and it started gaining traction, I thought “hey, maybe I can do something with this.” Read more>>

Jimmy Fontaine

I Knew I Wanted To Entertain As Young As 4 Years Old. I Remember A Story Told To Me About Me Trying To Climb In The TV Because I Wanted To “Live There”. I Always Was The Jokester In School And Was Even Nominated Class Clown. My Heart Always Direct Me Somehow To Entertainment. Read more>>

Dionne Character

I was 13 years old when I realized I wanted and needed to choose a creative path to make it out of my rough neighborhood in New Orleans. Growing up in church, I started singing at an early age, which resulted to my traveling as a professional background singer. I knew immediately who I wanted to become. My imagination was vast, as I could envision myself like Joan of Arc on a beautiful white horse, ready for battle. Read more>>

Mher Khachatrtyan.

I knew it since I was 3 years old. I started to draw and paint before I could write. It was a calling, not a choice. Read more>>

Kara Kyle

The short answer is: I didn’t. Read more>>

Anna Podris

I was in an art class in high school- really just by accident. At that point I had no big goal or life path. I was in the class with my good friend and we were always goofing off and never serious. We would throw little balls of paper at eachother and stuff like that. Once my teacher got really fed up with me and called me into her office. I was scared because I had been laughing and not paying attention- I figured I was in for a lecture or detention. Read more>>

Garrett Forge

I think I first thought about pursuing an artistically path professionally when I was in my early teens. I started writing songs when I was around 14. Songs would just start coming to me through God and I would try to find ways to write down what I heard through the melodies what would be a title of a song or a hook. I still get songs sent to me to this very day. I also had have other artists who have discovered my talent and they sent me beats so that I would write songs to them. Read more>>

Kindal Tate.

I would always watch music award shows with my family at a very young age. One night we were watching the country music awards and Garth Brooks was on tv and thousands of people were screaming and cheering. I believe it was the music, fans, lights, harmonies and sparkly outfits that really had me mesmerized. With my big bright 4 year old eyes I turned to my family and ran up to the tv yelling “I want to do that mom! I’m going to do that!” And of coarse they laughed and said ok but its going to be really hard and you’ll have to work hard and be tuff. Read more>>

Camilo Diaz

Film has always been an integral part of my life and up bringing. I was, and maybe still am, that child that would get lost in his own world. That world was based on the fact that I would experience moments in my childhood and think about them as scenes of a movie. This happened to the point that I would close one eye and act as if I’d be watching a movie in real time. When my mom asked me why I did that, I’d respond, “My eyes are like cameras and I’m constantly watching movies.” Read more>>

Amina Sahovic

I knew I wanted to be in the creative field once I started my lip gloss business and had the opportunity to create my own brand campaigns. The adrenaline I gained from being my own creative director and planning my releases from scratch is something that made me realize how many ideas I had not only for myself, but others as well. Read more>>

Jessica Seawell

At the age of twelve, I knew I wanted to pursue dance as my career. I began my classical dance training at the age of five with a Ballet/Tap combo class and loved every minuet of it. Throughout the years I added multiple genres and additional classes to help strengthen my technique allowing me to quickly advance. At that point, I realized dance was something that I wanted to continue as a career. I decided to transition to the competition world at the age of twelve, where I began to train under the industry’s most reputable educators and choreographers. Read more>>

Zac Lassen

I’ve always been into drawing & painting for as long as I can remember. As a kid, it was a real thrill to visit the St. Louis Art Museum with my grandma and encouraged me to start making art. We all have things that draw us in closer to make us want to participate and that was it for me. I studied Animation and design in college so it’s always been with me and directed where I should go. Read more>>

Willy Flee

It all happened when I was 16. It was my first time smoking weed, and my cousin was a dj…after we smoked, we went back to his place and he threw on some beats…and I started to freestyle. And I mean, I’ve always loved music. Grew up in it and around it…but after I was done, he actually recorded me and put it on a CD, he told me I should take it serious and pursue it. And after I was done with HS and my hoop dreams were finished, I took it to the lab and now I’m here. Read more>>

Trevor Schmidt

My path to becoming an artist is rather unusual. I spent the first four decades of my life believing that I lacked any artistic ability. While I always appreciated and respected the work of creatives, I had no inkling that I would or could become one myself. At the start of 2020, I received mental health diagnoses of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder — both as a result of my career in crime analysis. Read more>>

Alexandra Bradshaw-Yerby.

When I was a young child, maybe four or five years old, my older brother James patiently helped to “stage manage” my living room “dance concerts.” All of these years later, my brother James is now a physicist and I am still performing. I suppose I pretty much came out of the womb this way. Read more>>

Juliana Omokheyeke

The first time I realized that I wanted to pursue music professionally was in middle school choir. Every year the choir put on a show with a specific theme called the “Pop Show”. All of the songs performed had to fit the theme. I was in 7th grade and this years theme was “Disney”. My choir group was assigned the song “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” from the Lion King. I decided last minute that I was going to try out for the solo. Read more>>

Lindsey Kellogg

The memory and consciousness are the most impactful tools a creative can have. These work hand in hand to aid the pure experience of the creative. Myself, I have been deeply immersed in the memory. Attributed to my memory, I vividly remember the first time I wanted to pursue a creative career in the arts. Picture this, I was three years old, yes, I am still even amazed that I can remember this far back, but like they say, “When you know you know.” Read more>>

Lauren Spanagel

Makeup has always been my passion. It’s been a way for me to get away from the world and let my creativity shine. Makeup sparked my interest when I was around 12 years old. You see, I had cancer at the time and being a young girl with no hair hair and incredibly sick..I wanted to find a way to make me feel like, well, me. A close friend at the time introduced me to makeup and my eyes were opened. I have never had more fun with anything else. It was therapy to me. A way for me to get away from the world. So I slowly built my collection through the years and taught myself application skills through YouTube and internet videos. Read more>>

Lenny Anderson

Stumbling on a trombone and joining band in the 3rd grade. I didn’t know what I was setting myself up for. I knew I was doing something that felt right and I enjoyed. It felt like it came natural. The love for the music was at the core. Listening to the radio on those rides to school soaking in all that old school music was my preparation. With that said, things changed when I heard “Grindin’” by The Clipse Prod. The Neptunes. The drums spoke to me in a way I never felt. I was in middle school when it dropped. All I knew was that I loved that feeling and it was something I wanted to continue chasing. Something I wanted to provide when the time was right. Read more>>

Kim Simon

I knew I wanted to pursue my artistic path professionally earlier this year in 2022 after I had started doing markets in September 2021. I was working a full time job and my “side hustle” was becoming more of my main hustle. Every month it seemed that I was doing better and better and more people were seeking me out and coming to my table specifically to purchase things from me that their friends had or that they had seen on my Instagram page. Read more>>

Heather ‘Mo-Nether’ Boyle

I’ve been bartending for over a decade and landed my dream job as a bartender in Denali Alaska, where I could travel as a bartender and enjoy the out doors. Unfortunately due to covid I lost the job because they never opened during the pandemic. I was at a cross roads where my job was no longer essential. I found a job working in the spirit industry and relocated to a town I knew no one in. I was lacking the creativity of bartending but I was still in the same field. Read more>>

Christian Caldwell

I’ve always been interested in the arts since an early age. I started drawing around 5 years old and haven’t stopped since. As a young child, I always loved to color, paint and craft and create different things. My mother enrolled me in art classes, dance and piano at young age. My love for fashion formed as I got older and became more intune with fashion and how it made me feel. I guess I would say, my love of fashion also came from my mother. We would go shopping and try on clothes and take pictures. Read more>>