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

MENEZ

From a young age we were interested into how clothing and things were made. Growing up around our grandmother, who was a seamstress and designer allowed us to see the process from beginning to end. In college Vince studied graphic design and Saul had a passion for industrial design, we decided to combine our work together to create MENEZ. Where we can push the boundaries of design, we wanted to make pieces of clothing that were different from the status-quo with asymmetrical tailoring and pointed hemlines. Read more>>

The Perez Bros

We started drawing at a very young age, probably around 2 years old. During school, we would always be doodling in our notebooks. We’d always made sure to take an art class for an elective. Our senior year in High School came, and we weren’t really sure if we wanted to go to college. It was our Art teacher that suggested we apply to art school. We weren’t really interested in anything else, so we applied. We didn’t think that we’d get accepted but we did. We began to navigate school individually, but then later quickly realized that we had the same interests and style so we started to work as a team. It was in Art school where we began our artistic career. Read more>>

DAVID HOFFMANN

The first time I realized I wanted to pursue travel and food was in August of 2007, when I had the idea to create David’s Been Here and travel the world. Back then, there was no influencer industry, but I knew there was a way to monetize and create a career based on travel. Everyone wants to travel. Everyone wants to see the world and see new destinations. I was 22 years old, but since I was 15, I had been traveling to Europe, Central America, and South America, and I knew I had to make a career out of travel. Read more>>

Thulasiram Govinda chettiyar

It was 2012 when I had the opportunity to be a part of a reality dance series on major television in India. I was working in the IT industry then, and it was pretty challenging to manage my full-time job as a software engineer and compete amongst 2500 contestants that auditioned for the show. While 9-5 was spent at the office working on the projects that paid my bills, all my after-work hours were dedicated entirely to honing my dance craft and making an impression at the show. Read more>>

Tamara Matthew

The first job I had received an offer for out of college was to be a music teacher. I knew it was going to be a new kind of experience as I had never taught at a music school before and I was pretty young going into the role. I have worked in various settings since then from a law firm, to a hospital, to a tech/health start-up and yet teaching music is something I find myself returning to consistently or doing on the side, no matter what other fields I enter into. In fact, I often tell people that I am sure that even when I retire one day, I’ll probably be that old lady that came back to teach music because she loves it. Read more>>

Alexander Arzú

Hey, thank you so much for having me. Pursuing a creative career came about during the market crash of 2008, so about 14 years ago. While art was always in the back of my head, school and education were very important in my upbringing as a military child. So, I checked off the boxes and graduated with a degree in architecture. I worked in the field for nearly 5 years while I kept art as a hobby. During that stressful economic time, a few things happened in parallel to convince me to pursue art full time and work for myself. Read more>>

Endigo Weirdie

Well prior to taking my artistic path professionally, I had been on a journey finding my way in life. In 2013 I was falsely accused for a crime that I didn’t comment and had to deal with rippled affects. The case was dismissed in court but not in the computer system which plagued me years later. Doing everything (legal) from selling hookahs, dashikis, and odd jobs in between to make ends meet, someone (Rabea Ballin) accidentally saw my work then purposely asked me to bring a few pieces to see and from there is where my art journey began. In retrospect, I feel like the universe got tired of waiting for me to get in my purpose.. so it forced my hand in a way. Read more>>

Dominique Flores

Thinking of my childhood, I can thank my aunt for giving my sister and I a creative outlet growing up. I was raised in an interesting matriarchal family of single women. My mother was busy working full-time and taking night classes, so I didn’t see her a lot. Most of our time was spent with my grandma and my aunt. Even though my aunt didn’t make a whole lot of money, no one in the family did, she still made it possible for us to go to weekend art classes and I’m forever grateful for that. Read more>>

Blake Dagley

I was Raised in a church in a small town in Texas, where I found my voice at a young age. My time in an Acapella congregation informed my style from the start; four-part harmony was a part of my vocabulary before I could read or ride a bike. However, the real story of what started my pursuit of a music career is… I saw some guys playing guitars at a camp I was at, and I saw how much the ladies liked it, so I figured I needed to learn how to play the guitar as well. Read more>>

Dani Fallon

I know the exact day I wanted to start my business Embracing Obsession and dedicate my time to painting, art, and eventually poetry. It was November 21st, 2017, it had been about three weeks since I ended a long-term relationship, but along with this new-found feeling of freedom I was truly beginning to accept my OCD diagnosis. A lot was going on. So, on this day, I found myself sitting at the café you see inside of every Barnes & Noble. After scouring all the books for inspiration I ended up with a stack, but the one book I could not put down was “How To Sell Your Art Online” by Cory Huff. It wasn’t necessarily the content, the how-to of the book that I was struck by, it was more of the fact that it felt like it was possible. Read more>>

Devin Hall

There are two pivotal moments within my life that solidified that painting was the most fulfilling way for me to live. The first being at about the age of nine, my mom had a mural artist paint purple flowers draped all around my windows. The wonder of this mysterious artist that made my room into magic while I was away at school left my imagination spinning. I wanted to know everything about her, I wanted to study her as she had to study the flowers she painted. I couldn’t get away from the wonder of how magical her life must be as a full-time painter. Read more>>

John Patrick Bray

I started performing in elementary school. I remember my twin brother – Gregg Bray – and I played Minutemen in a patriotic review in fourth grade at Highland High School. There were three of us, and I remember the middle guy, Chris Timko, accidentally aimed his musket at my brother during the song. Gregg ducked, and it got a laugh from the audience. We really got a kick out of that. We had performed in other shorts and vignettes earlier, but that response from the audience gave us an amazing feeling. It was something we wanted to experience again. Read more>>

Mista Los

Ummm, I’d have to say it was a few years back. I honestly had an epiphany or some, (haha). I can’t see myself waking up n doing anything else. If I’m gonna give myself to something, it would be Hip-Hop or football, but I can’t gain weight to save my life so pass me the mic. Na, but to answer your question, it was one day I just knew this is what I’m here for. I always felt it, since I was a little kid. But a few years back is when it allll made perfect sense. Since then I been on a constant incline. Black Attic Mafia baby. Read more>>

Luz Angela Jimenez

In my case music just happened, I started very early to get paid singing.I was around 12 years old. I was part of a group in my little town in Colombia where we sing professionally and have tons of work (gigs). We sang all kind of events and off course, we got paid for it. It is actually endearing to think about that group. It was call “Hugo Moncada”. By the way, eternally gratefull since was he who taught me in deep how to play the gender of music that will defined my musical path. Read more>>

Anthony Lewis

I knew probably in high school that I wanted to pursue a creative path professionally. At the time, I was playing basketball, with the prospect of playing at a major college, and I wanted to leverage my popularity as an athlete into writing full-time once my playing days were over. And then the cliche happened … “life happens while you’re making plans.” Read more>>

Trae Berry

Being a Creative is something that has been in my life’s scope for almost as long as I remember. When I was 11 or 12 I received my first portable CD player and immediately began scouring local shops that sold CDs to find the heaviest, most metal music I could find. It drove my parents crazy. I was obsessed with the sound and the way it made me feel. I would often close my eyes and picture myself on stage rocking out in front of thousands of fans. This would lead me to want to play bass guitar. I choose bass guitar because I felt there were too many guitarists around and bass guitar seemed easier to get the hang of because of the lack of strings. Read more>>

Versell “VERSEatyle” Motley

A series of events led me to start using my hobbies to approach my artistic path professionally, such as performing at paid gigs, being in a dance crew signed under a parent company, auditioning for shows such as “So You Think You Can Dance” and “Americas Got Talent”, performing at numerous venues including The House of Blues, Mardi Gras, fairs, parties, and many more. I noticed my talents started allowing me to meet people and create bonds along with being able to monetize little by little from certain events, in which life directed me to all of the settings where I ever performed that prepared me for my future business endeavors. Read more>>

Eric Prine

I wanted to have a bit of a creative outlet and had room in my schedule for an elective one year in college so i took an intro to photography course. I enjoyed it more than I expected and found I was better at it than I expected. The plan was to take it for once semester, instead i took all the course my college had to offer over the next five semesters. I had wanted to be a veterinarian and go on to vet school. I was now torn between that decade old desire and a new found love for photography. I decided to work for a vet for a year and see how i felt while also applying in to photo schools. I very quickly learned that vet medicine was not for me and I set my sights on photo school. Read more>>

Vernetta Thomas

I was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Growing up, I was introduced to art at a very early age. My family took the time during the summers to take us to Philbrook and Gilcrease Museums of Art whenever there was a new exhibit. They also took us to musicals, and shared with us the power of visual art, and music, however it was my father who was instrumental in my interest in photography. Read more>>

LadyVee DaPoet

The first time I knew I wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally was when a co-worker at my then accounting assistant job told me that I was too serious about my craft not to. He saw me daily “moonlighting” while at my job posting event flyers for my next show, writing poetry, coming up with new events and he acknowledged my professionalism even when I didn’t have an LLC. Read more>>

Baby Sam

I always been someone that always did different things when it comes to jobs. Many people don’t know I worked at Hotel Derek, UPS & I was barber but when I started rapping a lot of people counted me out or didn’t believe I couldn’t do it. It was a lot of long nights and early mornings for people to see my grind in this rap world. Read more>>

Elanese Lansen

I’ve always been in love with music. When I was a little girl I used to watch all of the award shows with my mom in our living room. I’d tell her “I can do that!” and perform the songs for her like I was the one on stage. She found it hilarious, but realized pretty soon that I had a voice, and all I ever wanted to do was sing. I started asking her for CD’s. I would learn all of the songs front to back and listen over and over until I got tired and it was time for a new one. The first CD my mom ever got me was the red self-titled Aaliyah album. I wanted to be just like her. Read more>>

Benjamin Hopper

My first exposure to music was in 4th grade – after getting expelled and being moved to a new school mid-year, I only had 2-3 weeks to learn how to play a recorder and memorize all the songs for the Music class’s winter recital. I did not have much to feel positive about at the time, so I started learning the finger placements, how to moderate my breath, and memorized all the songs within a week. I remember the teacher’s shock at how quickly I was able to learn it all – I was not used to receiving those kinds of positive reactions from adults before, which made me feel good about myself. Read more>>

AyeDNicole

After going through a lot in my collegiate years, I struggled with weight gain, confidence, break ups, and all that in between that most young women go through. I wanted a new outlet and I have always been musically in tune with hip hop since I was a child. Writing was something I picked up on at a very early age and I figured after leaving Tallahassee post a bad breakup, it was time I really focus on my music. I earned my college degrees, and maintained a finance career. I knew I wanted to step into my artistic path by showing balance within myself and to other women that you can overcome your struggles, dismiss your haters and boss up. Read more>>

Neyla Heller

Growing up I was always playing pretend and taking on art projects. My family (chosen family included) are my biggest supporters and inspiration. I don’t think there was another option for me, from day one I was meant to be a creator. When I was in middle school and high school I committed my time to theatre. I was in the props department because it was so detail oriented and hands on. Being backstage I had the opportunity to solve problems and make art I was proud of. As time went on this pushed me back into visual arts. After leaving my high school theater department to pursue my rediscovered passion, I started looking into what a serious career as an artist could look for me. Read more>>

TJ Supa

The beginning of my journey in music happened at 10 years. I was at my mothers boyfriends house running around playing with my brother Chris. I remember running around and seeing the TV which was set on MTV. The Run DMC video for the song “Rock Box” came on and it was like the world froze> I remember stopping everything and focusing on the TV. I consider that the beginning of my musical journey because I started writing after that and rapping with my brother and getting into musical endeavors. This led to me starting to rap at school and me later beginning to perform. Read more>>

Valerie Ostenak

I was a creative kid, always making something out of anything and I loved animals. So I decided to be a veterinarian when I grew up. Artist was not on the list of possibles. High school classes were all science focused, with art classes for keeping me happy and I loved them both. In college, I planned a science path and registered for classes geared for majors in biology. No art class my freshman year . . . and I missed it. Read more>>

Natalie Fein

Growing up in Maryland I always enjoyed nature and exploring the world, so when I realized art is in nature I instantly fell in love with creating it. I knew I wanted to pursue art professionally when it became my therapy after the loss of my father. Read more>>

Nathan Nez

Growing up on the Navajo Nation I knew I had a love for art at a very young age and while being deployed in Iraq, I found that passion again and drew on envelopes to send back to family. After coming home from war I went down a dark path dealing with drugs and alcohol and PTSD but it wasn’t till going back to school at University of New Mexico that I knew doing art was a way to help me deal with not only my PTSD but also a way to pursuit my passion for art. Read more>>

Corey Mullins

Growing up, I was always interested in painting, creating art, and expressing myself, however, it wasn’t until I returned to finish my college degree at the age of 24 that I committed, I was always a straight A student and near the top of my class. I graduated high school early with over a 4.0 GPA, ranked tenth in my graduating class, and was awarded an academic scholarship to a private Methodist university. I actually didn’t want to go to college at that time, but I followed suit to make my parents happy. I still had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up nor did I know what I wanted to study, but I did know I wanted to take art. Read more>>

Kiara Coleman

The first time I knew I wanted to pursue a creative and artistic path professionally was immediately after high school. I always was into painting and just being creative! I knew I wanted to start my own business as a Crafter and designer. Read more>>

Chill Will Da Don

I think I knew I wanted to be an artist when I would be lay cassette tapes on the boom box and I would rewind whatever song was playing to hear fully what they were saying and most importantly how they were saying it and if it had meaning behind it! Read more>>

Brett Fitzpatrick

Before I started MUSIC//FOR//SAD//PEOPLE I was in four different bands and got tired of writing about meaningless subjects. I had heard so many people talk about how music saved them that I decided to try to write music with the intention of saving people. I started MUSIC//FOR//SAD//PEOPLE as it is now with the full intention to lower the youth suicide rate and help the people that come after me with matters I have already gone through. Read more>>

Johnny Deadly

It’s kind of a funny story, the first time I saw back to the future… when Michael J Fox played Johnny B Goode that is when I realized I wanted to play guitar. That was it! Read more>>

Alexandra Franzese

I’ve always wanted to be an artist, but I became really serious about it in college. At first, I chose a school that wasn’t well known for art but had the major I wanted and quickly discovered my passion was stronger than just settling for a basic education. After two years, I enrolled at a new school, Ringling College of Art and Design, to further my education and have a more impressive resume. Read more>>

Carly LaFlamme

One of the first times that I realized I wanted to pursue art professionally was after the reactions I had gotten to certain pieces. My childhood love of art was rekindled about 7 years ago when I began painting and creating decorations for my classroom as a teacher. When I would put a completed project up in my room, and see the kids faces light up with excitement when they saw it, I knew right away that I wanted to create more pieces that gave everyone the ability to experience that feeling. I still keep that idea as one of my main goals when painting today. Read more>>

Maria Stratigis

Growing up, my parents emphasized academia so much, that I programmed myself to believe there was no other option but to go to college, get a degree and work a “good, stable job”. It felt like, becoming anything other than a ‘lawyer or a doctor’ would be unacceptable! So I never took a creative career seriously when considering what I wanted to do with my life. Read more>>

David Kater

I recall being around 6 or 7 years old and sitting on the couch with my mom one evening and watching the television series “Fame.” There was a part of the episode where one of the lead characters was teaching a young boy tap dancing. I instinctively knew I could do that and looked up at my mother and said, “I can do that mom.” Her face was puzzled for obvious reasons. Back then, boys did sports, girls did art. There was a distinctive line and I was blissfully happy to cross it. So off I went to the local dance studio in Walnut, Ca. I went into my first tap class and immediately started mimicking the teacher and other dancers. Read more>>