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

Harriet Burnette

I knew at a very young age that I wanted to be in the creative/actistic field. I have been singing since I was around as long as I can remember. Read more>>

Donvarcia Duncombe

Always listening to persons on the radio or watching them on T.V it was always a dream to do it like they did. But more so the most important part was working towards it and never giving up! Read more>>

Windsor Dalton

I always had an interest in the arts from a young age. Anything I could do to challenge my creative side sparked my interest like no other. I think that’s why I’m such a big halloween fan, because it was a socially acceptable time to dress up, decorate and get creative. I always loved to decorate whether it be for a movie night, holidays, or even just to give my childhood room a new vibe. I would express and challenge myself this way. Read more>>

Haroun-Raschid Cole

I first wanted to pursue my career in TV Hosting (specifically Game Show Hosting and producing) at the age of four years old. From the first time I ever saw “The Price is Right”, “Press Your Luck”, “Wheel of Fortune”, “High Rollers” and “Card Sharks” to name a few, I was forever enamored with the genre. I have always wanted to host, create and produce game shows. It was only being let go from my regular day-to-day job, after nearly six years, and being 6-months out from my then 30th birthday, that I decided to go after my career in Television Hosting. Read more>>

Sylvia Liu

I had wanted to become an artist since I can remember, at a very young age. One of my early memories is always entering the seasonal coloring contests at the local grocery market and winning some candy. Read more>>

Paul Kim

The first time I knew music was my passion and I wanted to pursue this path professionally was when I made my first beat. The excitement of creating music was something I never knew before until I started making my own music. I knew right away that this was my passion and I was going to pursue it at full speed no matter what the cost. Read more>>

Aaron Villalobos

I knew early on in 2019 after watching other Youtubers in the hip hop space like Helloyassine, BlackySpeakz, imDOntai, NoJumper, Akademiks etc that I could be doing the same thing they’re doing, but with my own twist on it. I felt as if I could add to those conversations and bring a breathe of fresh air to the Hip Hop youtube scene. I was confident in my personality that I could be entertaining in some way. (Keep in mind I was doing youtube since 2009 on another channel, just a different niche of videos.) BUT, during college I always wanted to do SOMETHING in the creative field. Read more>>

Nicolea Pettis

I’ve always had a deep passion for the creative and artistic world, even though I initially shied away from pursuing it as a full-time profession. The hesitation stemmed from witnessing the struggles and financial instability that often come with a creative career. Instead, I chose the corporate path, securing a steady job while nurturing my artistic side by taking dance and acting classes, and performing when I could squeeze it into my busy work schedule. Read more>>

Lux

I have known I wanted to work in a creative/artistic field for as long as I can remember. The passion for self-expression and the joy of creating something unique have always driven me towards this path. Read more>>

Amorette “Epiphany” Lormil

I realized I wanted to pursue life as a creative professionally as soon as I realized I was talented. I’ve admired music and literature my entire life. The potency of words always held weight with me. My brother encouraged me to find my pen when I was 11 years young. He celebrated me when I would finish verses and poems. I thought to myself I want more people to feel this way when I speak and write. The stage has been my safe space ever since. I couldn’t imagine being anything besides a storyteller. Read more>>

Jimi Cracovaner

One of my very earliest childhood memories was sitting in the living room and watching a recording of Jimi Hendrix on the television. Between the music that I was hearing and his energy on stage, this was a new language and it hit differently. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was watching, but I knew that it was something that I wanted to learn how to do. After a couple of years of asking my parents for a guitar, I finally got one. My brother was a drummer, and playing music together became our obsession. Read more>>

Ryan Dyer

When I was around the age of 5 till now, I was always intrigued by two things Sports, and Music. My parents raised me in a Christian Home where we went to church every Sunday. The best part of church for me was song service. Hearing the instruments playing, the choir singing, just made me feel good inside. I loved it so much I would take my mom’s Tambourine and play it to the music. Where I first learned to focus on the beat of the instruments. I knew music would be a part of my life for forever. Read more>>

Krist Norsworthy

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had an unwavering desire to be an artist. This calling started early in my childhood when I found immense joy in drawing and painting. I vividly recall a peculiar incident in kindergarten when I got into trouble during a handwriting class. Instead of simply writing the alphabet, I couldn’t resist the urge to embellish them, making them as aesthetically pleasing as possible. My teacher wasn’t thrilled with my decorative letters, giving me a low score for not adhering to the standard form. Little did I know, this was just the beginning of my artistic journey. Read more>>

Nicole Huggins

I immigrated with my mother to the U.S. as a child from a very oppressive communist regime in Romania. When we got out, we were sent to Italy, where we waited for our entrance visas for six months. Suddenly, there was freedom and I was surrounded by incredible art everywhere. We toured countless museums and historic sites and I fell in love with art. I began studying art in high school. Read more>>

Benji Wilkinson

Thank you for interviewing me. My path started from the very first time I made music with my friends back in 7th grade. There was a feeling of pure connectedness to the sounds we were making and to ourselves as new, fellow musicians. This eventually led to live performances and being able to take those moments of connection and sharing them with an audience. I cannot think of a better feeling than sharing something you love and are proud of with others, so that they might enjoy it as well. Read more>>

Luvuyo Mpofu

The first time I knew I wanted to pursue my art as a professional pathway, was when I decided I didn’t want to become the president anymore, which I haven’t completely given up on yet, I would love to introduce some fun laws and I have great ideas, however those ideas might be better suited for creativity. I was heavily involved in theatre during my High school years. I studied the dramatic arts, which taught me the history of drama and its evolution through the years. However, as much as I was involved in the arts, it did not occur to me until much later that I could make a life out it. Read more>>

Tory DiPietro

I knew when I was a little girl by four years old that I wanted to be an artist however I never believed I could and it took a lifetime of working regular jobs, being really unhappy and struggling to decide that if things were going to be hard and I was going to struggle, I may as well do that chasing my dreams. Fortunately for me once I took the leap the cards really flew into place a lot quicker and with much more ease than I ever imagined they would or could. Read more>>

Pedro Night

I first fell in love with music at the age of 5, it was Christmas in 1999 and my older brother Roberto and I were opening our presents. Our godfather, a Catholic priest, family friend, and jazz connoisseur had gifted us a few jazz CD’s featuring some of the greatest musicians of all time: Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald. My father gifted me a boom box speaker, so I took the Duke Ellington CD up to my room, started listening and immediately fell in love with the art form. Read more>>

Nicole Chang

I’d like to say I’ve always known I wanted to do something in the creative field that’d allow for artistic representation and freedom of expression. It wasn’t until almost 3 years ago, that I wanted to expand my modeling portfolio and pursue it on a more professional stand point. My interests and hobbies growing up had two thing in common : imaginative and expressive, so being able to transform infront of the camera and convey a message or tell a story fits the narrative. I believe in creating opportunities for yourself, and that’s one of the ways of turning a dream into reality. How you market yourself is a business in itself, and once you free yourself of the worry of being seen , it will take you far. As for entrepreneurship, my teenage self would invision owning a brand that was unique and bold, a safe space for the weirdos and wild, the elegant and fashionable. Thus, Vicious Delicious Accessories was born. Read more>>

Ronald Atkinson

I was a junior in college at the time when I really wanted to know what the overall industry is like on a professional level. While I was taking creative writing courses, I was also working on writing two screenplays that were based on various high school diary entries in which was also in the process of being written into a musical stage play. As I developed a greater understanding of screenwriting and the industry as a whole, I also shifted my perspective on what does it take for an actor or an actress to pursue the industry. Read more>>