Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Tiffani Rooney of Valley Village

We recently had the chance to connect with Tiffani Rooney and have shared our conversation below.

Tiffani, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What is a normal day like for you right now?
Honestly, I’m sure most people are going to think I’m insane… but I start my weekdays at 5:30am! I live with my boyfriend and two pets, so, I try to give myself some time to doom scroll and enjoy the silence before the day starts.

While I scroll online, I like to do my stretches & drink my water. Then I workout for an hour before taking my dog on a walk and heading to work! Luckily my job is only 15 minutes away, so I actually have time to do all this before I clock in. It’s almost like I have a full day before I even start my day, lol!

As mentioned, I work Monday through Friday, but only in office Monday & Tuesday. Luckily I do really enjoy my job and seeing all my friends and co-workers, so I look forward to our in office days!

Once I get back home, I work on all things Elite Urbanite. My 5-9 after my 9-5!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi everyone! My name is Tiffani Rooney. By day I work on FX Networks biggest marketing campaigns, and at night I spend my time curating my platform, Elite Urbanite.

Elite Urbanite is a space for like-minded creatives who are not used to seeing their niche interests displayed in media. I discuss all things pop culture, fashion, nostalgia, with a heavy emphasis on music. Which is something I am and will always be extremely passionate about!

I have grown up around the entertainment industry my entire life, and went on to work in entertainment myself. I have had the pleasure of working on iconic television shows such as Keeping Up with the Kardashians, The Challenge, The Real Housewives of Miami. As well as managed large scale marketing campaigns for AT&T and Disney.

Using my expertise as a cultural curator, I hope to be recognized as a safe space for fellow like-minded individuals as I continue to build my platform!

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
I feel like recently I am returning to exactly who I’ve always meant to be! As a child I was always outspoken and outgoing, just as my parents taught me to be! I’m also a triple Sagittarius and a New Yorker, so it’s already in my nature, lol!

Often times, women (especially black women) are told they’re “too much”, even when we aren’t doing anything at all. So based on everyone’s reactions to me just being “me”, it caused me to second guess every little thing and every encounter I had with people, and then blaming myself if things didn’t work out.

Additionally, as a black woman who doesn’t necessarily consider herself to be a “stereotype”, I’ve often been “othered” for being different.

But the thing is, I was constantly surrounding myself with people who did not see me for who I truly am, and most likely did not have the best intentions.

Now that I am surrounded by so much love and support in my life, I feel like I’m free to be my truest self again! I’m comfortable with who I am. I’m confident, whimsical, loyal, boisterous, and a little quirky… and that’s OK!

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Oh absolutely! Around this time last year, I was in the worst place of my life. I was wrongfully terminated from my job, and soon after that almost everything was taken from me in a matter of months. Because this job market sucks, I was not able to find a job for over six months, therefore my unemployment eventually ran out. I almost lost my home, my car, and my sanity in the process.

To top it off, aside from a few people, the people I thought I could trust most were being extremely unsupportive of what I was going through. Obviously I was drained; mentally, physically, and financially. Therefore, I had to put up a lot more boundaries than people are used to. This came with some extreme reactions and the end of a lot of relationships. (God forbid you only have a few hundred dollars to your name and can’t make it to someone’s birthday dinner!)

When you’re faced with constant obstacles, being told you’re not good/doing enough, and wake up with an overwhelming sense of doom, giving up feels like the only option. Truthfully, I did not want to be alive anymore.

Thank GOD, I tuned out the negativity around me and came out on the other side of things. I am extremely blessed to have great friends in life, my wonderful boyfriend, and of course, my foundation — my family!

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes and no. My interests, my confidence, and my humor are all 100% true to who I am. However, I do like to keep certain aspects of my life private; like my relationship and my close friendships. I know a lot of people like to treat the internet like a diary, but that’s not the case over here.

I love sharing knowledge, new songs, and more with my followers, but I also like to get out and touch grass and spend time with my loved ones.

Not every minute of my life needs to be vlogged/recorded, plus every minute of my life isn’t even necessarily that interesting! I feel like a lot of people treat other people in their lives like pawns, and I respect my loved ones way too much to treat them as such.

Once you get to know me, you’ll love me even more! But it takes work to get there, lol.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
Stop giving a F***!! All jokes aside, 10 years is still quite a lot of time, especially for someone like me who’s constantly planning the next thing. I would stop worrying so much and thinking so far ahead in the future. I would just LIVE life while I still could!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.eliteurbanite.com
• Instagram: @eliteurbanite
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/c-tiffani-rooney