Rising Stars: Meet Samantha Kierstead of Burbank

Today we’d like to introduce you to Samantha Kierstead.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I have been dancing since the age of 2.5 when my mom put me into ballet and rap classes. I quickly grew to love dancing and joined the competition team at my local studio at the age of 5. From the ages of 5-18 I competed group dances, solos, duos and trios in hiphop, jazz, ballet, lyrical, contemporary, musical theater, tap, open, and jazz funk! At the age of 15 I grew a vary big liking towards hiphop and decided to put a main focus on that joining a hiphop crew while still training in all styles on my competition team! At the age of 17 I also joined my high schools dance team while still competing with my main studio and also my hiphop team. At the age of 17 I got very sick and diagnosed with a chronic illness. This took me out of dance for most of my senior year of high school while I was in and out of the hospital and actively trying to get my health back on track. At this point when dance was completely taken away from me was when I decided I wanted to become a professional dancer. When I was finally better health wise and up dancing again I took a gap year to get strong again and get back to dance training. At 19 I made the decision to move to La to pursue dancing as a career. I have now danced on tour, for artists at a music festival, on music videos, reality tv, and lots of online content. Now I am training everyday and contouring work professionally in the industry!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth road pursuing my dreams of becoming a professional dancer. I have had to figure out how to navigate living with a chronic illness and managing symptoms/ flare ups! Another challenge had been finding my place in such a competitive industry and understanding how it works.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
For work I am a professional dancer and have been pursuing it as a career for 2 years now! I specialize in commercial dance work. I am most proud of moving to La at 19 and booking several dance jobs my first year and a half here. What sets me apart from others is my hard work and determination. I never take no for an answer and am always striving to be the best version of myself.

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
My best advice for networking would be to be kind to everyone. You never know who you are talking to and want to leave the best impression on everyone. Being a good human will take you further than talent any day.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/sammykierstead
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/imsammy.k
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@imsammy.k

Image Credits
Wes klain