We’re looking forward to introducing you to Empress Varnado & Melinda Graves. Check out our conversation below.
Good morning Empress & Melinda , we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
Empress: I just completed a 10-day Vipassana Silent Meditation program, so my mornings now start with a candlelit meditation. Then I take my vitamins and drink a hot beverage to wake me up. From here, I either head to the gym or take a walk along this beautiful, serene path in my neighborhood, where I can watch the sunrise.
Melinda: First thing in the morning, I spend about 30 – 40 minutes in a devotional to help set my mind right for the day. Then, depending on if I’m booked on a job or not, I’ll either get ready or workout, then get ready. After that, I may make myself a cup of herbal tea with a lot of honey and start on any work or personal to-dos.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Empress: My name is Empress Varnado. Creatively, I go by The Empress Agency! I create media and experiences that highlight the beauty, power, and diversity of the global Black community. I mainly work in social media and I produce thought-provoking video content. Acts of Intimacy is a project that was manifested after a conversation with Melinda, where I vented about my own personal struggle with having non-sexual intimate relationships with people after moving to LA post-COVID. Acts of Intimacy’ is a 10-part looping video vignette that celebrates the profound beauty, depth, and intimacy of our daily lives. Through cherished moments with ourselves and our loved ones, we create a safe space for rest, love, self-preservation, and ease. It is through these connections that we tap into our humanity in a world that constantly tries to rob us of it. Intimacy is key to our individual and collective healing.
Melinda: I’m a freelance line producer and production manager for marketing & promotional shoots, social/digital media, and commercials. I hail from Huntsville, Alabama, with a little bit of southern charm and no accent as some would say. I came to L.A. in 2014 with a paycheck and no savings and God has been providing ever since.
Acts of Intimacy was a project that Empress brought to me and it piqued my interest. It’s really about black people taking up time and energy for themselves in self-care ways. Stepping away from the busy world to center one’s self and live our ancestor’s wildest, simplest dreams. The outside noise tells us we can’t take time off, we can’t be selfish in a good way. But Acts of Intimacy projects the opposite.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
Empress: For a long time, I thought my purpose was to help others express their creativity. I still find joy in that—but I’ve also discovered that I am creative, too. I have my own stories to share, and I’m finally standing in that truth.
Melinda: I had to be strong and do it all by myself.
Do you remember a time someone truly listened to you?
Melinda: Absolutely. God has been my number one listener. I started freelancing back in 2022, and I would have never chosen that route. I felt I needed to know more people in my network to sustain a life doing it. Every time I thought I would run out of money and have to move back to Alabama, I spoke to God. And every single time he delivered and created a way out of no way that I could see. I said to myself, there must be a purpose for me to be in L.A. and still be a freelancer, that God keeps hearing me when I’m on the verge of things falling apart.
Empress: I’m aligned with Melinda’s answer here. God is so faithful. Once I tapped into learning how to be still with God, I learned how to listen to myself. This has been the greatest gift!
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. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
Empress: Burnout, exploitation, and trauma are glamorized as “grind culture.” The system rewards exhaustion and labels boundaries as a lack of passion. That you must overwork to be good at what you do, I truly believe in rest and taking breaks
Melinda: Certain stories don’t matter.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What will you regret not doing?
Empress: I know I’ll regret it if I don’t take the leap to live, work, and play abroad for at least one year
Melinda: I might regret not living abroad again. I would love to go back to Spain but also open to other countries that would sit well with my spirit and feel like home.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.theempressagency.com/
- Instagram: theeeempress
- Linkedin: Empress Varnado
- Other: Melinda’s Contact Information:Website: https://www.yorsen.co/
IG: @meli_graves
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melinda-graves-a72469123/
Image Credits
Empress: Rayon Richard Photography
Melinda: Maddison Rose October – Documentary Photographer
