Today we’d like to introduce you to Ariel Lyndsey.
Ariel, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I started my career in the small town of Clearwater Florida which is my hometown. I was working as a freelance makeup artist and was occasionally getting booked for lifestyle modeling gigs here and there through friends that knew me and would recommend me. I was looking for something more and wanted to hone in on what I was most passionate about. I decided to start a YouTube channel to do tutorials for hair and makeup as this seemed like a creative outlet that could turn into something more. This was all brand new to me and was a big learning curve. It was around this time the beginning of Jan 2018 that I decided to try doing Instagram as I kept hearing about people doing this for a living and the term “influencer”. I switched gears and focused on learning this app and the ins and outs of it and how to grow my brand and audience. This was around February 2018. I worked so hard on mastering the use of this app as a tool and creative outlet that my Instagram began to grow pretty quickly for being so new, without some viral hack or something, and I started to have brands reach out to me, and was booking modeling jobs just from people finding me through Instagram. I remember doing my first paid post with a brand called Namskara that was for a natural teeth whitening product when I had no more than 1500 followers at that time and it was the most exciting thing when I realized that the opportunity is unlimited with the use of Instagram and connecting to brands, entrepreneurs, producers, etc. I since have been in several music videos, been doing freelance modeling through Instagram, been cast for and put on a game show and booked many collaborations and campaigns to date with brands like PoshMark, EBY, Skechers, Nike and tons more. I was visiting Los Angeles quite frequently every few months before I made the move to LA officially in summer 2019. As this is quite the hub for social media and content creators, as well as dancers (I’m also a dancer!) living in LA is perfect for me and the endless ceiling of opportunity was perfect for me. I also was doing mentorships with other artists and entrepreneurs or influencers who wanted to grow their personal brand through Instagram and have helped many through this course who have been able to now have opportunities or brand deals or other benefits from using Instagram to grow your brand. I embraced my love for sneakers and the sneaker culture this past year by embarking on a new addition to my brand which is painting custom sneakers.
As an artist, I’ve been painting most of my life and I wanted to channel it in a way I was very passionate about that aligned. I continue to work on my YouTube channel as a creator as well, on more of a fun and hobby-type outlet for now until that continues to expand. I am now in South Africa for a couple of months (where my roots originate) exploring and learning in addition to meeting family for the first time here. I’m also working on my brand that I will be launching this year, a custom designed streetwear brand that will go by the brand name “Lion Culture” to embrace a lot of my heritage, the representation of what lions stand for, fearlessness, power, confidence and support for one another, also not to mention the derivation of my name means “Lion of God” and I believe the Lion is my spirit animal so this is very fitting. The other project in the works is my online video course that has been filmed and is now in post production where I cover the basics of and use of Instagram for business and share my successful tips and secrets so anyone anywhere can use it to grow their brand. This is very exciting for me as there’s a lot in store for 2020!
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I am an artist! I do a lot, as a content creator, model, dancer, mentor, and I paint custom sneakers! The platform I specialize in where my main audience is on Instagram and I work with brands to create content they can use for their digital marketing and advertising as well as promoting my favorite brands and recommendations to my followers. I think I’m mostly known for my obsession with sneakers, especially chunky sneakers! Wearing bright colors and neon and having a knack for streetwear fashion and style. I like to keep it real with social media and be authentic and myself and I’ve found this has been a key part of my success. I’m also a freelance model, meaning I’m not signed with any agency, most of my traffic for bookings come through my Instagram as it’s almost like a portfolio in this day in age. I do lifestyle shoots, beauty, fitness and music videos. As a mentor, I get so much joy out of helping to empower others especially women with knowledge to help them to be more competent and able to successfully obtain their goals. So whatever their goals are with building their brand I help guide them in this direction. Also as if mentioned for those in the sneaker culture who have a love for custom work, that’s where I come in and can paint you whatever you’d like and customize sneakers for you with art. You can also look forward to my brand launching in 2020 as well as my online video course for Instagram where I teach you how to crush the gram!🥳
In your view, what is the biggest issue artists have to deal with?
This has been very challenging!! And it has been a test of strength, persistence, and a test of how passionate and motivated I am about my goals. I have very big plans as I’m very passionate about inspiring others and helping lift others up, and I know that if I have up on myself or my goals at any point this would set a bad example and in a way I’d also be letting my friends and followers down, which are really like my family at this point. I went through ups and downs of trial and error and had to move through failures, rejection and other obstacles. I also went through a divorce of almost 5 years of marriage during this time so the struggles were challenging to say the least. I honestly am very proud of having gone through what I’ve gone through and gotten to where I am now and I know the journey is still in progress and that there will be more. My advice is to follow your passion and stick to your goals and a HUGE one is to keep your integrity in. This is so key. Anytime I found myself in situations that were very difficult or I had to fix or undo if I stepped back and looked usually before that there was something I’d decided or done that didn’t align with my integrity or perhaps didn’t listen to my gut.
Another piece of advice is there will always be haters, or cyber bullies or people that don’t like what you’re doing and sometimes they will speak up or be vocal about you or your successes. My advice on this is to recognize them for what they are, to stay in your lane, don’t engage their BS and keep being you and following your goals. My motto is to “just be like a duck”. Which I say because like the saying, water off ducks back, (because ducks have oils on their feathers and so water just rolls off and doesn’t absorb) I say “just be like a duck!” And not let anything affect you or have an impact on you or your next move or decisions. Make sure to keep your circle close of the real ones that FULLY have your back and support. Find yourself a mentor, someone who has successfully taken the path before you, and someone you can trust who wants to see you succeed, and continue to learn and gain knowledge so you can do more and be more competent in everything you do! 💕💕
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
I started working at a young age and also the way I was raised my parents always had me exchange with them in the sense that I was allowed to and also encouraged to contribute. I think having the mindset of knowing everything doesn’t come for free and the fact that I wasn’t spoiled helped me to feel motivated from a young age. I also feel blessed to have parents that though they don’t always agree with every life choice I’ve made, they’ve been supportive in my decisions and know my intentions are good and encourage me to follow my goals and also believe in me. They are extremely supportive of me as an artist and this I believe is very important. A healthy balance of being allowed to be self determined in my decisions yet also guiding me in the right direction.
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.Ariellyndsey.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: Www.instagram.com/Ariellyndsey
- Facebook: Www.facebook.com/Ariellyndseyd
- Twitter: Www.twitter.com/Ariellyndsey
- Other: https://vm.tiktok.com/XBbm6B/
Image Credit:
Amy Fitch photographer
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