Today we’d like to introduce you to Kyra Mahoney
Hi Kyra , so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I always had a passion for the creative arts, but like many young people, I struggled to find my trajectory in life. As a kid, I shuffled through many potential career goals. When I was a child, I envisioned myself being a ballerina, gymnast, and singer. Growing up in California, where there are so many creatives and opportunities within creative spaces, it was only natural that I would gravitate toward the field. However, as I got older, I lost my passion for pursuing those goals, and because I was raised by a single mom, it was hard for her to dedicate the time and money I needed to pursue these goals. So, at the age of 16, I got a job as a waitress and worked in this field for years. I felt so accomplished—I didn’t feel like a scrub anymore asking my mom for money. Cashing that first paycheck made me feel like a grown woman. Little did I know, working as a waitress would inspire me to pivot into the podcasting space.
All my life, I’ve always been the person others went to seeking advice. It could be a crowded room or a bus stop, and people would walk up to me wanting to chat and feeling so comfortable sharing very personal information with me. It always shocked me. As a waitress, I experienced this all the time. I’d walk over to take an order and end up in a therapy session with them. People from all walks of life would engage with me—I felt like a magnet. During this time, I graduated high school and decided to go to community college. This led me to want to pursue a degree in broadcast communications. I figured I have the gift of gab, I am opinionated, and people are drawn to me. Why not start a career in this field? So, I graduated from community college and transferred to San Francisco State University to pursue broadcasting and communications.
While at San Francisco State, I wanted to look for internships but had no idea what I should put on my resume or where to start looking. I found a class that was based on finding internships. Every week, we would have guest speakers come in, such as executives from Warner Bros., Disney, Vice Media, and Netflix—all the major players in the game. What stood out to me was that every guest speaker said the same thing. They would say, “This business is competitive. Your chances of landing a job permanently are pure luck. What could help you is starting your own YouTube channel or podcast and finding success independently.” I had people encouraging me to start a podcast, and once I heard it from the horse’s mouth, I took this as a sign to start my podcast.
At this point, I was still a waitress and was on my last round of loans I could use for college. I had another two years of school left at San Francisco State. On top of that, I had a lot going on in my personal life. Although I had the goal of starting my podcast, there was a lot of self-doubt. Then, boom—the pandemic hit in 2020. I was laid off from work as there was a full lockdown happening in California, and all restaurants had to close down operations. I took this as a sign to start my podcast. I had no more excuses to make and had all the time in the world to make things happen. I decided to finish up my last semester at San Francisco State and drop out to work on my podcast full-time. In August 2020, a star was born—Vibe Selection Podcast had finally made its Debut.
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?
The road to creating Vibe Selection Podcast was a turbulent one. I had a lot of self-doubt and kept asking myself questions like, “How do I start a podcast? How will I fund it? What will I talk about? Will people listen?” I had to learn to become more confident in myself. In school, we would do exercises that required us to talk about ourselves in front of the camera. Although I come off as very outgoing and chatty, I am a very shy person deep down inside. Doing these exercises gave me the confidence I needed to put myself out there and start my podcast.
The biggest obstacle was finding a job that would pay me enough to cover my bills in order to fund my podcast. Since I was laid off, I didn’t have any income. So, I used my savings, and thank God for gig work because it allowed me to make money while fostering the time and energy needed to get my podcast off the ground. I find that a common issue among creatives is generating income. You have to work to live, but sometimes your passion projects won’t make money for a while. You have to start getting creative with finding work to survive. At one point, I even considered becoming a cocktail waitress at a strip club. I was used to being a waitress and making fast money. I felt that with all the ballers coming into the club and making it rain every night, I could make even more money. I went in for an interview and quickly realized that wasn’t the life for me. So, I continued on with gig work.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a podcaster and created Vibe Selection Podcast during the pandemic in 2020. My podcast explores pop culture and music, but what makes my show unique is that I also discuss spirituality. I feature psychic mediums, tarot readers, and astrologers as guests.
Like many young Black girls, I grew up in a Christian household, where speaking to psychics or getting a tarot reading was considered taboo. I never understood why this was an issue for many Christians, especially since prophecy is not so different from a psychic reading. The stigma surrounding these topics only fueled my curiosity, leading me to explore them for myself. I began by reading my daily horoscope, and that curiosity eventually led me to my first psychic reading—a moment that changed my life.
I discovered a celebrity psychic online, and something told me to call him. At the time, I had a MetroPCS phone with no international calling, yet somehow, I was able to connect with him. I took this as a sign. During our session, he did a blind reading, accurately describing the struggles I was facing and even what I looked like. He nailed it. Since I didn’t have social media then, there was no way he could have known any personal details about me. I was so fascinated by the experience that it set me on my spiritual journey. From that point on, I met many incredible psychics who helped guide me on my path.
My goal is to encourage more people of color to be open-minded about spirituality and to recognize that it is bigger than religion. You don’t have to attend church every Sunday or read the Bible to nurture your relationship with God. Spirituality is a personal journey—one that you can define on your own terms.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
DON’T STOP, KEEP GOING would be my advice for those just starting out.
At one point, I experienced a creative block. I had no motivation to continue with the podcast, so I abandoned the show and started doing more gig work. I took on a job that I hated, but it paid well. During this time, I got into four car accidents—none of which were my fault—with the last one totaling my car. I was freaking out because I needed a car to work.
During my downtime, I started soul-searching and realized the deeper meaning behind all these accidents. It was the universe’s way of nudging me to refocus on my podcast. They say God works in mysterious ways, and He truly does. My car being totaled was His way of saying, “Okay, I gave you three warnings, and you still won’t return to the podcast. So, I’m taking you out of the game completely so you can focus.” Yes, it sounds extreme, but when we don’t listen the first couple of times, the message only gets louder.
When you’re creating something, it takes a lot of time and energy, and life can become overwhelming. It’s okay to take a step back to reassess your goals—but don’t abandon them. Find an outlet that helps keep you on track, like meditation. Go inward and figure out what might be holding you back. Just remember, you already have the recipe within you to make the perfect pot of gumbo—you might just need to fine-tune it along the way.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://vibe-selection.captivate.fm
- Instagram: @Vibeselectionpodcast
- Facebook: Vibe Selection Podcast
- Twitter: @Vibe_Selection
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@vibeselectionpodcast
Image Credits
Psychic Medium June Edwards and Evidential Psychic Medium Emily O’ Neal
