Conversations with Aria Gold

Today we’d like to introduce you to Aria Gold.

Hi Aria, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
It’s been two years since my last interview with VoyageLA, and what a difference two years can make!

In our first interview, I shared how I went from playing French horn and dreaming of an orchestral career to moving from New Hampshire to New York, picking up a camera, and eventually producing across fashion, art, and entertainment. At the time, my work had taken me through NYFW and Art Basel, and I was moving into film and television in Los Angeles.

That interview tells the story of how I started. This one feels like an opportunity to talk about what happened next, because quite a bit has changed.

The last two years have involved stepping away, starting over, and asking myself some difficult questions about what I wanted my life to look like. There had been so much momentum leading up to my move to Los Angeles that I hadn’t given myself much room to pause. I had a lot of passions and knew how to keep myself busy, but I needed to figure out what mattered most to me and who I wanted to become.

I stepped away from film and returned to art curation through Art Saves LA in early 2025. During the Los Angeles fires, I also spent time volunteering. I explored A&R, found my way back to portrait photography, and continued looking for where I wanted to put my energy.

Eventually, I realized I was trying to do everything at once while giving very little attention to myself. I loved the work, but I couldn’t keep treating my own well-being as something I would get around to later.

On January 7, 2026, I got sober. Committing to recovery has changed the way I approach my relationships, my creativity, and the everyday decisions that make up my life. I’m still learning, but I’ve become much more intentional about what I take on and what I need to feel grounded.

Around that same time, I realized how much I wanted to return to working closely with fine art and artists. I met Agua, a Los Angeles native and Chicano dark artist whose practice includes painting and tattooing. We began working together, and that creative partnership became a significant part of this new chapter.

Today, we’ve launched a new studio for Floating Streams Tattoo in the Los Angeles Arts District, building on Agua’s existing tattoo practice. Agua brings his artistic vision, and I bring my background in creative production, marketing, photography, and artist development. My work spans everything from shaping how we present the studio to building the systems that support it and connecting with clients. It’s been rewarding to bring years of experience into something we’re developing together, where I can be involved in both the creative details and the day-to-day work.

There has also been a lot of life happening outside of work. Agua and I traveled to Utah, where spending time camping and being outdoors gave me room to slow down and feed my soul. I also lead weekly meditation in recovery spaces, which has become a meaningful part of my life. Making time to sit with others, breathe, and be present is something I value deeply.

I’m still a musician at heart, and I’ve started playing guitar again, which has been a beautiful part of reconnecting with myself. I still love photography, writing, and helping artists bring their ideas to life. Those interests haven’t gone away; I’m learning how to make room for them without stretching myself beyond what I can sustain.

When I look back at my first interview, I recognize the ambition, the curiosity, and the love for people. Those things are still very much here. Today, I’m also learning how to care for the person behind all of that.

What a year it has been.

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?
There are countless roads we can take in life. Every day, we make decisions that seem small at the time, but each one can change our direction. Sometimes we choose a new path deliberately, yet sometimes we only recognize how far we have traveled when we look back.

In my first interview, I spoke about challenges as opportunities to grow. I still believe that, although I have a much deeper understanding now of how difficult that growth can be while you’re actually living through it. It can take time to understand what an experience has taught you, particularly when you’re still trying to get through the day.

One of my biggest challenges was learning to embrace my independence. When I left my former company, I was in Los Angeles without much of a support network, trying to figure out what came next. I found myself sleeping on couches again for the first time since I had experienced homelessness at nineteen. That was a difficult place to return to. I had years of professional experience behind me, but I was still struggling with something as fundamental as having a stable place to live.

Navigating that uncertainty as a woman came with another layer of vulnerability. There were situations where I felt unsafe, and trying to find my footing also meant being careful about whom I trusted and where I stayed. It’s difficult to focus on rebuilding your life when you’re also trying to protect yourself. That experience made me more aware of my boundaries and how much having a safe place to land affects every other part of your life.

Eventually, I found stability, but that period forced me to get to know myself outside of my work. I had to ask who I was when I wasn’t managing a project, supporting someone else’s vision, or moving toward the next opportunity. Asking myself: what do I need? When no one is around, what is it exactly that I want to do? Do I know myself like I thought I did? Learning to trust myself and make decisions independently took time. So did learning to take accountability for my own actions and recognize the patterns I needed to change.

Getting sober has been a significant part of that process. It has meant learning how to experience difficult feelings without immediately trying to escape them, how to ask for help, and how to follow through on the commitments I make to myself and others. Some days, that work feels hopeful and energizing. Other days, it requires patience with myself and a willingness to keep showing up even when I don’t feel particularly strong.

Recovery has also changed my relationship with ambition. I still care deeply about my work, but I’m learning to recognize when I need rest, when I’m taking on too much, and when being busy is keeping me from paying attention to something important. There is a lot of humility in realizing that you can be capable in so many areas of your life and still need help in others.

I believe we spend our lives learning how to become better human beings, and challenges are part of that. But I also think it’s important to leave room for everything else: joy, grace, opportunity, laughter, and moments of calm. During the harder periods, it can be difficult to remember that those things are still possible. To anyone struggling who is reading this, just know that all of those things are possible and the beauty of life emerges when we least expect it.

For me, finding balance has meant allowing myself to appreciate those moments without needing every part of my life to be resolved first. There is still work to do, and there are still difficult days. There is also so much in my life now that I’m grateful to be present for.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I have always loved being around people who are passionate about what they create. As a creative myself, I know how personal that work can be, and I love helping someone take an idea they care about and figure out how to bring it into the world. That has been a constant throughout my career, even as the industries and projects have changed.

These days, most of that energy goes into Floating Streams Tattoo. Agua and I work closely together, and my role touches a little bit of everything: creative consultation, photography and video, marketing, our website, and the systems behind the scenes that keep the studio running. I might be photographing his work one day and working through a client’s ideas before bringing them to him to bring to life or updating our booking process the next, and I truly enjoy that range. After years of working across music, fashion, art, and production, it feels natural to move between the creative vision and the details it takes to support it.

What sets me apart still comes back to what I shared in my first interview: empathy, listening, and giving people space to express themselves. But I feel much more grounded in those qualities now. Between the variety of work I’ve done and the hardships I’ve navigated personally, I’ve developed a sense of calm that I bring into my work. I can be in the middle of something chaotic and remain steady enough to listen, understand what’s needed, and help move things forward.

People have described me as a grounding force, and that feels meaningful to me. I’ve always known how to slow down for other people. Learning how to slow down for myself has helped me actually live with the care and patience I’ve tried to offer others. I think that has made me a better collaborator and more thoughtful about the environments I help create. There were numerous times over the past ten years where I found myself afraid and feeling voiceless. It is imperative to me that anyone who works with me feels empowered, free and strong within their voice.

What I’m most proud of today is this studio. Agua and I worked incredibly hard to get here, and getting here required some significant changes for both of us. There is so much of our lives in this space. Sometimes I look around and have to take a moment to appreciate that we’re actually here, doing something we talked about and worked toward.

I’m proud that we’re creating a space where people can feel safe, welcome, and comfortable getting tattooed. I’m proud to work with people who value kindness and empathy, and to be working closely with painting and fine art again. The way we treat people matters to me as much as the work we put out into the world.

I’m still proud of my past accomplishments and the productions I’ve been part of. This chapter carries a different kind of pride because I feel a real sense of ownership over my contribution. I can see it in the space, in the way we work, and in the relationships we’re building. I’m proud of the life taking shape alongside it, too.

Mostly, I’m excited. I’m excited to expand our network, grow the studio, collaborate with more artists, and see what we can create here. And don’t be surprised when you see me tattooing in the very near future. There’s a whole world developing behind the scenes in our beautiful studio.

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
My answer is a little unconventional. There was a lot of trauma in my childhood, and while that is part of my story, it’s something I’m not ready to revisit publicly. This question does give me an opportunity to talk about something that has become meaningful to me: nurturing my inner child.

Much of my sobriety journey has felt like being reborn. Connecting with a higher power, returning to art and music, and learning how to care for myself have helped me reconnect with parts of me that I hadn’t felt close to in a long time. So when I think about a favorite memory for the little girl within me, I think of the aforementioned trip Agua and I took to Utah this year.

We slept in a tent near Zion. I had spent two years as a flight attendant and visited so many major cities across the United States, but I had never seen anything quite like those canyons, mountains, rivers, and skies. I don’t want to wax poetic too much but I mean this: at night, I could feel the silence under the stars feeding my soul.

There were animals where we stayed: goats, horses, cats, dogs, sheep, and pigs. I’ve always loved animals, and being around them brings me such a simple, childlike joy. That love is very much part of our everyday life now, too. We’re raising two little shelter cats, Pepino and Baby Rose, who are becoming part of our studio family.

But the moment I think about most happened on a very hot afternoon. It was around 105 degrees, the air conditioning in the car wasn’t working, and we were walking through a little town with one main street. Outside a library, we came across a splash pad with fountains, water guns, and buckets that tipped water down one after another.

There was no one playing there…

We simply looked at each other and ran straight in.

We were fully clothed, spraying each other with water and laughing. The water was so cold, and I’m sure we looked ridiculous to the few people who walked past. I remember being so completely caught up in having fun that I didn’t care.

In that moment, I felt like the little girl within me could finally let her guard down. After spending so much of my life feeling like I needed to protect myself, I could simply exist joyfully and freely. Nothing needed to be accomplished. I wasn’t thinking about what came next. I was just there, laughing with someone I treasure deeply.

I turned twenty-nine on that trip, and that is one of the memories I love most from it. The nature, the quiet, the animals, and that afternoon in the water gave me a sense of care and freedom that I really needed. My inner artist felt inspired, and my inner child had room to be herself.

So while it happened in adulthood, I think of it as my favorite memory of reconnecting with her. I’m grateful that we still get to make those memories.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.floatingstreams.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/femaleslimshady/
• Other: https://instagram.com/floatingstreamstattoo/

Image Credits
All photos are from a self-portrait series “BACK TO MY BECOMING”

Taken @ Floating Streams Tattoo

All featured artwork by AGUA