Today we’d like to introduce you to David Granados.
Hi David, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born in Bogota, Colombia. I went to college to be an industrial engineer to satisfy my father’s expectations but secretly, my mom and sister supported my love for the arts and took acting and dance classes secretly and started my training. I got discovered as a model by an agency in my hometown and started working right away despite being told it wasn’t an easy career path and right before graduation, I met Paris Hilton and she encouraged me to pursue my dreams, she light up my fire even more and helped me connect with an agency in the US. I landed a contract in New York with Marylin Agency and right after graduation, I moved to New York to model and to start my training.
In New York, I have had the opportunity to walk the runway during New York Fashion Week many seasons and work with household names such as Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang and Versace. Modeling for me was the entryway to this country I love so much, but once here I went full on with my education as an artist and did a two years program in NYU Tisch for Screenwriting and Filmmaking and continued my training at the William Esper Studio. Simultaneously I immersed myself in dancing training in the Broadway Dance Center in New York.
Being Latino, an immigrant and having an accent are parts of me that I fully embrace.
My most recent credits are Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story, Ryan Murphy’s Pose and NBC’s Saturday Night Live.
Part of the New York experience as an artist includes being in the theater and I was blessed enough to work on The Metropolitan Opera as an actor dancer in shows like Turandot and Aida in the biggest Opera house in America.
I’m a true believer that dreams come true if you work hard for them and have faith.
Being an immigrant and creating a life in a new country can be scary, requires a lot of sacrifices but also gives you an extra super strength to push even harder and if you’re not given a seat in the table you go ahead and make an even bigger one, where you can be inclusive and give seats to everyone. That’s one of my biggest passions, show the Latinx experience in a fair light, with the right lense and come out of the stereotypes that are just too old. I want mainstream America to see that we represent almost 25% of the population in America and that we come in all sizes, colors and walks of life and that we are all special and worthy of the opportunity to be seen and to represent so the new generations feel like they belong in this land of opportunities and freedom.
I think having gone to college for a business-oriented career has also helped me a lot to treat myself as a company from day one. I’m very entrepreneurial and recently launched with my mom Sandra and my sister Paula Daniela a genderless jewelry brand named Mansion De Perle. We had our debut with our own show during New York Fashion Week and the exciting part is that I’m working with the people I love the most. We use real pearls, my mom is the designer and has a team of female artisans in Colombia that are head of household and it’s just magnificent to see the brilliance that comes from her ideas and bringing them to life. Social media has been monumental in our business, having people like Dixie D’amelio and Charli D’amelio, Albania Rosario, Nico Freijo and Jose Forteza rock our pieces and cater to this new wave of digital customers.
I’m currently working in some secret exciting projects that I can’t wait to share.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Rejection and self-doubt can be exhausting but if you truly believe in what you got and what you want, stay consistent and work harder than anyone else, you’ll see it pays off. Being present, having moments of gratitude and appreciating the blessings you have really help stay on the path. Self-care and self-love are very important to me and sometimes all it takes is to count your blessings, disconnect for a minute and then keep going harder.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m an artist and I really mean it when I use this word. I feel like it’s more inclusive, I act, dance, model, create and make statements with the things I say, wear and do. I don’t believe in boxes and I truly believe that I can do anything that I put my heart into. From dancing in West Side Story for Steven Spielberg to crying and fighting for human rights in Pose for Ryan Murphy, to wearing things that make people think and question the way they feel about gender norms by creating and wearing genderless jewelry and at the same time being the strongest and most committed athlete at my Barry’s bootcamp classes I like to believe that the sky is the limit.
How do you think about luck?
I don’t believe in luck, I believe in blessings. I feel like no matter where you come from if you show up on time, are professional and kind to people that will help you open the doors to the blessings you want to achieve and some that you haven’t even dreamed of that are waiting for you in the next chapters. Always be prepared! It’s better to be ready than to get ready once the opportunity shows up. I am a go-getter and take no for an answer.
I’m constantly learning, growing and preparing me everyday more and more.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.mansiondeperle.com
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/davidgranados
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/dgmodel
