Meet Jaleesa Mitchell of JaleesaLynnae

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jaleesa Mitchell.

Jaleesa, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started my career in modeling when I was 15 years old. I’m from Sacramento, CA. I began modeling for my hairstylists and shortly started modeling in music videos for some of your favorite rap artists like Rick Ross. I took my career to Los Angeles, CA when I was 18 years old. I moved to L.A. and told myself I will model, act and graduate from hair school. Me leaving home was definitely a “risk” I didn’t have much money saved or a place to stay when I arrived, only a DREAM. I think that mindset is why I’m successful today because I don’t let any situation humble or stop me. I know what I want in life and that’s important. Los Angeles is a hard city to tackle but if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. I’ve seen people come and go so I have to reflect on my progress and give myself a pat on the back every now and then. I been living in Los Angeles for about ten years now. I moved here with my best friend who does music. We drove from Sacramento, Ca in a U Haul truck with our furniture, etc. and we lived in the back of that truck for two months. I’ve experienced being homeless, sleeping on strangers floors, etc. I really had to become in tune with who I am spiritually to reach my craziest dreams. So fast forward the years, I’ve gained a ton of connections and relationships from modeling. My best friend asked me to manage her and I took on the challenge.

Relationships in LA is so important, you know the saying, “it’s not what you know, its who you know” I can’t stress that enough to up and coming entrepreneurs. Network, meet people, gain relationships, let your mission and personality speak and watch how far you go. About six months into managing Sareal, stalking DM’s on Instagram, making sure I’m at every party in LA shaking hands, we finally got a break with Atlantic Records and I was offered an internship position for A&R Manager. It’s just the beginning of this ten years journey but I think it’s crazy, you have these plans for your life and God kind of has his own plans for you. Everything I said I would do has happened and is happening plus things I never even thought I would do. What did I do to get here? I didn’t give up and I never will no matter what. In the beginning, it was a challenge and even today I still face challenges but challenges are great for the soul and keeps you on your toes.

Great, 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?
Definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. Encountering being homeless and even just staying stable. Dealing with depression, anxiety and getting impatient when things don’t go my way, I’m still learning how to simply deal. Chasing your dreams is self-giving and it takes a lot out of you. Being consistent I think is one of my biggest struggles, being consistent with keeping a job because I hate working for others, I’m a boss I like to do things my way & most jobs don’t understand people with dreams so it’s always been hard for me to keep a job and that comes in the way of my financial status. Being consistent in putting more time in my dreams, we all know dreams don’t pay off right away, so you have to work and at first I totally ignored giving anything else my time but my dreams.

When I fell into poverty it became stressful and I started to feel like I had to put my dreams on pause so I can survive. Balance was another struggle. I found myself trying to give up when things simply didn’t seem like it was working out but I’ve learned consistency wins every time. You just can’t give up. Depression and anxiety came upon me from just being stressed out about not making it yet, being broke, personal relationships, life situations period and I began to struggle with just believing in myself. Today I make sure I meditate, protect my energy by any means and keep God first. Life isn’t perfect but you have to remember you’re in control and alot of the struggles we encounter, we bring on ourselves. It’s very important to learn how to handle those struggles the proper way.

Please tell us about JaleesaLynnae.
Currently, I’m an intern at Atlantic Records for A&R Manager working under Gary Leon. My modeling career is coming back to light, I have some news I can’t share just yet but stay tuned! When it’s all said and done I want to be a business owner. My passion has always been in fashion, beauty and I fell in love with the entertainment industry. I have a clothing line, Rich Baggage, a Luxury Streetwear, re-launching in the near future and I have so much more in store, just keep your eyes on this gem. What set me apart from others? I just love to be different and I’m not afraid to do so, that comes in play with the talent I find, the fashion I’m designing, my look in modeling, etc. I’m just different. I’m starting to think I’m a brand itself and I’m proud of that, I’m slowly perfecting entrepreneurship.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Holidays, it taught me a lot about love and trips to six flags, just some of the best moments in my life!

Contact Info:

• Email: music@jaleesalynnae.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaleesalynnae/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jaleesalynnae

Image Credit:
Nicholas Branch

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