Today we’d like to introduce you to James Marino.
James, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I was born and raised in East Hartford, CT. I played soccer my whole life but always loved and felt connected to music. I trained professionally in Italy after high school and then went to a Division 1 school to play soccer. I eventually ended up getting cut from my team at 19 years old and I started dancing because I was so frustrated. I really loved how it made me feel and I didn’t want to work a regular job so I decided to pursue a career in performing with a dream of dancing for Justin Timberlake one day. I started going back and forth to Broadway Dance Center in New York City while I was getting my degree from Central Connecticut State University in Accounting. I was putting in 10-12 hour dance days back to back. Getting as much practice and training in as possible in order to get as close as possible to my dreams and aspirations. I had amazing training in New York City, and when I felt ready to make the jump, I moved to Los Angeles, California. I had about 5k in my account and I had no place to stay, I just booked a plane ticket and went. When I landed, I went on Craigslist and found a place to stay. There were 15 people in one house and my room had three bunk beds. I trained everyday at the best studios in LA, which were Millennium Dance Complex, Debbie Reynolds, and Movement Lifestyle. I remember I didn’t take a single day off for three months straight when I first arrived, networking with everyone I could and just trying to learn as much as I could from whoever I could. I used to go to dance conventions on weekends I didn’t have the money to stay in the hotel rooms so I used to stay up or sleep on park benches outside of the hotel if I couldn’t find any friends with extra room, which happened a couple of times. I sacrificed a lot of comfortability because I knew the hard work would pay off. I gave myself no other choice in my mind.
During my pursuit of figuring out my place in Los Angeles, one day I received a phone call from a friend of mine and exceptional talent, Frankie Gordils. He asked if I was in New York City to do a job. I told him no but I could get there. The job he called me about ended up being my first TV performance for NFL Kickoff with Mariah Carey. I ended up meeting my dance idol, Eddie Morales, on that job and we ended up clicking and he took me under his wing, teaching me so much not just about dance, but life and traveling the world. Since then, I have worked with Missy Elliott, The Backstreet Boys, Camila Cabello, Victoria Monet, Gwen Stefani, Fergie, Black Eyed Peas, Nike, A.D.I.D.A.S. Target, and worked on the tv shows The Voice and The Masked Singer.
I have traveled and performed in almost 40 countries. I also finally fulfilled the dream job of what made me want to start dancing and t0 pursue it. I got the chance to perform with Justin Timberlake on the Academy Awards in 2017.
Now I am still dancing when I want to work with someone, but I am more focused on working on my own choreography, movement coaching, and teaching. I am now faculty at one of the dance studios that changed my life, Millennium Dance Complex. I am so grateful for that place, and I know so many others are as well. I am also faculty on Revel Dance Convention.
Alongside dance, I started my own Mindset Management Consulting business. It is called Subconscious Trends and my mission is the make self-improvement the lifestyle. I help people assess where they are at in their journey through life and find habits that they want to instill that will make them better at certain aspects of their lives in order to build the future they see for themselves with purpose and clarity.
I don’t believe in limits and I am excited for what is to come and how I will grow into my future!
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?
It has not been a smooth road at all. I have slept on the street in cities I had been in less than 24 hours in order to train from certain teachers. I had to travel 6 hours a day(3 each way) to go to NYC to train for two years when I first started. I have had certain big jobs fall through when I thought I had them booked. That was so painful because you work so hard, think you booked something and get excited, only to be dropped from the job. I had family problems when I first wanted to switch over to dance. I have so much support from them today, but when I first made the switch, it was a painful struggle for the first couple of years to say the least.
As you know, we’re big fans of Subconscious Trends. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
This is a Mindset Management company. We help create more self-awareness and clarity through personal development. Our pillars; Passion Theory, Kaizen(Continuous Improvement), and Gratitude create a system to live by in order to make self-improvement your lifestyle, no matter what your goals and life aspirations are. What sets me apart from others is that I truly live my brand and test its strength and consistency daily. I understand the discipline it takes to achieve both big dreams and small daily actions that accumulate into great life accomplishments. I offer Habit Building Monthly Groups and Mindset Management Consulting. A lot of this is built into how I teach my craft of dancing to others as well. Everything we do is mental, and learning how to build mental strength and resiliency will take someone further than any of someone’s talent ever could.
https://www.subconscioustrends.com
What makes you happy?
Nature. Love. Listening to Music, especially Live. Watching others grow. Pushing through a challenge, I set up for myself. Being on stage. Good food. Traveling and sightseeing.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.subconscioustrends.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamescombomarino/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTGWvywzzEU
