Today we’d like to introduce you to Lex Nichole.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I am 22 years old, and I’m from the east side of Detroit. I am also the founder/editor in chief of Taco Picasso. Taco Picasso is a local media publication based out of Detroit, Michigan. We are focused on promoting culture to our viewers and listeners; including but not limited to: art, music, and wellness. The name Taco Picasso came about when I was in high school. When my mother was pregnant with me, she said she craved tacos everyday and played hip hop music to her stomach. I came out loving tacos and music. A friend playfully referred to me as “Taco Picasso” while on my way to an art show in 2015- and the name just stuck with me. From then on, I began using “Taco Picasso” as my personal artist’s name. At the time, I was making canvas paintings and dabbling in photography, so when doing art shows I would go by that name. In 2016, I decided that I should have a personal website to showcase my talent. I began posting my photography, paintings, and poetry on thetacopicasso.com.
While I was proud of myself, I also wanted to showcase other talented artists in my area. I decided that since I liked to write, I would do short interviews with artists I knew from around the city. After a few months of doing this alone, the work began to pile up. I wanted to do more with the brand, and having a team of people to work with would make it possible. I reached out to a close friend of mine from high school, Vidal Headings. Vidal was always getting me hip to new music, and I knew he was looking for another way to apply that knowledge. I asked if he’d be interested in doing Taco Picasso with me, and he was down!
I met Raina Monet in 2017. In addition to Taco Picasso, I was part of an art collective called Alt Nubian. Raina and I were in this collective together. Getting to know her through Alt Nubian, I learned that she was an aspiring photographer and wanted to learn about blogging. I was looking for an assistant editor to help me run the blog behind the scenes. Raina said she’d be down, and the rest was history. Since the brand was founded in 2016, we have been able to highlight a countless amount of talent coming out of Detroit. In addition to this we have hosted a wellness workshop and took our talents on air with Taco Bout It: The Podcast.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There have definitely been struggles along the way. We are all college-aged black kids growing up in and around Detroit. We all still have jobs, and it can be difficult making time for your passion. We are balancing work, school, relationships with loved ones, and making time for our own self-care in the midst of doing the work that Taco Picasso requires. We have lost good people along the way, and some things don’t always go as planned. There were plenty of times we had to cancel things due to not having the funds to support ourselves, or not having the time. Finding days for all 3 of us to meet can also be a challenge. Having the responsibility of running Taco Picasso while navigating my 20s is definitely not an easy task, but whenever I want to quit, my team or my supporters give me a reason to keep going. Remembering why I started in the first place gives me motivation as well.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Taco Picasso story. Tell us more about the business.
Our main focus is promoting cultures such as art, music, politics, and wellness to the community and surrounding areas. When people think of Detroit, they usually associate us with poverty and violence. It is easy to develop a negative perception of your own city. The goal of Taco Picasso is to highlight the positivity of this city and our generation in general. We come from Motown. This is a hub for all things creative. There are so many talented people that we get to experience in this lifetime and so many ways to live a better life. We want people to focus on that more so than the struggles we may face.
On our website, we post music current events, poetry, photography, think pieces, and interviews from local artists. We expand on these topics with our podcast, Taco Bout It. We encourage people to be healthy and always strive to be the best versions of themselves.
We also have a biweekly playlist called “Taco Tunes.” Every other Tuesday, we post a 20 song playlist on Apple Music and Spotify. It is a collection of songs that our team currently has in rotation. This has been so much fun for us! We all have similar tastes, but the songs we pick are a unique reflection of how we are feeling at the time. We are definitely an interesting trio. We all have different personalities, and we compliment each other so well. We make each other laugh and bring good energy to any room we step into.
We recently launched a line of productivity merchandise. There is a limited selection, but we will be restocking soon if the sale goes well. All products are located under the “Shop” section of our website, and they are very affordable! We also offer creative services such as illustrations that can be turned into wall posters, and social media consultations.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Luck has definitely been on our side, but I feel that a lot of our opportunities come solely from being good people, and putting good energy into the universe. When you put out positivity, it comes back to you. We are authentic in what we do and want the best for everyone we come in contact with.
Contact Info:
- Website: thetacopicasso.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taco.picasso/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TACOPlCASSO
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/tacoplcasso
- Other: https://soundcloud.com/trillxville/sets/taco-bout-it-the-podcast
Image Credit:
Brandon Parker, Kaila Page, Justin Hatchett
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