Meet Frankiem Mitchell | Performing Artist, Company Owner, Youth Development Guru

We had the good fortune of connecting with Frankiem Mitchell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Frankiem, what matters most to you?

Authenticity. Today and for the foreseeable future, authenticity will have the utmost importance as a value, as a layer to my principled approach, and as a lens in which I evaluate others.

I’ve learned, mostly from the different versions of myself (some I’ve had to kill off) that life gains a more natural fluidity when I am leaning into my truest self. That is how I speak, how I process thought, how I recruit artists for collaborations, how I deliver my content, and what my content comprises.

From the outside looking in, operating through authenticity helps others to more readily identify potential compatibility (or lack thereof) when seeking partnerships of sorts.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

I’d say the earlier years of my more formal career with art, was marred by comparison syndrome and insecurity. I spent the years that might be considered the prime years for being discovered, discovering myself.

I’ve had some successes with Spoken Word, becoming one of the best in Chicago. I’ve had a lot of success when my music and performance is exposed adequately. However, what sets me apart is that I don’t really care to make the art into a business or a revenue stream. Give me a laptop, and Garage Band and I’ll write to free beats and record them myself. I’m a simple man when it comes to art— I want to create it, preferably at a high caliber and quality. Just making art suffices though. I actually love the art of it, the craft of it. I love tones, I love the atmosphere of creation, the spontaneity in the feminine energy of conjuring. I feel like the experience is payment in itself. I also will wipe the floor, lyrically, with any rapper. So yeah. That’s what sets me apart, that I don’t care to be famous and am better than famous artists. Oh, forgot to connect what I said at the beginning. I’m obviously not concerned with external perception anymore, and my confidence is appropriate for my talent.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

I’m not going to stunt here, this is not my type thing. Ha! I’d be like… “use the internet. Discover the area for yourself!”

To be fair though, I’d absolutely suggest visiting all the Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen venues (DTLA, Slauson Ave, Inglewood, LAX Airport). They have the best music, food/drink menu, staff, and lately they’ve been putting on some great events. I’d highly recommend stopping at Tower 24 to catch some waves in Santa Monica, I recently attempted surfing and fell in love with it— though the ocean is still daunting in my mind. I did see dolphins which is what made me recommend getting over there. At some point we’d have to hit up Girl and the Goat because that’s also my favorite restaurant in Chicago, and then gaze over Malibu Canyon for a bit. I’d be really tempted to also skip around the state for the sake of the Redwood trees!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to shout out Shontele Fuller! She’s a second mom to me. She has taken me in on multiple occasions, never asked for any money, she actually hasn’t asked for much of anything. She’s recently shown up to support me at a sold out Sofar Sounds concert as well. Shontele is a dean and has offered me plenty of insight on education, youth development, and social emotional learning. She likes to call her house the “transitional-living facility (el em ay oh). In all seriousness, I’ve been able to calculate my risks with my music and my company due to her. I’ve been able to not succeed and still say I landed somewhere, which has been priceless.

Instagram: @kiemofwheat

Twitter: @kiemofwheat

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Image Credits
Shantel Cribbs, Tirrea Billings