Deciding to pursue an artistic or creative career path isn’t for the faint of heart. Challenges will abound, but so many of the artists we speak with couldn’t be happier with their choice. So, we asked them about how they made the decision in the first place.

Li Li

I didn’t choose to be a creative- I was born an Artist. That means I am larger than life, tortured, and completely delusional. This is my re-birth. I’m in my Britney Spear’s Blackout era- I’m chaotic, dark, and Musically Unhinged. Read More>>

Mary Nguyen

I chose an artistic career because, even as a child, I loved working with my hands and watching things transform right before my eyes. Creating has always been my way of expressing myself it’s how I communicate best, through doing rather than saying.” Read More>>

Steven Tralongo

Honestly, I’m not entirely sure—it wasn’t something I set out to do from a young age. I didn’t come from a particularly creative family, and for a long time, I actually thought I wasn’t creative at all. It wasn’t until I was diagnosed with ADHD just before turning thirty that I started to understand myself better, and in hindsight, it makes sense that I gravitated toward creative pursuits. There’s a spontaneity and fluidity to creative work that aligns with how my brain operates. Read More>>

Christina Scherer

I knew I wanted to be an actor by the time I was two. It wasn’t a passing childhood dream—it was a deep, quiet knowing. That sense of purpose has been the thread running through every creative path I’ve followed since.

Acting asks you to get comfortable with uncertainty. The schedule is unpredictable, and so much of it is out of your control. To support that lifestyle, I built a photography business that I ran for 16 years. It gave me the freedom to audition, be on set, and still express myself creatively through another medium. Read More>>

Dan Schatzberg

Ive been playing piano my whole life and music is as much a part of me as any limb. I grew up playing and improvising, writing, listening to Fantasia, Gershwin, John Williams, listening to all the brilliant movie scores from all the brilliant composers, and it’s truly been my life’s journey. When I realized as a teenager that all the scores I fell in love with represented a job, or that film scoring was a job I mean, it seemed very clear at that point. So many people struggle to find what their path is, and I’m very lucky that I’ve known what it was and have been working on it my whole life. And in the film and scoring world, you get to make magic with music and tell stories. Read More>>

Erica Rabner

It may sound simple or cheesy but creators create. While I sang before I could talk, I started my career as a researcher on Sesame Street. I didn’t intend to pursue music professionally but once I started songwriting I couldn’t seem to stop. Once I realized I could combine my love of kids media, children’s education, and music there was no looking back. Read More>>

Nicole Karl

I’ve always been drawn to the creative side of life. Even outside of barbering, art has been a consistent passion—something that’s both instinctual and deeply fulfilling. People have often told me I have a sharp eye for detail and aesthetics, and I’ve always gravitated toward outlets that allow me to bring that to life.

Barbering was a natural starting point because it let me turn creativity into something practical and personal. It’s a profession rooted in transformation and self-expression—not just for the client, but for the artist behind the clippers. What makes a creative career so rewarding is that it allows you to shape experiences, evoke emotion, and constantly evolve.  Read More>>

Ronnie Rotic

I pursued this career out of the desire for expression. I believe I’ve always been a performer. Before I began performing in drag, I was a professional wrestler. I loved everything about it. I was athletic and loved putting on a show. I unfortunately had to stop due to a major injury so I turned back to drag.

When I started doing drag at 17, I was confused about my gender identity. I was a butch lesbian that didn’t exactly feel like a butch lesbian. I didn’t like calling myself a girl. It wasn’t until I started performing as a king and getting addressed with masculine terms that I began to realize I might be transgender. Read More>>

Calista Ortiz

I pursued this career because I feel like it’s my calling—I was born to be a singer. When I was five, my older cousin, who took care of me for two years, introduced me to Mary J. Blige, Bob Marley, and Amy Winehouse. Whenever she picked me up from school, she’d play her favorite music, and that’s where my love for music really began.

Even though I have two other jobs besides singing, I’m grateful to spend nearly every weekend performing—whether it’s at restaurants, casinos, private events, hotels, or any opportunity that comes my way. I truly believe that God and the universe keep bringing music back into my life, even during dry periods when I don’t have shows or haven’t released anything new. Read More>>

Natasha Hundreds

I think there’s something truly unique about being an artist—especially in my case, as a drag artist! Drag is such a fascinating discipline because it blends several art forms into one. In a single performance, you might see elements of theater, painting, design, and dance, all filtered through the lens of the performer. As someone who loves exploring different creative outlets, I find that incredibly appealing. Read More>>

Lily Kershaw

Writing songs and creating music is how I make sense of things. It helps me organize my interior life and move more easily through the world. It’s how I’ve spent my days since I was little—writing songs, thinking about lyrics, organizing my life experience into stanzas, more or less. When I was young, I knew I had to turn it into my career so that the way I had learned to emotionally take care of myself could also be the way I financially took care of myself. Read More>>

Mallory Marlowe

For me, it’s always felt like a complete given. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been telling stories and wanted to put them into the world. I always took my school writing assignments way too seriously and was jotting notes in the margins of all my notebooks during class. I started writing books (bad ones, granted!) when I was fourteen, and had always dreamed of seeing my name on the shelf. Read More>>

Chris Dougherty

Well, I picked up markers, paintbrushes, pencils, and as a child and never looked back. Art found me early in life and it just clicked, it was the only thing I wanted to do everyday and still is.