Meet Arely Soriano | Social Media Specialist & Model

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

Hi Arely, what’s one piece of conventional advice that you disagree with?
I disagree with the advice “if you just work hard, you will achieve success.” I disagree with this statement because while that can sometimes be true for certain people, it usually is not true for people of color. We do not have the same resources accessible to us as white people in this country and who is to say we aren’t trying our best? I think it’s important to remember that we need to work 10x harder for things as people of color and go out of our way to seek those opportunities that others have had handed down to them.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
At first, it was really hard getting into my field. Everyone wants to be a social media manager and there are so many people who had the privilege of taking unpaid internships in college while I was working 2 jobs. During the beginning of the pandemic I was unemployed. I saw there was a shift in marketing and everything went digital. I began putting together a portfolio of platforms I had managed during college and even used my own platform as a way to show brands I could manage their social media platforms. I landed my internship where I work now and got hired full time 3 months after. From there, I took on my own personal clients and hope to have my own business soon. It was challenging at first but I used my time wisely and even though there were times I felt like giving up, I had to continue because failing was not an option.

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?
1. Hilltop Coffee in Inglewood order an iced chai and mexican bowl 2. Take a bike ride down Venice Beach
3. Lunch at Neighbor, a black owned lunch spot in Venice
4. Watch a movie at the grove
5. Go to a bar called Tenants of the Trees in Silver Lake
6. Late night snack at a nearby taco truck

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?
The organization that deserves a shoutout for my success is Associated Students Incorporated at the Cal State University Long Beach campus. When I was in college, they equipped me with the tools needed in order to achieve equitable success. The people there were some of the best mentors I could have ever asked for.