Meet Danney Paul | Artist/Creator

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

Hi Danney, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Risky business is where it’s at. Typically, I would say if you feel like the situation is too risky then don’t do it. Although you can’t help but pull the trigger in certain situation’s that are too good to pass on. I don’t like to enter into a risky situation unless I almost know certainly that the outcome is going to end up in my favor. It’s sort of about making your own luck so to speak. If I go into the fight knowing with overwhelming confidence and knowledge that I will ultimately win, then taking the risk is tertiary to me at that point.

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.
One of the beautiful things about art is that it is not easy. If it’s worth a damn then it is an absolute struggle. If it’s easy then it’s probably not as relevant. One who decides to pursue a career in art is doomed to struggle for the most part. Whether that be financially, creatively, emotionally, etc. The way I’ve done it is I have crawled and went through the meticulous grind and ultimately I have come to appreciate what I end up getting. I am never satisfied with the “final product” it could always be different, it could always be better, it could always be something unrelated or new. Although, you can’t bang your head against the wall all the time. Sometimes you just have to finish what you’re doing, look at it and say “all right that’s pretty good, lets move on.”

Naturally I became a jack of all trades overtime. I’m not familiar with all aspects of everything but you must be good at several things to be set apart these days. Not necessarily an expert at several things but being multitalented is a must. Sometimes you’ll realize the thing that you’re the most good at is not even the thing that you were most ambitious about in the first place. I never thought I would be into photography as much as I am when I was younger but it’s probably one of the things I’m most known for now. Also do not worry about not being exactly where you want to be in the present moment. Patience is something that is truly important. I say that and I’m still working on my level of patience with the world. Just because you’re not immediately doing what you want and rubbing shoulders with the top people in your field doesn’t mean you never will be.

I’m mostly proud and excited of my freedom and potential to complete projects and passions that I have always dreamed of and wanted to do but had reality complications in front of me. The most important thing is freedom and the ability to create your vision, whatever that might be. You don’t need $1 million to make something good. All you need is a little ambition and a vision. Money helps of course but it’s not required.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’ve been living in Los Angeles for many years now and I would give somebody the week to remember.

My hunting ground is Hollywood/West Hollywood. Always has been. I currently live here and depending on the friend I would have them stay with me at my place which is an old Romantix building on the east side of Hollywood where they would have impeccable views of the entire city of Los Angeles including The Hills which are not far away.

One of the first things we would do would be a day hike of Griffith Park. It is basically my backyard and anyone visiting the city should absolutely go to the top. On any given day in Los Angeles it is one of the most gorgeous hikes/walks a person can have.

Then I would take them to El Compadre on Sunset, arguably the best Mexican food ever. From there we could go in any direction and find a number of excellent things to get ourselves into.. be it live music, live comedy, drinks at a bar, shopping, anything their hearts desired.

Another required element of the visit would be riding on the back of my motorcycle. It is the only way to travel in Los Angeles in short to medium distances. The weather is perfect for it. There is no traffic included, no parking necessary and the best vantage point on the street you can have.

We would go to Barney’s Beanery, the Hollywood Bowl, the Greek, the La Brea tar pits, Mulholland drive to the various lookout points, the whiskey a gogo.

We will go to the New Beverly movie theater and see a matinee showing of one of Tarantino’s favorite films.

On Sunday we would go to the Fairfax Market Place and cruise Melrose get lunch and end up at the flea market.

On a slower day of the week we would go to Venice or Santa Monica and spend the day at the beach.

I would take them to Third Wheel Comedy one of those nights and let them experience some of the best local talent that LA has to offer. A true window into the culture of Los Angeles’s “bohemian vibe of artistry”.

If time permitted I would take them to Sycamore Canyon Cove. It’s about an hour and a half outside of the city past Malibu. It is a lovely beach with campgrounds millimeters away from the water and you can hear the waves crashing on the sand from your tent. We could camp there for a night and enjoy seeing the sunset on the western edge of the world.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I need to give a shout out to Third Wheel Comedy. Third Wheel is a place that has provided me with a space of position and creative freedom. It is a diamond in the underground comedy/music scene in Hollywood at the moment. It’s a place where young and old up-and-comers in various creative fields can come together and sharpen their tools and hone their craft in and amazing space that is nurturing and useful for them. It’s also like a big sandbox with limitless possibilities that can be utilized by individuals with ambition and vision. A place where the audience and the artist can intersect and build their network and quite frankly have a wonderful/intimate time in a space that is few and far between these days.

Website: https://thirdwheelcomedy.com

Instagram: @danneypaul

Youtube: @danneypaul

Other: @dp_photo_video

Image Credits
Danney Paul (myself)