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

Hi Mayara, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I’m originally from Sao Paulo. Brazil. When I first move to this country I came with every Brazilian’s mentally, I’d get a house cleaner job and save money so I can afford to bring my son to live with me. After a year cleaning houses I’ve decided that I deserved better, so my husband and I packed our bags, sold my cleaning company and moved to Los Angeles. I went to makeup school and hated, I wanted to be in front of the camera! So that’s exactly what I did. The fact I was able to leave everything I knew for my entire life to move to the United States made me a fearless person, I am not afraid of change and I truly believe that has helped me achieve many of my dreams.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve always been passionate about photography, the woman body and tasteful nudity. I feel empowered by my body and sexuality, I share with the world because I hope some day, people won’t be so judgmental and afraid of something so natural and beautiful as their sexuality and the human body. I’ve always done it through photography and now I am excited to share my story in my book and hopefully inspire others to love themselves and set themselves free from generational beliefs. I want people out there to understand what they like, what makes them happy and satisfied with themselves and sexuality. My journey was never easy, I’ve always had to work really hard to network, create a social media persona and produce content which I can profit of and be a full time creator.
The lessons I’ve learned is that you can let others dictate if you are good in your craft or not, you must believe in yourself in order to create meaningful art.
I also learned not to trust people easily, it’s been a rocky road.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
One of my favorite things about LA is the huge food selection! My favorite restaurants are Perch at Hill St in Dtla. It’s also amazing to go just for cocktails since their outdoor patio is adorable and the view is beautiful! 71above is a must! That restaurant is a dream! It literally feels like you’re in a movie!
We would go for an afternoon swim at The Hollywood Roosevelt followed by a delicious burger at 25 Degrees!
Since I am a lil rock’n’roll girly I would bring them to Rainbow Bar & Grill because it’s a Hollywood classic!
Movie night at Hollywood forever.
My favorite museum The Broad
Santa Monica pier, El matador beach.

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 had so much help throughout my journey! But someone who has truly helped me is my mentor and amazing friend Andrew Mendetta who recently convinced me to write a book about my life and digital sexwork, which I am almost finished!

The other thing responsible for my enthusiasm for life is the book You are a Badass – How to stop doubting your greatness and start living an awesome life by Jen Sincero.
This book saved me when I most needed. Sometimes life happens, my mental health was unstable and I was feeling stuck, but this book changed everything!

Website: http://mayaralopes.com

Instagram: http://instagram.com/iwantmayara

Image Credits
Picture by http://instagram.com/freiddo

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