Happy Monday everyone! Today I’m very excited to be introducing to you my dear friend EmilyKay. An amazing singer songwriter who is taking her talent to another level and making her dreams happen. Read on to find out what inspires her and drives her ambition to succeed.
Name: Emily (aka EmilyKay - A singer/songwriter and guitarist)
Birthplace: I was born in Birmingham, West Midlands
Where do you live now? I now live in London and have lived here for the past 6 years.
Education: Educated to BA Honours Degree level in Business Enterprise.
What was your very first job? My first job (and I'm sure the job most people had) was a paper-round. Although it must have lasted about 2 weeks.. as the bag was too damn heavy to carry!! I then had a few small jobs after that. They ranged from serving burgers at football matches to bar work and silver-service waitressing. Thinking back, they were some fun times..no bills to pay and living under my parents roof! What an easy life.
What is your current job? A senior sales co-ordinator in a media company. Alongside my day job, I am working on establishing myself as an artist by pursuing my music career to become a renowned UK singer/songwriter.
What has been your best job and why? Although I have achieved a lot in my day job, my best job to-date has been pushing my music career. As an independent artist I have been running my own small business of promoting myself. It's strange as I feel I've turned myself into a product 'EmilyKay'. This has entailed working to a huge budget to produce my first EP on iTunes, promoting my music across social networks, researching costs, producing CD’s and business cards etc. And this is still only the beginning of where I want to take my music.
What makes a good job? To me it's whether you have the opportunity to grow and learn in the position you are in. If you are given a lot of responsibility you are able to exercise your best skills. My full-time job has helped me hugely, as I have taken some core business skills from my day-to-day work life and applied them to my music career.
What was your dream job as a child and why? As a child, I wanted to be an actor/performer/singer and then weirdly it switched to wanting to become a teacher. But either way it would involve acting-out my future profession with a make-believe mic in my hand and dolls and teddy bears for the audience lol.
What is your dream job now and why? Travelling the world as a full-time singer and musician and performing as an established UK artist. Music is my passion and my dream, and once you realise you have a skill or a gift in something, I believe that's when you find your God-given purpose in life. That's what makes me happy anyway.
How will you achieve your dream job? Through perseverance. Even now when I'm hit with rejection, negativity or when it doesn't seem as though my dream will come true, I keep going. I think perseverance is the key to success.
What is the best advice you have been given? I've been given so much advice over the years but the best advice for me is to "Enjoy Life."
What is the best advice you’d give? "Maximise the Moment" because you only get one chance to live. Find what makes you happy or find your purpose or your best skill(s) in life and excel.
Who is your inspiration/role model and why? I was and I am inspired by so many people. I'm also inspired by positive, influential people that I meet on a daily or weekly basis.
Growing up I studied Oprah Winfrey a lot, so she became an inspiration. I was studying for my business degree at the time. Her journey to getting to where she is today has always fascinated me, I am a woman and I am black so I felt that I could be the next Oprah Winfrey!
However, as I went through life's experiences, I began listening to people like Billie Holiday and Aretha Franklin. The way those women sang about their life experiences was very passionate and bittersweet, I began to realise that sometimes people can fail you. So ultimately, having a strong belief in God was and is my strength and inspiration.
What is the one thing you would change about yourself or the world? Right now I'm happy with me. I've learnt to love being in my own skin first, so that instantly takes away the need for someone else to accept and love you. If I could change one thing in the world, I would want there to be no injustice or hatred.
What is the key to a successful life/career? I believe the key to a successful life/career is to persevere to a positive change. Not to allow anyone or anything to steer you off a positive path to what makes you happy and successful.
Recommend someone you know to take this interview: My friend Tolu.
Please check out EmilyKay’s music on iTunes and also Amazon MP3
download under the name 'EmilyKay' or her EP is entitled 'Love Came Knocking'.
Please also
see her links below:
