Today we’d like to introduce you to Emily Haydel.
Emily, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’m from College Park, and I went to The Children’s School for elementary school and Woodward Academy for middle and high school. Although I grew up in Atlanta, I’ve had roots both in the A and New Orleans as my father’s side of the family originates and partly still lives there(sorry Falcons fans, Who Dat all day!) Growing up in a transplant city and having parents who enriched me with other cultures, viewpoints, and lifestyles outside of my comfort zone in Atlanta, I traveled a lot and ultimately realized I wanted to go to college outside of the South, and I luckily ended up at the University of Michigan(Go Blue!). There I cultivated a seasoned sports broadcasting extracurricular repertoire, for, in addition to majoring in Sport Management, I created an all women’s sports talk show called Wolverine Women meant to allow women to flex and improve their sports broadcasting resume while in the comfort of other ladies trying to do the same.
After creating that show, I was elected the sports director of the school television network credentialing shows to cover Michigan Football, Basketball(including March Madness), Hockey, etc. games, and even prior to that, I was involved as a student for the Big Ten Network Student-U chapter at Michigan. In addition to those endeavors, I was a student-manager for the Michigan Baseball team and a recruiting volunteer for the Michigan Football Program. With those extracurriculars, I was able to snag internships in NYC each summer in between school, and all of that parlayed into taking a job as an in-game host with the Los Angeles Dodgers which later lead me to a job as an in-game host with UCLA Athletics, specifically the football and men’s and women’s basketball teams. Clearly, my past has been full of sports opportunities, but I’ve always known I have a passion for music. That is listening to, analyzing, talking about, and sharing it with those around me, and in the last year, I’ve discovered K-Pop which covers everything I already love in music and more in the complex industry and fandom that differs so much from the American Music Industry.
My interest peaked so much so that I currently also work part-time at a K-Pop store in LA called Choice Music. I’ve also taken on different roles interviewing/spotlighting different fans of BTS virtually and in-person at different events in addition to accepting two awards on behalf of the fandom at the 2018 Teen Choice Awards and 2018 Radio Disney Music Awards, and I’ve been fortunate to join a group of BTS fans in hosting various events in the LA area dedicated to bringing fans together even when BTS isn’t here. I have two podcasts. One called “The Ball Out with E&K” that talks about sports, pop culture, and life with my best friend, and the other is called “Bleav In K-Pop’ on the Bleav Podcast Network where I interview K-Pop fans from their raw perspective about any and everything.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’ve been fortunate in a lot of my life that I hesitate to say it’s been a bumpy road; however, in the plethora of connections and opportunities I’ve had because of my familial relations, I used to frequently find myself questioning my worth. Am I meant to be in such a great position or is it just because so and so recommended me? I still think that way sometimes, but I hope I continue to work hard enough(even if I don’t have the talent)to keep moving forward as much as I can. I think adopting a mindset of consistently not being satisfied has helped me to progress, but I do think I should stop and smell the roses at some point…maybe.
Emily Haydel – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I don’t have a company, but I’m known as a sports personality you could say? I’m trying to segue into being known as a sports/music personality, specifically regarding K-Pop. I think that juxtaposition of interests makes my case quite interesting. I’m not the most bubbly person, but I think I’m inquisitive enough in people and their experiences in general that I can have a natural conversation on camera without it feeling like I’m on camera-depending on the subject I guess.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
My proudest moment has been being able to move out to LA, a place I’ve always wanted to live, and I think I’m doing well for myself in some way shape or form.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://emihayyy.wixsite.com/eportfolio
- Email: emily.haydel95@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emihaydel/?hl=en
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/emihaydel?lang=en
Image Credit:
The Saints photos(Hubwav Media). Curly Hair sitting down(Nathaniel Johnson).
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