Meet Isamar Rivera of IZA in Carrollton

Today we’d like to introduce you to Isamar Rivera.

So, before we jump into specific questions about what you do, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I have always considered myself as a proud Dominican woman, my culture has influenced my artwork, my YouTube channel, and even the book I’m working on now. Growing up, I was always considered the “dark” one, or the one too dark to be Dominican. As I started learning about the history of my people and our African roots, I told myself that I wasn’t going to fall into the oppression and I made that statement by” going natural.” I started my YouTube channel with the purpose of teaching women who have my hair texture how to take care and embrace their hair, because there weren’t a lot of people on YouTube with 4B/4C hair, especially not Spanish. My videos started to get a lot of views and I began receiving messages from women of different backgrounds saying that because of me they were also cutting their hair and “going natural.” I also would get messages from other Dominican women who experienced the same thing I did, telling me that they are proud to see a “dark” Dominican embrace their melanin and hair. If I hope to do anything is to continue to inspire women to embrace their kinks and curls, good hair is a myth, our hair is beautiful yet unruly.

As for my art, I have always loved to draw and admire all forms of creativity. My art is influenced by either black culture or something that I am experiencing. I’m currently working on my book, which is very powerful and important to me, I can’t give too much information on it yet but it’s going to be titled “Ludi.”

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It’s been a very empowering journey that I thank God for. One of the challenges I experienced, was when it started to feel like my hair was becoming my identity, as if people only knew me because of my hair, or if it wasn’t because of my hair I wouldn’t be noticed. I’m not going to lie, natural hair is pretty hard to take care of, and there came a point in time where I was no longer doing YouTube videos or wearing my hair out. I was tired of my hair and I felt like something needed to change. While I was figuring out what that was, I felt like I let my subscribers down because I wasn’t posting content and my views began to go down. Then, I made the decision to “Loc” my hair. A lot of people were against it, asking why would I want to loc such a beautiful afro. It sounds cliche but I am not my hair, and I love to rebel, so it felt free to do something AGAIN that was against societies norms. Also, it feels like I’m going on a new journey because in my country dreads are seen as dirty and unprofessional. Jobs will not hire you if you have dreads, and boys are not allowed to go to school with dreads. So now, I’m making videos again on my loc journey, and I know this is going to be a new experience because you don’t really see Afro-Latinos with dreads.

What do you do? What do you specialize in?
I’m a YouTube vlogger, an artist, and a natural hair advocate. I’m most proud of my growth as a person, and I feel what sets me apart from others is that I’m me and everything I do is always meaningful and influenced by something bigger. If it serves me no purpose and it’s not true to who I am, then it’s not worth expressing through my work.

What were you like growing up?
Well, to elaborate, growing up, I’ve always been interested in many things. That’s why I technically don’t have one business name. I love animals with a passion, sometimes I feel like I’m meant to work with animals, but then, sometimes I feel like I’m called for other things. I love learning about holistic health, modeling, drawing, and writing. I just have so many interest and goals, and I’m working on reaching those little by little. I grew up as a believer in Christ, and without him, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Personality wise, I’d like to say I’m shy but once you get to know me, I’m super funny and goofy.

Pricing:

• Prints of my art work: $10 for a small and $15 for a large
• it’s FREE to subscribe to my channel: IZATV

Contact Info:

• Address: 150 Cunningham Dr, Carrollton, GA 30117
• Website: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBy0nRP_5h3XxCgHItDUGXA
• Phone: 4044286787
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isamar.r/

Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.