Today we’d like to introduce you to Ikaika (Geminikhai) Clay.
Hi Ikaika (Geminikhai), it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I was born on June 11, 1999 in Metairie, Louisiana. My family and I had moved to a small town called Killeen, Texas when I was about five years old. Growing up, I loved watching Disney Channel. I always wanted to be on tv and be a child actor, but my parents couldn’t afford it. I found my passion to become an Actor/Content Creator when I was in the 6th grade. I remember having trouble picking an elective class. I could of chosen band class or choir, but for some reason that day while I was at home looking through the different electives to choose from something told me to select theatre arts as one of my electives. Selecting that class is when I found my passion and talent for entertaining people. I remember when I wrote my first script for everyone in my group project because nobody knew what they wanted to write. We also had to act it out in front of the entire class. I had wrote a comedy skit and everyone in the class was dying laughing and even the teacher loved it. I knew right then and there that this is for sure what I wanted to do. I wanted to entertain the entire world someway and somehow. That same year I began making little funny video skits and I would post them on an app called vine and Instagram. My plan was to blow up on the internet and then get into the acting world! I would get a little buzz here and there but I wasn’t making progress so I had fell off with making skits. I decided the following year that I would only focus on playing sports all throughout middle school and high school. At times I would create little video skits here and there but I knew the outcome would be a disappointment.
When I enrolled in college, I continued playing football at a d3 school called Gallaudet. Gallaudet was the only deaf university in the world. I began picking it back up and trying again. I knew my editing skills have improved and I had a plan. My plan was to create skits one day a week and post them on Instagram only. I knew that if I tried again maybe I could have a chance at blowing up. Maybe someone would notice me and pick me up for a feature film, but it didn’t happen like that. I would have family and friends show interest in some of my videos but not enough to get attention from big-time people in the industry or reach a bigger audience in the social media world, so I had decided to just focus strictly on football and school. I would just go on to post videos here and there for fun with my friends. I had just graduated from Gallaudet University in December 2021 with a degree in Art and digital media. After I graduated, I went back home to Killeen, Texas. I was unsure what I wanted to do now that I had finished school. I began getting depressed and I was lost. I would apply to some jobs within my major but it wasn’t making me happy because I knew what I really wanted to do. I told myself to give it another try but this time to give it my all and go 100%. I began using TikTok every day. I would post about three videos a day. My channel begins to grow slowly. I was looking for a niche and something I could be known for.
As my channel was growing people were starting to seek interest in me. In February, I had decided to sign up with an agency called AmplifyTalent. I was proud of the progress I was making. I started to take it more seriously, so I took a leap of faith and I decided to move to Atlanta to chase my dreams. My first week here I booked a background role in a popular STARZ show called BMF. Everything started looking up for me! At times I still had my negative thoughts but I kept it going! One day I decided to tap in with the food side of the internet but make it comical and entertaining. I made a video of me eating 2x spicy noodles as one of the tiktokers named (@jombospice) on TikTok! It went viral! My first actual viral video and I was so proud it. I wasn’t satisfied yet but every day I’m still improving and reaching for the top! If you believe in something that you are doing and you want to achieve it, keep going and push yourself! Block all the people telling you negative comments and just keep going!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Some challenges I had to face with was school, football, and work. I felt that it was always taking my time to make content and focus on my acting career. The biggest challenge I had to also deal with was myself! I would have negative thoughts and I would tell myself that I wasn’t good enough and that I would never make it in acting or being a content creator. I’m still here reaching for what I deserve!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a full-time content creator. I have over 155k followers on TikTok. I am known for impersonating people on TikTok such as (@jombospice) and (@peaks100_). I also try spicy foods challenges and I review the best food spots around the city of Atlanta as well. I am proud of how far I came. I wanted to give up so bad but I knew that I was special and that I belonged in this entertainment business. The thing that set me apart from others is my drive and determination. I make so many sacrifices and I go through very tough times but I keep pushing myself and investing time in myself to make this ish work for me! Every goal that I want to accomplish in life I am going to make sure that it happens! I want to keep going until I can make a switch into the acting industry and show people that with hard work and dedication anything is possible!
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
God is number 1! Without God, nothing is possible. I always keep HIM first, but the person that most definitely deserves credit is my mother. My mother is the strongest women I’ve ever met. She is as tough as a rock. She has been doing everything she can to make sure that my brothers and I could live a comfortable stable life. She is also my biggest supporter! She tells me every day that I will make it and that I need to continue following my dreams. My mother keeps me going, I’m also doing this for her and my family as well. I want to make sure my mom is well taken cared of and that’s what I WILL DO. I also want to thank Melzonthemic who has preached to me about pursuing my dreams. He has shown me that it could be done! I want to also give a special shout-out to the people in my life that have truly believed in me every step of the damn way and they know who they are! I don’t even need to say their names.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/geminikhai?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/user/ikaikaclay
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@geminikhai1?_t=8UyvoecfJFe&_r=1
