Today we’d like to introduce you to Landon Arnold
Landon, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Growing up in Wiggins, Mississippi, I spent a lot of my time with my grandmother, Norma Jean, who loved the art of film. We would spend all day watching movies, from old classics to modern-day works. I didn’t realize it then, but my love for film was growing day by day. I began to practice different scenes that I would see in movies. My family and friends would also ask me to reenact scenes from different movies, especially comedies. One summer my mother, Dwana Haley, who has played a major role in my life and where I am at today, put me in a summer camp that hosted a play at the end of the summer. Once the performance came, I realized I fell completely in love with acting. I knew from that exact moment that I wanted to be an actor. However, there weren’t as many opportunities in Mississippi compared to other places. So, like most young boys my age, I started playing sports, and acting kind of took a back seat. During my senior year of high school while playing basketball, I suffered from an unexpected appendix rupture that caused me to spend two weeks in the hospital. This caused me to miss a month of school and the rest of the basketball season. This was a very depressing time in my life. Just when I thought all hope was lost, I received a call from the Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. It happened to be the professor of the theater department. She stated that she had heard about me and asked if I was interested in receiving the last theater scholarship that they were offering for the upcoming year. Of course, I said yes. There, I got the opportunity to travel and perform in multiple places across the country. After graduating from Gulf Coast, I then attended Jackson State University where I joined a performance team called MADDRAMA (Making a Difference Doing Respectable and Meaningful Art). I also did plays where I played influential characters, like Muhammad Ali and many others. While at JSU, I also was chosen by legendary Deion Sanders, to work and assist for him while he coached at JSU. After I graduated in 2021, I moved to New Orleans, Louisiana to study my craft even more. In 2023, I made my move to Atlanta, GA. Since living here, I’ve had the opportunity to be an actor on a national television film in TVone’s PAYBACK. I’ve also been doing multiple short films and recently got signed to Aligned Stars Agency. I also have my own videography company (LKA Films) to practice deepen my passion as an artist and to one day be able to film my own movies.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. There have been big wins but also a lot of setbacks. Growing up in Wiggins, MS, we only had a small population of just a little over 4 ,000 people and one red light. This can make you feel extremely small as if there is no room for growth beyond the parameters. Not knowing that this small town was actually giving me great ideas and character development in my life. I knew that I was technically one of the first people in my hometown to pursue a career in the art field. That put a lot of pressure on me but also made me take the leap of faith to achieve my dreams even more. I knew I not only had something to prove, but I felt that I was being called to be a role model for those around me-peers, friends, and most of all, family.
As I stated earlier, I thought I would continue to pursue sports after high school. After being injured, acting came back into my life. Though I might have felt like my injury set me back, it actually redirected me onto a path that was meant for me. This time in life made me realize that everything happens for a reason and that every setback has an even stronger come back.
After graduating college, though I immediately wanted to relocate to Atlanta to begin my post-grad journey, I knew I wanted more time to prepare for that financially. I had the opportunity to move to New Orleans for a year to stack up and to be closer to family. During that time, I lost two of the most important people in my life-my grandparents. This completely devastated me because I looked up to them and they were also two of my biggest supporters. One of my grandfather’s last words to me were “Landon, one day you’re going to move to Atlanta and become an actor.” That’s when I knew this passion that I had for acting was not just something that I wanted to do but had to do. A year later, I did exactly that and moved to Atlanta, Georgia to begin my professional acting career.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Because the entertainment industry is highly competitive, I like to refer to myself as a versatile one man show. I am an actor, writer, director, cinematographer, host, and model. I am most known for my social media skits on Instagram and Tik Tok (@thelandonarnold), and Facebook (Landon Arnold). Over the years I have had multiple videos go viral bringing in over millions of views from across the world. I would say out of all of the works that I’ve done, I am most proud of a play that I acted, directed, and filmed called ‘The Colored Museum’ during Fall 202o in college. This accomplishment gained the attention of Deion Sanders, former football coach of JSU, which lead to further opportunities in the future.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I would say as far as books, I’m a self-improvement junkie, but hands down my two favorite books are ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho and ‘The Way of the Superior Man’ by David Deida. These two books have helped me when the road gets a little bumpy. They help me remember that all things work in my favor no matter how I may feel at the time.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelandonarnold/profilecard/?igsh=cDU3eWlxajBsdWZm
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/landon.arnold.988?mibextid=LQQJ4d
Image Credits
Chance Michael Photo
The Actor Headshot
William Kelly Photography
