Life & Work with James Mincey of Atlanta

Today we’d like to introduce you to James Mincey.

Hi James, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I moved to Atlanta, Georgia, with my family back in 2011. And I was 9 years old at the time, so I didn’t really know much about Atlanta. I just knew that Atlanta was a beautiful, big city full of opportunities. Growing up, I participated in chorus all my school life from elementary to high school. I always knew that I had a passion for the arts and knew that one day I wanted to pursue it in the future. When I was in 8th grade, back in 2015. I auditioned for a performing arts program in Pebblebrook High School called CCCEPA (Cobb County Center for Excellence in the Performing Arts). And at the time, I was a vocal major and dance minor, but when I was a senior in high school. I changed my major to dance and minored in both drama and vocal. And the reason for this is that I knew I wanted to take dance seriously and pursue a career in it. In Pebblebrook, I was trained by Elieen Edwards, Denise Reeves, Cindy Reiser, Kenneth Green, and more. My professors in high school trained me in ballet for fundamentals, classical and street jazz, and also trained me in modern dance, like Martha Graham and Horton technique. And then I would audition for different musical productions and gain professional musical theater experience. In 2018, when I was a junior in high school. I was scouted by one of my professors, Kenneth Green, to work as a paid professional entertainer at Six Flags Over Georgia. And I was 16 at the time, so this was my first professional gig. And since then, I worked with Six Flags for 2 years. I performed at the Crystal Pistol for Holiday in the Park in 2018. In 2019, I performed again at the Crystal Pistol for Dead Man’s Party for Fright Fest and was a Caroler for Holiday in the Park in 2019.
In 2020, I got accepted to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas as a BFA dance major in choreography and performance. And before I graduated from Pebblebrook, I discovered that I wanted to be a professional dancer in the entertainment industry. I was heavily influenced by pop culture and always pictured myself being on TV and getting myself into the commercial world. So I decided to study on the West Coast of entertainment for a couple of years. In college, I continued my training in ballet, modern, and jazz. And I started training outside of UNLV for hip hop training. During my time in Vegas, I had the privilege to audition for different residencies like Cirque Du Soleil and other productions. I also audition for the Grammys and the Billboard Music Awards. Though I did not get cast as a dancer, I had the privilege to attend the 64th annual Grammys in 2022. After experiencing the Grammys for the first time. I learned so much about what goes on behind the scenes of the biggest night for music entertainment that I decided to go back to Atlanta to re-market myself as a professional dancer for representation.
In 2022, at the end of my sophomore year in college. During the summer break, I started training at Xcel Talent Agency in Atlanta, Georgia, to build stage presence and improve my memorization. When it was time for me to return to UNLV to begin my junior year of college. I worked up the courage to audition for the Xcel Adult Program. Where Xcel trains professional dancers to gain performance, versatility, and possible representation with the Agency. When I got accepted, I decided to take a break from college to pursue my career as a professional dancer in Atlanta, Georgia. During my time with Xcel, it allowed me to train closely with choreographers and creative directors who are in the entertainment industry, such as Jeremy Green, Chris Grant, Jamaica Craft, Fullot Cortland, and more. And as well, it gave me booking opportunities and representation to work with curtain productions. For instance, in 2023, I booked the Miss Georgia Pageant Competition as a dancer with the help of Evari Pickett, Kimmie Gipson, and Aris Golemi. In 2024, I booked the Copa America to perform with the artist Feid. Also in 2024, I booked my first commercial with Delta Airlines and booked an episode in Will Trent as a dancer. All with the help of Aris Goelmi, who is the Founder/CEO of Xcel Talent Agency. Throughout my time with Xcel, I gained relationships with dancers and choreographers in my community who had helped me throughout my journey in the entertainment industry. Such as Kimmie Gipson, Bubba Carr, Jasmine Harper, Jeremy Green, Chris Lucky, and more. If it wasn’t for the love and support from my community, I probably wouldn’t be the dancer that I am today.
Now, as of recently, I am an intern for Xcel Talent Agency. And been interning for Xcel since 2023. I appeared in a couple of t.v show on Apple TV and Peacock, such as Hysteria, and Season 2 of the Big Door Prize, with the help of my manager Trish Pickett. I am currently still dancing for the Miss Georgia Competition, and this year would be my 4th year dancing for Miss Georgia. I am also an inspiring model, so I do photoshoots with different photographers around Atlanta and go to different go-sees and casting calls for representation in modeling. And I am still dancing at Xcel to keep my training up as a professional dancer. If it wasn’t for the support and love from my family, friends, mentors, and my community. I wouldn’t have made it this far in this industry.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My journey wasn’t easy, I can say. In the beginning stage of my dance career, I wasn’t always the best or most talented dancer. Though I booked my first gig at 16, the work doesn’t stop there. I was still behind in some skills, and dancers my age or younger danced better than I did in some genres. Like Hip Hop, for example. If you were to put me in an audition room with an artist who is more hip-hop-based, back when I was 16. I would’ve crashed and burned. Because I didn’t start taking hip hop classes till I was 18, fresh out of high school. So there were still a lot of things for me to learn about this industry before I could go out to LA or NYC to audition for a tour or for an artist. So I had to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. I didn’t always look good at dancing when I was in front of choreographers and well-known dancers when I started dancing at Xcel. There were a lot of humbling moments in class that made me question if this is the right career for me. I had to fight and prove to myself that I can too be a bookable entertainer in the entertainment industry. I took class religiously to be better. Even when I didn’t have the money to train, I still made a way for myself to be in the room. Because of how hungry for the opportunity to be seen, and not the outcast.
Yes, my journey had its ups and downs. No one journey is perfect in my opinion. I feel like, as artists, we will always face life challenges that are outside of our passion. Sometimes life hits you so hard that it makes it hard for you to enjoy the process of the arts. Because we are worrying about how we are going to pay our rent, or how I am going to get from point A to point B with little gas in my car. Or some of us may be going through a loss, or even a breakup, and you don’t feel like doing the art because life around you is crumbling apart. I feel like life can be so chaotic at times that it could possibly drive the passion out of things that you love because you’re stuck in survival mode. I feel like we dancers and artists don’t talk about life outside of our passion so much because the only thing we worry about is “how am I going to book the next job,” or “how can I stay relevant or popular.” I used to be the type of artist who only worried about the passion but forgot that if it wasn’t for my life, or my other job outside of dance, that is helping fund my passion. Then I wouldn’t be able to train or invest in myself to be great. So I would say my recent struggle is balancing life with my passion that I made into a career. Because I had to learn when life is hitting you, my career or the job doesn’t stop because you’re having a bad day. The entertainment industry is not for the weak. There are going to be times when you have to audition for something while you are grieving or when you are going through a breakup. You can’t break down on camera or in front of a casting director. Or you can’t let life outside of the rehearsal room distract you from getting the job done. That shows unprofessionalism and shows that you can’t control your emotions when you really need to pull through for an audition, rehearsals, or even on stage. Yes, we’re all human, and we all make mistakes. But at the end of the day, we are in a business. I was young when I entered this industry, and now that I’m becoming more mature and growing in adulthood. There are a lot of factors that I had to put into consideration to grow as a person and as an entertainer.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a quabrouple threat. I am a dancer, actor, model, and vocalist. I’ve been dancing for 10+ years, and I’ve been training in acting and voice for 8+ years. And I started my modeling journey in 2022. I was first introduced to the musical theater world when I was a student at Pebblebrook High School from 2016 to 2020. I cast an ensemble for Newises, Sister Act, and Catch Me If You Can. Then I branched away from Pebblebrook in my junior year to work with Six Flags Over Georgia as a professional entertainer. When I was with Six Flags, I did Fright Fest as a scared actor in 2018 and was then scouted to be a dancer for “Because it’s Christmas” at the Crystal Pistol for Holiday in the Park. Then I was asked to return to do “Dead Man’s Party” at the Crystal Pistol for Fright Fest again. Being a caroler for Holiday in the Park was my last role with Six Flags before I moved to Vegas for school.
When I was a student at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, I participated in various dance concerts. In one of the concerts, I choreographed a piece called “Enticement” when I was a freshman. Then, outside of UNLV, I was a seat filler for the 64th Annual Grammys, which was a turning point in my career. Then I moved back to Atlanta to gain representation as a professional dancer. In 2023, I was cast as a dancer for the Miss Georgia Pageant Competition from 2023 to the present. And I started doing background work for different TV/film projects such as Heels, Hysteria, and The Big Door Prize. Until Xcel got me the opportunity to work with Will Trent as a dancer in 2024. Then Xcel booked me to perform at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium for Copa America with the artist Feid.
During my time in the entertainment industry, I’m probably known for my episode in Will Trent, or known as Miss Georgia dancer at the Miss Georgia Pageant. I’m also known for my dance videos that I post on Instagram, TikTok, or other social media platforms. I’ve been known for my style in fashion, because I dress more in Y2k styles, and blend feminine styles with masculine to make my look. I’m known for a lot of things and grateful for my community, who have seen my journey since day one.
What I am most proud of is my journey. I have come a long way to get to where I am today. All of it came from sacrifices, hard work, dedication, discipline, and years and years of training and experience. It’s never a dull moment when I see myself on TV or on social media. It always gives me the motivation to keep going and to keep doing me. It shows if my mentors and trainers can make it on the big stages and screens to dance for Beyoncé or Usher. Then one day, I will soon dance with the greats and make my community proud. I still have a long way to go in my journey, but so proud to see how much I’ve grown.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I love about Atlanta is that there is so much room for opportunity to be anything that you want to be. A lot of the greats came from Atlanta, such as Usher, Summer Walker, Sean Bankhead, Ciera, and more. So many musicians, artists, choreographers, and creative directors all started their careers in Atlanta. And the beautiful thing about it is that most of them are black or of color. I love Atlanta so much because it’s so diverse, so much culture, so much swag, and so much black excellence that paved the way for black creators like me to thrive in the entertainment industry. Everyone in Atlanta has a story, whether it’s good or bad; there is always something to learn from another person’s story.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iam.james.min/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@iam.james.m/videos