Today we’d like to introduce you to Lana Adams.
Lana, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I grew up in Yeadon, PA, a middle-class African American suburb right outside of West Philadelphia. I’ve always loved storytelling– ever since I was a little girl, I was always writing stories and making little paper books for my family and friends. I’ve also been quite talkative my whole life, so a career in entertainment was always in the stars for me. My dad is notorious in my family for being the DJ and the videographer. I love music too, and somewhere along the way, my dad started to bring me along as his assistant videographer at family events. I think that’s probably where my fascination for making movies came from. I didn’t know it then, but it planted a seed. I grew up listening to my mother tell stories about her life’s challenges and triumphs and saw how it helped many of her friends and family members so I quickly began to understand the power of storytelling and how it can be used to help people heal.
I’ve always loved interviewing people — even when I didn’t know that I was doing it. I was always a really curious child. Naturally, I pursued a career in Broadcast Journalism. I wanted to follow Oprah’s life path to the T! I soon found out that news and traditional reporting was not for me. I went to a lot of conferences, applied to news stations all over, had a ton of internships, but the news thing just wasn’t clicking for me. In 2015, I decided to move to Atlanta to pursue a career in film. My cousin had been working in Craft Services on film sets and encouraged me to move there and even let me stay with him for almost a year while I got on my feet.
I met some of the best people I’ve ever met in my life in Atlanta. I had never seen so many African Americans not only excelling in business and film but being so willing to help one another succeed. I was blown away– it was like a real-life Wakanda to me. I worked a few odd jobs and finally landed a few production assistant roles on some TV shows and films. I worked as an extra on more shows and films than I can count just to stay afloat.
Through the years I’ve hosted web series, talk shows, and panel discussions all dedicated to elevating Black people. While in Atlanta, my former roommate and I produced and released the first season of my web series, The Singles Rant, an interview series where singles spill the tea on topics like cheating, one night stands, and dates with bad hygiene. I am the sole producer of the show now, and the fourth season is now streaming on YouTube.
In June of 2019, my short film, “Politics As Usual” was released on Amazon Prime Video.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has not been a smooth road at all. In Atlanta, I met one of my very best friends Ashley, who inspired me in so many ways and showed me the ropes of navigating the film industry. Sadly, she passed away in a car accident in 2016. Her death devastated me so badly that I decided to move away from Atlanta. I started a new relationship in Maryland and didn’t produce any content for my web series or much else for that matter.
My relationship eventually became toxic and emotionally abusive. I found myself with no place to live in Maryland, and I had to move back in with my parents in my hometown. I was battling some serious depression and was feeling absolutely hopeless. But with the support of my family and friends, I was able to turn my pain into purpose by pouring myself back into filmmaking.
While I was trying to heal from my relationship and break-up, I completed the script for my first short film, “Politics As Usual”. The film is about a young African American woman who is forced to have a difficult conversation about racism and white privilege with her white co-worker when they get trapped in an elevator together. I sent the script to my cousin in Atlanta, and oddly enough he told me he had just wrapped on a movie set and they were giving away an elevator set for free! He helped me get the set from Atlanta to Maryland, and gave me the boost of confidence that I needed to get the film done!
In April of 2019, just before I was set to release my film to the public, I suffered from a painful cyst that caused me to pass out and hit my head which resulted in a concussion. I was under doctor’s orders to stay off of the computer and suffered really bad headaches for a few months. Unable to work for a month, I felt myself slipping back into depression. However, the time off of the computer forced me to spend some real-time thinking, meditating, and praying. I listened to an audiobook called “The Power of Your Subconscious Mind”, that helped me so much through my recovery.
LA Multimedia – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
My company provides producing, filmmaking, content creation, and social media management services. We just recently curated a film festival and I am currently managing social media for Black Girls Rock!
Right now, the things I am most proud of are my film, Politics As Usual, available on Amazon Prime Video, and my web series The Singles Rant, now streaming on YouTube. There is no show like The Singles Rant online that highlights the dating scene for young black people in such a hilarious and relatable way. I’m very proud of the show and I know that we will continue to grow. I have so many spin-offs coming down the pipeline, and I just want everyone to tune in and subscribe to our channel so that I can continue to produce this content. As of now, I’m a one-woman band, so my plan for 2020 is to build a solid team for The Singles Rant so we can produce even more content.
I’d say the thing that sets me apart from others is my ability to solve problems creatively.
I am a natural problem solver, but I love to use my creativity to highlight my client’s brand and help them to see new ways to do things. I also pride myself on respect, humility, and professionalism at all times. When we do business, it’s just that, nothing personal but always pleasant! I just landed a pretty big contract that I can’t talk about just yet, but I just hope anyone reading this knows that all of the things that you go through are apart of a bigger plan! Keep going!
I’m working on a new short film that is set to film in January, and I am going to dive back into acting in 2020. I’m excited to establish myself as a force in the film industry and to learn all that I can to help produce quality content that motivates people to dream big.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
God deserves all the credit — and my family! My parents and my sister are my biggest supporters and cheerleaders. They are always there whenever I need them to support an event, a cause, or project, or to just give me the motivation I need to keep going. The entertainment business is not easy and there are so many people in it that don’t always have your best interest at heart. My family keeps me grounded and helps me to remember what’s real.
When it came to completing my short film, my mom and dad were the executive producers, my sister was a producer and handled craft services for the film. A bunch of my friends jumped in to help as well (thanks Chesley, Lamar, and Brandon! I have to give Brandon even more props because he is always ready to help me produce another one of my crazy ideas.
Also, my friend and former roommate, Lex Chappelle was the co-creator of my web series, The Singles Rant. She has since stepped down from the company, but she played a huge role in making the show successful so I’m thankful to her!
Pricing:
- Thottin’ & Plottin Hoodie – $40
- Baeless Tee (gray) – $20
- Baeless Tee (black) – $25
- Single + Taken (Saken) mug – $20
- Drake Ass N**** Mug – $20
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.youtube.com/c/thesinglesrant
- Email: info@lamultimedia.co
Image Credit:
Dionté Wade Photography
Paul Beckles (on the red suit)
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