Today we’d like to introduce you to Nya Alli.
Nya, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My story begins around the Summer of 2017, the summer I decided to start a YouTube channel. Growing up, I was tremendously shy. I was the girl who never said a word at family events and the girl who was always told to “speak up” during class presentations. If I had a nickel for every time I’ve been asked “Why are you so quiet?”, I’d be rich. I’ve always had trouble expressing myself verbally, so I eventually started to do it through my creativity. I love to show my creativity through the clothes that I wear. Fashion has always been my way of showing people who I am without actually having to speak.
Self-confidence is immensely important, especially in this social media generated society. People gain their confidence in different ways, but I was able to gain mine through my fashion sense. I always feel my best when I’m wearing something that I love. As I started to find myself and become more aware of what I’m passionate about, it became my mission to show other girls (and boys) how to express themselves through their personal style. Other fashion/lifestyle YouTubers like MyLifeAsEva and LaurDIY inspired me to want to make videos. As embarrassing as it sounds, I used to sit in my room and make fake videos with my iPod when I was younger. At age 16, I finally wound up the courage to post an actual YouTube video. By my second video, I’d already gained 100 subscribers which was a big deal for me, lol. My channel now stands at nearly 2,000 subscribers, and though very small, it has already inspired so many individuals fashion and confidence wise!
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?
Definitely not. I can’t even count on two hands how many times I’ve wanted to quit. Sometimes I feel like all the long hours of planning, filming and editing don’t yield the results I desire. However, I always remember that good things take time and nothing happens overnight. Patience is a key aspect of succeeding on YouTube — or anything in the creative field, for that matter.
Anyone who is a creative can understand the pressures and discourages of society. By that, I mean that society can still hold this persistent image that to be successful, you must pursue things like medicine or law. I don’t plan on YouTube being my career, but what I do on the platform strongly reflects my aspirations of working in the fashion-business industry. The societal pressures used to get to my head a lot, but if being a creative wasn’t possible, there would be no fashion buyers, designers, editors, photographers, creative directors, or entrepreneurs. It is possible to make your passion a career, especially in this day in age. This is also something I plan to raise more awareness about on my channel.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
My “business” is my YouTube channel. In a way, I am an entrepreneur because I started this channel from nothing. I started with 0 followers, and I was able to grow with my own ideas, and strategies. My channel is a fashion/lifestyle-based channel. I show my sense of style and inspire others to do so by posting videos such as lookbooks, clothing hauls, styling my friends, style advice, and multiple other videos of the sort. To give my viewers a glimpse into my personal life, and to keep the channel fresh and relatable, I post a variation of lifestyle videos such as vlogs, morning/night routines and others. I am most proud of how I was able to grow from 0 and pull a fairly large group of dedicated supporters. My favorite moments are getting comments or messages from viewers about how my channel has impacted them one way or another. I also love when people come to me for advice on starting their own channels, because that proves to myself that I am being an example for others.
The thing that sets me apart from others is my passion and drive. After 2017, most people started YouTube channels because you could make money, which is fine, but I started mine with an idea and a mission; it’s been my dream of mine since I was 13. I try to be real and authentic in each video. I don’t do things because it’s “trending”, I do them because it’s something that I’m passionate about and something that I want to share with others.
What were you like growing up?
As mentioned, I was a shy, quiet girl. I was (and still am) very observant. I’d much rather sit in the corner and watch than interact. I don’t speak out and I don’t like to be the center of attention very often… unless it deals with my outfit. Since I never stood out verbally or personality-wise, I loved to stand out through my choice of clothes. I remember being asked what I wanted to be as a little girl, and my answer always had something to do with fashion. Wanting to be in the fashion industry was never a phase. I always dreamed of owning my own clothing line; I wanted to be an entrepreneur before I even knew what the word meant. It’s normal for people’s interests to change from childhood to adulthood, but mine always stayed the same.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.YouTube.com/NyaAlli
- Email: nyaalyc@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.Instagram.com/nyaalli
- Other: @nyaalli
Image Credit:
Harrison Cosby
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