When Asiyami Gold was 22 years old, she told her Nigerian parents she was quitting Nursing school to pursue her passion for visual art, they just couldn’t understand why she would want to abandon a secure future for a life of uncertainty – a life they could barely understand. “‘How could you leave that and go and paint and think painting is going to bring you money’?” they asked. But despite their misgivings, Asiyami proceeded to follow her passion.
This subsequently created a rift between her and her father, and they didn’t speak for years as a result.
After years of hard work, Asiyami, now 26, is now a full time instagrammer, photographer, designer, and model, with over 192,000 followers.
She recently spoke to Cosmopolitan about her journey. Here are excerpts from the interview:
You’ve been described as a visual storyteller, an artist, a photographer, an artistic creator, and, obviously, an Instagrammer. How would you describe yourself?
I would say that I’m more of a creator or creative.
But at first, you thought you wanted to become a nurse. What made you change your mind?
I had tricked myself into believing that’s what I wanted to do with my life. I had a Tumblr, and on Tumblr, you get to reblog beautiful images of people, and I was just fascinated by the fact that people could create such beautiful imagery and I wanted to replicate that. When I got on Instagram [when I was 21] I saw more of it but I didn’t see anyone who looked like me. So I began to wonder, “This aesthetically pleasing and beautiful lifestyle I’m drawn to — is it only attainable by people who don’t look like me?” So I decided I wanted to give different perspective to women of color. I decided to quit nursing school.
What’s it like to tell your family, “Uh, hey, I’m quitting nursing school?”
My older brother had always told me to do what I wanted to do instead of trying to please mom and dad. He said they’d figure out how they can fit into [my] life plans. So he was excited. My mother was not.
And your dad?
My dad and I actually didn’t speak until this year. I’m from Nigeria, and those with Nigerian backgrounds know that to our parents, education is the most important and most valuable thing you could ever achieve in your life. So when you work that hard and then you have this daughter who wants to now be an artist, to them it’s like saying you want to be an astronaut. They don’t understand.
What led him to a change of heart after so long?
Last year, his sister died. So when I reached out to him last December, he was a bit more receptive. In [the first e-mail he sent me in years], he was very open. At the end of the day, his sister’s death made him realize our relationship was important. He still brings up that he wants me to go back to school, though.
What did you do after you quit nursing school?
I moved to New York from Georgia. A friend who lived in Harlem told me I could stay with her for the first two weeks. I remember on the way to New York I was reading The Alchemist for like the fifth time and I remember praying and I said, “I just need a sign to know that I’m not making one of the biggest mistakes of my life.” I got to New York on a Thursday, and that Friday, at my new job at the Urban Outfitters in Williamsburg, I checked my e-mail, and [there] was a message from Gap. They wanted me to be one of their Atlanta photographers for a children’s project.
How’d they find you?
They’d seen my Instagram. I had about 20,000 followers from sharing my adventures and had been on Instagram for two years by then. But at the time, I didn’t know this influencer thing was … a thing. From then on, though, it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be.
What difficulties have you encountered?
I honestly don’t think I get to book as many jobs as most [white lifestyle influencers do]. I usually ask people, “Hey, how much are they paying you for stuff?” And I’ve learned a lot of times, when brands come to me, they offer me the lowest amount. My [white] friends [who book similar jobs] tell me, “Oh yeah, I was offered about $5,000-$10,000.” But with me, the offer normally comes in around $2,000. So I always have to figure out how I can talk my way up and show people, “Yes I’m actually valuable. And I’m exposing you to a different market, you know?”
What is the biggest misconception people have about influencers?
You [can] go through a month, two months, three months of not knowing where your daily bread is coming from. Sometimes you have to save that $5,000 you got for the next five months, because you don’t know when you’re going to make money [again].
Read the entire interview on Cosmopolitan
Photo Credit: Cosmpolitan/Michelle Kaye/Asiyami Gold
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