Today we’d like to introduce you to Renée Kc Wade.
Hi Renée, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
Hello! My name is Renée Kc (yes, my middle name is actually Kc.) I am a 22-year-old mixed media artist. I was born in Kansas City, Missouri. When I was growing up, I was between Kansas City and Chicago. So I guess you could say I traveled a bit as a child. I started my business, KCreations, in January 2019. It all began with just painting but I always knew I would expand and get KCreations to where I always dreamed of it to be. But before I get ahead of myself, I want to talk more about myself. I am the person I am today because of all I have been through. As I kid, I was always so interested in the arts, I just always wanted to create something. Whether it was singing, fashion, drawing, magic tricks, and even science projects. I always wanted to show and present my vision to everyone else. I would like to say that my vision is unique and needs to be shared.
My dad used to give my older brother Curtis and me, printouts of coloring sheets. We used to trace over the printed sheet with white paper and color on the traced white paper. That is one of the earliest memory of me diving into the visual arts as a child. As for my love for photography and videography, a lot of my passion came from my mom.
When I was a kid living in Chicago, my mom used to model. Seeing her photos around the house just allowed me to admire not only my mom but the art of modeling and photography. Since then, I haven’t stopped loving modeling, photography, and videography. Now as for dance, that has always been a love of mine since I can remember. Dancing always lets me feel free and that I am expressing myself. My mom’s side of the family has a history of dancers, so I guess you can say it was passed down to me. Dancing was a major part of my childhood, I have met a lot of people that I am still in contact with today. One of my proudest moments as a dancer was being able to dance at the Chiefs football halftime show. Now, everything really started connecting for me, artistically, once I started my freshman year at Paseo Academy of Fine and Performing Arts.
It was as if, I was in an entire artistic environment with an endless amount of creatives. I was able to learn about myself so much, I am beyond grateful for the people/teachers I met, the environment, and the experiences. Without being about to bounce ideas and/or conversations with the other creatives, I am not sure how far I would be in my artist career.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It hasn’t been the smoothest road for me on this journey. If you guys knew all I have been through, you would understand how I am the woman I am today. One of the biggest struggles I’ve dealt with recently (within the last 3 years) is my mental health. Making sure my mind is in great condition because I am not able to create or be my full self if I am depressed or doing with my anxiety. I can’t stress enough how important is it to take care of your mental health, it can really change your life.
Getting myself out of that dark place has helped me move forward in my artistic career as an adult. Another challenge I faced when I dropped out of college, I had to travel to different events to sell my art. But all the money I was making selling my art, I was using to pay towards trains or gas money to get to these places. Don’t get me wrong, I love that I am able to just get my artwork out there but I wasn’t able to financially take care of myself, I had to do delivery services to make sure I was not completely broke. I’ve also had to deal with living in my car in 2 different states. While living in my car in Missouri, it was hard for me to create anything during this time, I was so down that creating anything was the furthest thing from my mind.
When I was living in my car in Colorado. I still had some difficulties creating but more of the challenges was making some sort of name for myself in this completely new place. But just putting myself out there and getting to work helped me continuously make a name for myself. That is a challenge I am very proud of because I really had to work to showcase myself. Another issue that came with living in the car, I did not have much money and when I did have money it was not going to any of my art interests. That money went to whatever was needed to survive. But what I can. say is, make sure that you believe and trust yourself. If you do that, you’ll always make it through.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a mixed media artist, when I say that I mean I focus on more than one form of art. The arts I specialize in are painting, photography, videography, creative director, director, graphic design, writing, sewing, fashion design, and being a nail technician (seriously started in 2022). All those art forms are really a passion, I take every one of these arts seriously. I make sure I am always learning and never stop exploring so I can expand my talents as an artist.
Plus, by dealing with the different forms, I am able to keep my creativity flowing.
Am I known for almost everything I named above, just not writing? The writing is fairly new, I really began my interest in writing when I started college in the fall of 2018. I am currently working on a holistic recipe book and a food recipe book, not only to help others but to share what I personally love. I can say that I have not only made money but I have received recognition in those art fields. I can say that I have no limitations to what I can do, If anyone ever wants to stay updated with my projects, just make sure to follow me on all my social media accounts.
I am most proud of just being seen and heard. As an artist, that is the most important thing to me. It empowers me when someone can feel anything for what I’ve created. The goal is to reach as many people as possible with my work.
It may sound like a copied answer but just being me sets me apart. Someone may be able to do what I do, but they aren’t able to do it how I do it. Everything about me shows in everything I do. I am proud to be me so I showcase that in every aspect of my life. If I feel I haven’t, I make sure to do so. When I enter any space, I leave my mark when and that stems from self-confidence and self-love. If I did not trust and believe in myself, my entire foundation would fall. Everyone I do starts with me, so have to make sure I am on point.
I also want to share that I am also part of a team in Denver, we host an open mic event on Wednesday night. It is absolutely a fun and beautiful experience, I love being in the atmosphere with other artists. If you ever want to check it out, please feel free to follow me so you’ll always be updated!
*MY WEBSITE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION CURRENTLY, WAITING FOR MY NEW WEBSITE TO BE READY. GET ALL UPDATES AND INFORMATION FROM MY SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS*
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
With all the industries I am invested in, I believe in the next 5 to 10 years, I will be the big change, shift, and trend.
With my growth in popularity, I am not just building myself up. I am here to work with, help and share the word about other artists that need to be seen.
I’m not saying my art style and vision are the trends because that’s me, but I am saying that those industries will change because of how I have impacted the up-and-coming artist. I do not want my success just for me, I want to make sure I am shining a light on artists who have yet to see the light. In my eyes, art is not a competition, it is an appreciation of all forms and styles.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://instagram.com/kcreation.s?utm_medium=copy_link
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/lifeofreneekc?utm_medium=copy_link
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/luvagirlkae
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-zZOfSl01ZC_J5_rMrfDgg
- Other: https://linktr.ee/ReneeKc_
