Meet Courtney Warner | Creative artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Courtney Warner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Courtney, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
When I initially wanted to start my own business it was honestly on a whim. I hope that doesn’t sound lazy or uncharismatic but that’s genuinely how it was for me. I knew for a long time that I wanted to be involved in entertainment/fashion, whether that had to do with styling, directing or designing I just knew I had qualities that could get me places. Plus my mother and father and overall family all have/ run their own business’s so for me it was pretty canon. I wanted to have something of my own that I can turn into a profit but still be able to have fun, express my inner self, and actually be happy doing it.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My art is exactly what it is, mine. A lot of people confuse art with being a form of cash cow or an avenue to just make money or go viral, and to me that completely defeats the purpose of being an artist/ creating art period. That in itself is what I feel sets me apart from others. When I’m creating something I’m not thinking about what the next person is going to say about it or feel about it. I’m thinking about “does this make me happy? Does this make me proud?” And quite frankly if the answers to those two questions are automatically no then I’m not doing what I’m supposed to be doing. What I’m supposed to be doing as an artist is enjoying the experience and worrying about the rest later, cause I know it will come. I’m most proud of the fact that no matter what I’ve been through or what people have to say about me or my work it never made me stop doing what I love doing the most, which is creating. I’m excited to see what the future has in store for me and my art and what direction everything will take me in. I believe I got to where I am by being consistent, cause when people are consistent, no matter how long the journey, they’re going to almost ALWAYS reach success. I say almost because a lot of times things do get discouraging and I myself have not yet overcome that obstacle, so to answer the question “has it been easy?” No, it really hasn’t. My consistency has slowed down a bit because unfortunately life is still life, and what I mean by that is there are a lot of things going on in the world right now including in my personal life, But anything worth fighting for never truly is easy. So with keeping that in mind the lessons I’d have to say I’ve learned while being on this journey is to focus on yourself and your goals in life and I promise you will get to where you’re going. I myself am not there yet but I know I’n my heart that I will make it. What I want the world to know is that no matter how hard life gets you are the person that determines what happens in your own, no one else. People will always have their opinions but it’s up to you whether or not you allow those opinions to stunt your growth not just as an artist, but a person as well.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
So I live in Cleveland, OH and although it seems like there isn’t much to do here? You just have to know the right places to go. For instance if my bestfriend was visiting me? We are the type that LOVES to shop cause she’s a fashionista too, and I love taking her to all the places that I think would have some cool and unique styles to choose from! For instance there’s a boutique called “Avalon exchange” that has some of the coolest gently used pieces, accessories and unique items I’ve ever seen. Plus the vibe of the store is immaculate and I’d recommend any thrifters who love a hood thrift yo start there first! Then I’d take her to one of my favorite creole restaurants in downtown Lakewood called “The Bourbon Street Barrel” for us to catch a bite to eat. The food palettes are amazing! And the prices are extremely affordable, the have these gator bites with the creole dipping sauce that will literally have you visiting Ohio just to order those alone. Then finally last but not least I’d love to end the night by getting all dressed up and going out for a night on the town! Which there are a few great places to choose from here in Cleveland but my favorite place to go is this awesome karaoke bar called “corkys” in Lakewood! I know how to sing and I love to have a good time too so this combination is definitely right up my alley and a fun time for dancing and excitement.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The main people that I would like to shout out first is of course my mother. She has ALWAYS supported me in everything I do, whether that be financial helping me fund a project, to showing up to my events and helping promote it by informing her colleagues on what I do. I’m just happy that I have a support system like that involved in my life as much as she is because she even gives me different business tips on how to make my business better. The next shout out id like to make is to a very special and good friend of mine named Devin Chandler. He’s been involved in my life for years and he’s one of the main people that pushed me to go for my goals and always chase my dreams. Even though me or my business aren’t exactly where I’d like them to be? He’s encouraged me that the best part of getting to where you want in life is the journey, those special moments in your life that actually help aid in your growth and the growth of your business. So I want to definitely say shoutout to him and you can find his platform on social media at @silksatchmo on IG.
I’d also like to shout out RAWartists, which is a major platform that travels the world giving artists like me a chance to actually be apart of something so epic and so special. They were the first group to reach out to me after finding my social media and seeing my work to have me apart of their showcase, after that my career pretty much launched from there.

Instagram: Omniii.3_

Image Credits
@therealcalliecal @blackhare13 @ariyasomi @moparopisopa @omniii.3_ @its_kiyah