We recently had the chance to connect with Kelsey Harper and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Kelsey , thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
Something super special to me, is my time in the evenings with my partner & dog, when we have a yummy homemade dinner in our bellies (courtesy, to my partner who does all the cooking & is an incredible chef) but the time spent together, decompressing and falling into a binge-worthy tv series, such as The Summer I Turned Pretty, Mobland, Severance, and White Lotus. We have always enjoyed watching, connecting & talking through the episodes on character development, storylines, and plot line guesstimating. It’s the time everyday (aside from evenings out of the house) that we can unwind, focus on something that fulfills us emotionally & carries us to a calmer, more comfortable disposition.
A large part of my job, is knowing when to “turn it off”, put down the phone or laptop,” and “log off.” We are constantly surrounded by the un subconscious behavioral action, of picking up our phone 24/7, however for me, it’s like logging back into work.
So disconnecting, spending time with my family & coming together to enjoy something that aligns us both, as been the most rewarding part of my evenings!
A large majority would say watching tv at night with your partner is not defined as “together time.” But for us, we really bond over characters, cliques, opinions, guessing what comes next, or who’s the end game, so for us, it is an activity that really resonates with our personalities. I find myself in a good book, a really moving song, a sunny walk, a binge-worthy episode series, or at a dessert table with a brownie in hand. But more like likely, I feel most myself when I cuddle my dog & when I hug my family. All of those moments, actions, activities & memories, allow me to feel the most alive!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hello!
My name is Kelsey Harper; I’m 25 & originally born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I moved to Dallas in the summer of 2023, and have been blown away by the people, vast food options, and the wide variety of activities here! Back in 2020 when the pandemic sent me home from my freshman year of college, I began looking into what “influencing” really was. As it was up-and-coming at that time and something most people only deemed possible for celebrities.
But as TikTok grew and morphed into something where everyone had a seat at the table, I felt extreme encouragement and a passion that really grabbed me in and pulled me close, drawing me towards social media marketing. I then modified my career approach in school, to align myself with all the tools and resources to build a successful brand. At the time, I wasn’t even filming videos. I was just sourcing really gifted photographers for designated shoots for any brand I could get to work with me.
It wasn’t until one big brand took a major risk on me, that kind of changed everything. It broaden my perspective, that this was a possibility, although very taboo of a career, and wildly different than most 9-5 jobs, that if I put in the time, efforts, commitment & consistency, I could strive to grow a community via socials, that felt like a family.
Since then; I’ve grown, I’ve met incredible people, asked many questions from mentors, and networked with a ton of local “co-workers,” that have only pushed me closer to my goals. As I continue to take on being an Influencer full-time in DFW, my largest goal is to always stay true to my authentic self, and never be too busy or too distracted to not promote the smaller guys, aka local small businesses, that deserve a spotlight too. To never choose money over authenticity when it come to the representation of the brands I align myself with.
I’ve seen the power social media can hold, especially to businesses, using that incredible gift to generate revenue, sales, bring people together, boost awareness, and create meaningful content & connections as been at the forefront of my mission.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
A part of me that I tried to not onto while growing up, and more specifically into my college years, was anxiety. A few years ago, I knew it as just feeling super anxious, as more of just a feeling of panic without a proper diagnosis. It wasn’t until I seeked therapy, to come to the realization, that I actually did have a chemical imbalance, which in turn caused anxiety to consistently live rent free in my mind. The largest difficulty for me, was that I couldn’t pinpoint anything specifically that made me anxious, which is why after several years, my doctors deemed my anxiety as generalized. Which, in my opinion may be one of the more severe ones, considering that you don’t really know when it’s gonna come on, and you sort of fear that it will hit at any moment and you also try and predict when it will, and while doing all of that in your head, you begin to notice that it’s already started.
With the world being so much more accepting and knowledgeable of mental health, and how important & consistently improving it has become in 2025, I highly encourage anyone who struggles, to seek a professional.
Everyone struggles with something and I think I always felt like anxiety made me feel so alone, and in reality everyone has a tiny bit of anxiety. It might not be constant on an everyday basis, but stress is directly connected to anxiety, so highly stressful careers, industries and family dynamics can put most people into a position of having some level of anxiety.
With that being said, I’ve been given amazing resources to assist me in times where my anxiety can easily take over, and with these tools, has encourage me to keep on going even when sometimes, it feels extremely difficult to show up.
I say this because there are so many people out there that struggle with something very similar and I would like for you to know: that finding healthcare professionals was one of the best things I ever did! And there’s just so much hope in this specific arena, that I know, you, the reader, if you’re struggling with something, please lean on a healthcare professional. They’ve dedicate their lives to serve others. Trust in them, lean on them, listen to them, they are your largest advocates & proudest supporters!
What fear has held you back the most in your life?
A subconscious fear, that most people have and that I certainly have is the fear of judgment. When I first started social media, I knew I never wanted to be one of these big time millions of followers type of “celebrities.” I wanted to be the girl down the block that was super authentic to herself & had a small but mighty type of vibe.
It’s very easy to get caught up in your head on how people will judge you for anything and everything you post. But for me, once I started collecting revenue behind branded collaborations, I quickly realized that it didn’t really matter how many hate comments, (poorly written I might add,) hurtful dms & emails I received, what matter was I was moving forward every day in many of ways to create the lifestyle that I was supposed to live.
Even when I was in high school and in college, I really struggled with feeling judged, espeically for what I wore, or how smart or not smart I was, the type of grades I got, which parties I went to, which ones I didn’t get invited too, etc. Very stereotypical issues within that age demographic, but I have to admit that at times, I really let it get me down. Looking back on it now. I wish I let myself be happier. I wish I kept telling myself that it really didn’t matter and that it was all temporary, I was going to grow up and be who I wanted to be and finally feel confident before I knew it.
That nervous high school girl, I was growing up, could never even fathom mentally, that I would ever post something and then never look back, or feel regret or be overly meticulous over a singular post.
I’m happy that the woman I am today embodies confidence, oozes gratitude, soaks in every day & doesn’t live with regret.
So if you find yourself being that overly critical girl, I’m here to tell you that you will morph into a very confident version of yourself that you never deemed possible, just give yourself a few years!
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
I get this question a lot,
To which I respond, I don’t know any other way to be. In fact, I’m a horrible actress, and was never musically inclined, so there was never really a place for me in the acting department, that was all my sister.
So everything that I post is authentically me, the raw emotions, recommendations, clips, memories, advice, and photos, are all authentically me. In fact, I worked with a Photographer, recently on something super exciting coming soon, and she commented after our 3 hours together, “you’re just like you are online, it’s amazing & I pray you stay that way.” And that really resonated with me because I never had viewed it as two different versions of myself. It was always, “just this is me and this is my lens” & finding a way to share that with my community has been really rewarding.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If you laid down your name, role, and possessions—what would remain?
If I had to lay down my name, role and all my possessions. A really open minded, widely curious & tender hearted, giver of a girl would remain.
I’ve always found it easy to love people, easy to confide in people, after getting to really know them. I think asking questions is vital, even if it’s the hard questions that get you the realest answers. I’ve seen people, and allowed them to see me. I cheerish that gift, to encourage others, support my closest friends & family and embrace connection, conversation and understanding.
I’ve always been open minded especially to the world we live in. Choosing to only see the positive, and very little of the negative. I don’t watch the news, I don’t know enough to talk about politics or the climate, or religion. I know just know about the basics of “life,” without getting too caught up on specifics. I’ve always valued the true stories over the fake media & I will always stand by the turtle not the heir.
That’s the type of girl I am, easy-going while still be a perfectionist, finding love all around her in many forms, being curious but only about the possibilities, and wanting more of herself everyday.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kels.4
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelseyharpermedia24
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@Kels.k4
Image Credits
Amanda (My Best Photography)
AudreyBrookePhotography
