Today we’d like to introduce you to Josiah Smith.
Hi Josiah, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
As someone who has always struggled with identity as a mixed-heritage child (mixed African-American and Thai), I struggled with feeling like I didn’t “fit in” with the Black kids, nor the Asian kids. In my process growing up, my friend group was always somewhat mixed and through it all, I learned to see different perspectives and points-of-view that I normally would not have gotten had I not tried to diversify my friend group and worldview. My father was in the military and throughout my upbringing, I experienced living abroad and experiencing other cultures meeting new people. A couple of those countries happened to be Germany and South Korea. While in Korea, which to this day is still my favorite place I’ve ever lived, and became really intrigued with the topic of Korean pop culture and the language itself. The start of the Korean culture boom started in 2012, as I lived there I began seeing the differing bounds of creativity and bounds of fashion.
At one point, when I was around 13 or 14 years old, my best friend, twin brother, and myself all got heavy into fashion and taking fit pictures. I ended up heavily enjoying the photography part of getting into fashion, and at some point started prioritizing getting better at taking pictures. When I got onto campus at Howard University, which is a big hotspot for creatives I got the ability and opportunity to get big into photography and videography even more. And as time has passed I get more and more opportunities to grow in terms of skills, ability, and my network. I then got up to Howard University in the fall of 2024, and here I became a member of the HU Skateboarding Club, which has an abundance of different archetypes of people. Each person I meet at the club have something different going for them, and meeting this plethora of different identities, fashion styles, ways of expression, etc., the openness for creating and looking past the boundaries that used to keep me boxed in.
More recently, me and a group of friends within the DMV area have started our own little creative collective, called 411Incorporated (we aren’t actually incorporated, but hopefully that comes in the future). The namesake comes from the American slang idiom “411,” which means ‘relevant information or the truth.’ And that is what we try to exude. Our honest selves, our creative minds coming together to make art and tell stories. I am currently actually working on filming and editing a music video for my homie, and I can share the link with you guys once it comes out within the next couple weeks. To end off, though, my biggest inspirations/influences for my creative journey and creativity are life experiences, skateboarding, music and the concept of culture in general.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
For the most part, at this point where I am not the most known or have all of the opportunities it has been a smooth road. I would say the biggest struggle is trying to put my money into everything and then getting my name out there on a broad angle.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I specialize in photography, trying to tap more into editorial type photography and conceptual. One part of KPOP that I always resonated with was Concept Photos whenever a group or idol has a comeback. KPop always has very intricately curated concepts and I want to use concepts to tell stories and bring ideas to life. I’m most proud of my ability to apply myself and then put my all into trying to set myself apart and build my brand for myself. The thing that sets me apart from others is the fact that I have a mixed heritage that I try to bring to life and express through my creative work on a broad basis.
What does success mean to you?
I define success as fulfilling goals that I set for myself regardless of how big or small these goals may be. I want to be someone who is remembered, either for my work or the impact I leave on others. I want to aid in the entire process of people becoming more accepting and open to any and all people regardless of previous perceptions or stereotypes. I want to be able to build my brand enough so that I can eventually have a life where my family can live comfortably and be able to explore any of the opportunities or interests they have so that we can build generational wealth that can last and leave an impression on all those that I deem close to me in my life.
Pricing:
- $135 is my Base Price as I plan on building my brand and don’t want to overly tax people
Contact Info:
- Website: https://madebyjosiahh.myportfolio.com/madebyjosiahh
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madebyjosiahh/?__pwa=1
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahhsmithh/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wrldofjosiah
Image Credits
Photos all on my Instagram, either my posts, reposts, or tagged posts.
