We’re looking forward to introducing you to Paige Williams. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Paige, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: What is a normal day like for you right now?
As of now, a normal day for me starts with school, of course. I typically need some form of intellectual stimulation, so I will either listen to an educational video/podcast or wait to engage in conversation during my first period class (US History). My favorite part of the day is choir and musical theatre (they switch depending on which day of the school week it is). I am the vice president of the choral department at my school, so I will greet people and warm everyone up before our director begins our rehearsal. Then I’ll eat lunch and finish out the school day. After school, because I am a music fiend, I have band practice. After all of that, I usually go home and practice my music and do homework. Then finally, I can go back to indulging in my hobbies. It may sound strenuous to some, but each day is filled with something new and enjoyable; I look forward to it all!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi! My name is Paige Williams, and I am a musician, performer, and humanitarian around the Dallas-Fort Worth (TX) area. I am a vocalist, and I perform with the DeSoto High School Choral Department, The Black Academy of Arts and Letters, and other miscellaneous performance opportunities. I play bass guitar for the DeSoto Eagle Band, and I am the first girl in the history of my school to do so! I enjoy all of the fine arts: visual arts (especially painting and pencil art), dance, theatre, vocal and instrumental performance, film, and creative writing. Through these art forms, I hope to reach people. Helping my communities, even if through small acts of service, is extremely important in my life and future career. Therefore, any opportunity to reach out and interact with these surrounding communities fulfills something within me.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
Before I understood what this world was about, I was a dreamer. A little kid with a very active imagination. I wanted to be a ballerina, a botanist, an Egyptologist, a detective, a teacher…and the list goes on! I saw the beauty in everything. During the early stages of my adolescence, I was faced with some complex hardships. This stage of my life, coupled with a global pandemic, chipped away at the wide-eyed optimism that I once had. After a few major events in my life, I began a very long period of healing, in which I am still enduring. This past year, I have miraculously started to retrieve those bits of childlike wonder. And I can say it has been the sunniest stage of my life. Not because it has been easy, but because I have been so adamant about holding on to that joy that God had instilled in me from the beginning, to let my hardships swallow me whole and block the sun from my view.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
You are going to be okay. Everything will work itself out.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
I think most people go through life checking off boxes and trying to fit into molds that were not made for them, rather than doing what they actually want.
I understand that people have bills to pay, and elders to please, and mouths to feed. But if we’re all just getting married to say we got married, or having babies just to fill a home, where does our individuality go? Imagine all the dreams you could have reached if you weren’t so afraid of breaking the mold or being alone?
I don’t aspire to fit people’s standards of success; I only aspire to meet MY standards. I honestly couldn’t care less about how society views me because at the end of the day, I have to live with myself and the decisions that I made. So, I would prefer to fulfill my heart’s desires with the people I love.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. When do you feel most at peace?
I feel the most at peace when I am alone in nature. The sun on my skin. Or maybe the wind blowing softly on a cloudy day. I like to talk to the flowers, trees, the sky, insects (mostly ladybugs), animals, and water. It sounds silly to most people, so I don’t talk much about it. But whenever someone asks me, I could chitchat for hours about the beauty that Mother Nature has gifted us. So, yes, I talk aloud to all of these creatures and beings, even though they can’t speak back to me. I feel a deep connection to myself and everything beyond me when I am outdoors.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @thisispaigew
Image Credits
Leigh Moore Photography (applicable to the photo of myself in nature and the primary photo of me with my guitar)
