KIMBERLY LAVON • CEO + CREATIVE WRITER

I founded and joined Mint Maven in 2022 as the Creative Writer + CEO of the agency. Prior to my work here, I was the Creative Director of Thimble Media. We delivered Brand Identity + Strategy to a myriad of businesses. Before that I was the Fine Artist/Print Shop Owner of Kimberly Lavon INK. During my tenure at the printshop I helped the studio work on projects with esteemed clients: Detroit Institute of Art + Lululemon. I took part in creative placemaking nationwide for over 2 decades + represented 89,000 creatives state wide at Michigan Art Advocacy Day. I am a Masters graduate of Savannah College of Art + Design where I majored in Advertising, + an Undergraduate of Kendall of Art + Design where I studied Fine Art Printmaking + Graphic Design. I currently live in Lansing, Michigan with my cat Sherlock. When I'm not busy with working on research + writing, you can find me eating popcorn + watching movies at home. Learn more about Kimberly at: https://mintmaven.co/

RESOURCES

Read Kimberly's "Grant Applications 101" Blog Post:

https://www.forthelostcreative.com/post/grant-applications-101-from-a-grant-writing-expert

Search for grants & more on our database of 200+ opportunities: https://www.forthelostcreative.com/

EPISODE SPONSOR

This episode is sponsored by Dr. Heidi Kay Begay and the Flute360 Podcast! The Flute 360 Podcast guides the modern-day musician to discover their unique voice on and off their stage!

https://heidikaybegay.com/

ABOUT THE GUEST

Hannah Cole is a tax expert who specializes in working with creative businesses and artists. A long-time working artist with a high-level exhibition history, the financial challenges of freelancers and small creative businesses are both relevant and personal to Hannah. Her specialty is communicating complex tax issues in a clear, creative-centered, empowering way. Hannah Cole is a working artist and the founder of Sunlight Tax. She is host of the Sunlight podcast.

Sunlight Tax: https://www.sunlighttax.com

Sunlight Podcast: https://www.sunlighttax.com/podcast 

ABOUT THE GUEST

Taylor Rossi is a flutist, web designer, and portrait photographer for Nicole Riccardo Media. She helps classical musicians bring their visions to life and grow their online presence.

Learn more: www.nicolericcardomedia.com

EPISODE SPONSOR

This episode is sponsored by the Flute Center of New York. The Flute Center of New York is the world's marketplace for flutes. Whether you're shopping for your first beginner flute or your first gold flute, the Flute Center’s team of Resident Flutists can help find the perfect instrument for you. Contact the Flute Center for a free in-home trial today! And don’t miss the Flute Center’s podcast, Flute Unscripted, featuring candid conversations with the most famous and influential flutists of our time.

Shop FCNY: https://flutecenter.com

Flute Unscripted: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0EiAnQH-H_R2PKXD0g87zw 

ABOUT THE GUEST

Yue Deng-Wu is the co-founder of Spacenotes, a startup focused on building a new app for learning music. Spacenotes is on a mission to make music education more accessible and delightful. Yue is a classically trained pianist and teacher. She was also an attorney at DLA Piper, where she advised tech companies of all stages on employment related matters.

EPISODE SPONSOR

This episode is sponsored by Spacenotes. Spacenotes is helping people around the world learn piano with a real coach, on their own time. Visit spacenotes.app to get started.

We're joined by special guest Dr. Heidi Kay Begay for a discussion about pivoting to a non-traditional path, running multiple music businesses, and more!

Dr. Heidi Kay Begay is a self-employed flutist, educator, podcaster, and non-profit organizer. Heidi is the creator and host of the Flute 360 podcast, which delivers educational content (to the modern-day flutist) through various platforms. Since 2018, the podcast has produced over 220 episodes, received over 100,000 downloads from 70 countries, and has obtained numerous corporate sponsorships. Heidi’s mission is to help musicians reach new heights so they can feel empowered, confident, and have a life they love on and off the stage! Please visit https://heidikaybegay.com for more information!

Serena and Heidi have been working together on planning the Ultimate Music Business Summit, a 3-day virtual summit with 30+ presentations, networking events, and more! Join from anywhere January 5-7, 2023.

Get your tickets for UMBS: https://serenahuang.krtra.com/t/GjfFkQ0pq3dT

Welcome to a new era of Creative Baggage! Serena, Justin and Deivy sit down ahead of the release of their database, 'For the Lost Creative', to reflect on their own experiences and opportunities that have led them all to where they are today. We talk about the windiness of pursing a creative career, and how almost nothing has been a straight line for us.

The launch of FOR THE LOST CREATIVE. is here! Our comprehensive, curated database of free opportunities to explore in your creative career launches today, September 3rd

Keep up to date with the rollout of out database through our Instagram (@creative.baggage) and newsletter (sign up at www.creativebaggagepodcast.com)

Listen to our presentation at the Bach 2 the Future Conference in MUPA Budapest, where they pitched Creative Baggage's project "for the lost creative," a database of scholarships, grants, internships, jobs, and other opportunities to help creatives find the next steps in their career. We are beyond grateful to have received a grant from enCORE Classical & Jeunesse Musicale International (JMI) to make the project come to life.

Search for Opportunities Now: www.forthelostcreative.com

Everything is changing once again! Justin and Serena discuss their time in Budapest, and Bailey announces her departure from the Creative Baggage team. We reminisce on the very beginnings of CB and look ahead to an unknown but exciting future!

What's next? Development of our database of opportunities FOR THE LOST CREATIVE. is in full swing! Stay tuned for the launch of our comprehensive, curated database of free opportunities to explore in your creative career.

Read Bailey's Goodbye Letter on our Instagram (@creative.baggage) and newsletter (sign up at www.creativebaggagepodcast.com)

Writer and musician Chioma Ossai shares her thoughts on self-love and self-care, which is a profound theme in her poetry. We agree that getting to know ourselves and nurturing our inner child can unlock a sense of creative freedom that we've hidden away over time. We also discuss the impact of social media (both positive & negative) on artists and the arts industry.

Chioma Ossai is the author of "A Journey to Self-Love," which explores concepts of softness, vulnerability, and sensuality. Her poetry is often centered around themes of identity, healing, and authenticity, that challenges what it means to know and love oneself. She was born and raised in New Jersey and is currently based in Berlin, Germany. Her mission is to simply tell inviting stories through poetry, music, and blogging with the hope to evolve, share, and inspire others to write stories of their own. She also received her Bachelor of Music at Montclair State University in Music Education, and is a classically trained pianist.

Chioma's Website: https://www.chiomaossai.com

A Journey to Self Love: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09SX4QNBR/ref=sr_1_1?crid=9EDLGZE0UIUL&keywords=chioma+ossai&qid=1645309152&sprefix=chioma+ossai%2Caps%2C335&sr=8-1

In this episode, we chat with flutist Stephen Clark about his journey from orchestral musician, to soloist, to DMA student at the University of Alabama. He shares his insights on the differences between conducting yourself as a student vs. professional, as well as the differences between academia / the music industries of the UK and the US. We thoroughly enjoyed his stories and musings on his unconventional path!

-

Recipient of the 2016 Sir James Galway Rising Star Award and 1st Prize winner of the 2018 IMKA Music Competition and the 2018 Alexander & Buono International Flute Competition, Stephen Clark gives more than 150 performances each year across all 7 continents and made his New York recital debut at Carnegie Hall in 2018. Born in Glasgow, Scotland, he studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Royal Northern College of Music and in Switzerland and America with Sir James Galway. Regularly invited to perform at flute festivals, he has given solo recitals at both the Conventions of the British Flute Society and the National Flute Association of America and the Sir James Galway Flute Festival in Switzerland. Solo engagements have taken him to over 120 countries including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy, Turkey, Israel, Finland, Canada, Latvia, Estonia, Russia, Croatia, Thailand, Germany, Netherlands, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Egypt, China, Libya, Malta, Poland, Lithuania, Japan, Australia, Belgium, France, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Oman, Jordan, New Zealand, South Africa, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Seychelles, Maldives, Malaysia, Brazil, Norway, Iceland, Korea, Peru, Vietnam, Greece, Slovenia and the U.S.A. He has also performed as solo flute player alongside several popular music artists including Annie Lennox, Andrea Bocelli and pop band McFly. Stephen has recorded for Classic FM, Amadeus, Linn Records and for the Naxos label and broadcast live on Northern Ireland’s 7FM and BBC Radio 3. He has released 2 solo albums on the Voyage Record Label. In 2015, Stephen was accepted into the Recording Academy of America and is now a voting member in the Grammys. Stephen has appeared on screen as the flute player in both the BBC's period drama series "Desperate Romantics" and ITV's feature film "Miss Marple - The Secret of Chimneys". He is author of “The Flute Gym” - a manual for advanced flute players. Stephen is a Yamaha Artist and plays a 14k gold handmade Yamaha flute.

-

Episode Sponsor: ⁠https://heidikaybegay.com/shop/⁠

Use code CREATIVEBAGGAGE code for 25% off of both of Heidi's digital video courses: The Podcasting Musician & The Corporate Sponsorship classes.

(Valid until 12/31/23)