We were lucky to catch up with Dayna Conway recently and have shared our conversation below.
Dayna, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
I’ve lived an interesting life… from being a little girl from the hood that went to an affluent private school, to becoming a foster child, then a teen mom… the odds were always against me… but God. Most children (especially us 80’s babies) were tenacious enough to survive childhood bullying and it truly added a little flavor to our character, however, I strongly believe it was my mother’s prayers and the Detroit hustle in me that got me through the rest of it. When I became a mom at the age of 17, I knew nothing can stop me from providing the best life I could for my child. I call that my Tupac era because back then I truly felt like it was me against the world. My daughter was born in my senior year of high school, so I would wake up super early everyday, catch 3 busses- with my baby in tow, to get to drop her at the daycare, and then walk a few blocks to my school… in Detroit… rain, sun, or snow. After school I would pick my daughter up and go to work. I was truly blessed because I worked at a hair salon that allowed my to bring her to work with me. She was the salon baby and the ladies would take turns holding her as they sat under the hair dryer, lol. I’m truly thankful for everyone there, they were like my family.
I graduated high school on time and became a college graduate. When you have the will God will make a way. So anytime I’m feeling overwhelmed, I think back to all the bs I bounced back from and know If God brought me out before, He can do it again, and I get to work.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
What do I do? I bring stories to life… whether it’s through music visuals, films, social media reels, or events, there is a story to be told. I recently worked with MACRO and iHeartRadio as an Archival Producer for “Shattering The System”. I’m proud to say I’ve teamed up with CSuite Music, the creators of the Murder Inc. docu – series that gave me the platform to expand my horizons as a Story Producer in addition to Archival. I have had the great opportunity to work with the Sean Carter Foundation, REFORM, and the Prosecutor’s Alliance, plus more to come this year! I’m super excited to reveal what I’m currently working on, but it’s not time yet – stay tuned!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I think my imagination and my work ethic are my top 2 skills. When I face adversity, I imagine myself in a better situation and then I work hard to make that dream a reality. My most powerful possession is my faith – I’m a firm believer if you have the will, God will make a way.
Therefore, when you combine the power of your mind / imagination to envision your desired reality, have faith in God that He will give you the wisdom, courage, and provision to move forward, then put the work in to make it happen… Oh baby you’ll be unstoppable! But the seed starts in your mind. That’s why it’s so important to encourage children at an early age to imagine and encourage their dreams. When you have confidence to bet on yourself, then it’s nothing to it but to do it! The word is yours!
Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?
We’re living in a pivotal era, especially in the entertainment industry and everyone from mainstream to the indie artist is trying to figure out their next move. It can be challenging as it seems to be a drought in funding new projects, however we have to do what we were born to do – create, and create a way to make it happen.
When I realized I have a pile of scripts, but not a pile of money to produce them, I had to pivot. In that I learned there are many other forms of story telling other than script writing… One for example is content creation. I’ve taken that skill and cultivated it to where I am able to offer content creation and social media management. I’ve seen that area of my company expand tremendously in the past six months.
It was in broadening my creative horizons where I actually learned how to be an Archival Producer. During the strike, my mentor Toni Postell suggested Archival Production, and I first I thought I wanted nothing to do with post production, lol. However, I was open to learning a new skill and that’s where I learned that you still are able to create a story through the archives… and oh it’s so rewarding! It’s literally like going on a treasure hunt for all the pieces of your story, sorting through the gems that will make your story shine, then seeing the masterpiece you’ve created once the project is complete… I love it!
So again, things will change, and sometimes change isn’t easy, but as artists, we have the power to create the change we want to see.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://conwaydayproductions.com
- Instagram: @conwaydayproductions
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/dayna-conway-a83658263
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