An Inspired Chat with Klemntyna of NYC/London/Warsaw

Klemntyna shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Klemntyna, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: Who are you learning from right now?
I’ve been deep into researching British Rock and Grime as my next project is going to be heavily influenced by these genres. Listening to so many different, brilliant artists is giving me so much inspiration and teaching so much about the London culture throughout the years. I’m very excited about it because it’s a completely new territory for me, and I feel like discovering it and learning about it has been so refreshing and inspiring!
At the same time I challenged myself last year to start learning Japanese so that’s another influence I’ve been taking in. 🙂

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Klementyna, I am a Pop/R&B artist, songwriter, performer, as well as a founder in digital media. As an artist, who goes by Klemntyna, I make music that draws inspiration from alternative soundscapes in Pop and R&B, but I’m also inspired by so many other genres, like Hip Hop, Trap, Jazz, or Rock. I’m currently working on my second album, which is going to be inspired by London (which is where I’m primarily based at the moment), and draw influence from Pop, Rock, and Grime. Last year, I released my debut album SHE, which is a project about navigating the world as a young woman, exploring relationships, personal growth, and ambition.

The subject of women empowerment is something that is incredibly important to me. In 2020, I started a social project on Instagram that shared nearly 200 stories from Gen Z and Millennial women, with the mission to promote authenticity on social media. We also hosted a series of online events, including a STEAM conference, Girls Code Fest, which invited female leaders across tech and arts to host panels and workshops for girls and women interested in career in STEM.

My founder journey started both with that project, as well as another one I co-founded with 3 friends at the start of the pandemic, which was a music live-streaming startup, called LiveRoom Media. We built an MVP, being a social networking and live-streaming app that allowed independent artists to earn up to $700/hr from live-streams during the COVID lockdown.

Building these projects, led me to founding my own digital media company that currently works with startups, founders and brands to develop their digital branding, community, and storytelling. I have also recently re-launched my women empowerment project, now called HerZ.Wave with the mission to amplify women and women-identifying voices in music and tech. We are currently planning a series of networking and educational events in London and NYC, as well as a podcast series featuring female leaders in music and tech. Stay tuned! 🙂

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who taught you the most about work?
My mom! She is such a hard-worker and also such as strong woman. I spent a lot of my time with her at work. She is a set designer for various TV shows and films. A lot of my childhood memories are from the TV studios, film sets, and prop and costume rooms. Watching her fulfill her creative ambitions perhaps inspired me to pursue a somewhat similar career that requires a lot of perseverance, dedication and discipline. She was also the one to teach me about work ethic, as well as having an artistic purpose and mission.

What have been the defining wounds of your life—and how have you healed them?
When I was in high school my biggest dream was to study at NYU. As an international student, I meticulously prepped for this since I was in middle school, and when I was a senior I finally made it an got in. I got a partial scholarship from the school and was fortunate to meet a private foundation in Warsaw that gave me an additional scholarship to attend my first year. I used that year at NYU to the fullest, hoping that after my freshman year the school would increase my scholarship. I was a top student at the Engineering Department, I was on the NYU Cheer team, a vice-president at my acapella group, as well as a member in a bunch of student associations and music & business groups. With all these accomplishments, I reached out directly to the Deans at my department, who invited me to numerous meetings. I did a lot of networking among notable alumni, some of whom helped me get in the meetings with the top university representatives. Unfortunately, despite my huge efforts, it didn’t work out, and I had to transfer. Even though the school I transferred to was still one of the top universities in the world, the pain of “failing” was incredibly difficult. In my head, I thought that this was the end of my dreams, and it took me a few months to realize that it wasn’t. Eventually, I ended up meeting a lot of alumni from NYU with whom I worked on my music, I also created a whole community for myself in NYC, and I realized that having this much experience from my time fundraising for NYU, actually has been beneficial to my career in music. It gave me the confidence to chase my dreams, to not be afraid to approach people, to push through any obstacles and challenges. I’m honestly really grateful for this experience and I think it made my story even more interesting.

Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
My music! I’ve been singing since I was 12, it’s been years of hard work, discipline and determination, but I’m fully committed, no matter how long it takes for me to reach my audience and grow my project. There’s been moments in my life, when I briefly focused on something else like founding a startup, but at the end of the day, I was always drawn back to making music. Right now, I’m fully focused on my music project and ready for it to grow!

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
Being too critical of myself, stressed about time, overworking and overusing social media. I think I would just let myself be comfortable with myself, embrace my confidence and just do only things that make me happy. I already do a lot of that, however, there are moments when I’m scared, worried, sad or afraid, and I would just entirely try to remove these feelings and thoughts so that I could spend the last 10 years of my life doing as much good as I can. Honestly, saying this right now just inspired me to commit to doing it 🙂

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Image Credits
Kadir Celimli, Miriam Arroyo

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