Meet Cece Tor

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Cece Tor. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Cece, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?

I get my resilience from God. As a believer, I not only pull inspiration from the price Jesus paid for me on calvary, but also from how He covers and protects me from some of the worst situations I’ve been in. In 2016 I was hired, along with my dance crew at the time, by a Chinese talent agency to live and work in China as entertainment in the nightclubs there. Things started off a bit rocky when we arrived and noticed the visa the agency provided for us was not a working visa, but a tourist visa. There are very serious repercussions in China for getting caught working on a tourist visa, including jail time. Within the first two weeks of arriving, my passport was stolen. I was devastated not only because I was in a different country with no passport, but the agency I was working for banned my crew and I from work until I could replace my passport. Literally the next day after my passport got stolen, the club we were working at got raided, and all the foreign dancers working on tourist visas went to jail. If my passport had not gotten stolen, my crew and I would have been working that night, and in turn arrested and sent to Chinese jail. My passport had to be stolen to get me out of the horrible situation I was in. God went before me and allowed that to happen, to protect me in the grand scheme of things. We were able to leave the agency after that, and were further informed that the agent we were working was not a good man, and even known for getting foreign dancers deported. His business practices had a bad reputation and caused him to be put on a black list of agents to avoid in China. All this was revealed after loosing my passport, and when we still had time to leave his agency. I say all this to say that even when bad things happen in my life, I know that God is somewhere in the details working everything out for my good. It is because of Him that I am able to rise again failure after failure, and be resilient.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am an artist and Jill of many trades. I am a Liberian American Choreographer, professional dancer, dance instructor. photographer, videographer, makeup artist, designer, and all around creative. I have graced screens such as “Black Panther 2,” “Step up” the series, and HBOs “Eyes on the prize.” I currently hold the winning title for Red Bull Culture Clash 2023 and Red Bull Dance Your style, where she was the in the first #TEAMAFRICA in Red Bull History. I have also worked with artists such as Davido, Rema, Teni, Yemi Alade, Drake, Teyana Taylor, Jessie J, to name a few and was the official choreographer of Afronation US 2022.

I own a company called World Tor Productions that produces content, and provides entertainment services through dance. My company covers photography and videography for events, such as maternity shoots, graduations, baby showers, and conceptual visuals to name a few. I love helping others bring their visions to life, while capturing special moments that can be cherished forever. I also feel excited about sharing Africa’s radiance through dance, fashion, and storytelling. Inspiring the next generation and bringing more opportunities to Africans worldwide is my goal. I am currently teaching a weekly african street style dance class every Thursday 7-9pm May-Aug in Atlanta at Creatives Rental Space. Building a community through culture is my goal with this class, while continuing to spread knowledge and train others in the various African Street Styles. I am also working on a live fashion and dance show that will take place in Atlanta this October to shed light on various street style fashion and dance culture from Africa. I am always evolving as an artist, and each medium of representation is so important to me.

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?

The three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that impacted me the most on my journey is 1. Humility, 2. Consistency, and 3. Not to take myself too seriously.
Advice I have for people early in their journey is to hone in on your craft. Never stop being a student! The moment you stop learning, is when you put a cap on your greatness. There’s always room to get better, so stay consistent in learning and always being better than yesterday. Also know that everyone makes mistakes, so give yourself grace. Mistakes are all apart of the learning curve, and some are needed to grow.

What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?

The most impactful thing my parents did for me was start me out in the church and making sure my foundation was with God. Also enrolling me in dance classes of course!

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