We were lucky to catch up with Jonny Kaine recently and have shared our conversation below.
Jonny, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?
My Parents! Having parents that come from a third world country like Sierra Leone, they insured to install hard work and discipline traits into me and my siblings because that was how they were brought up back home. Seeing my parents come to America and accomplish the things that they have thus far is a big motivation to me because they started with just a dream and a plan to take care of themselves and their families here and as well as back home. With hard work, dedication and praying to god, they were able to achieve so many things and provide a life for me and my siblings that they didn’t not get to experience growing up. They have always been big on setting up your foundation for the life you desire so in the future that is why I work so hard now because family comes first and want my kids to be able in inherit and continue what our family has built.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am a man of many hats. I am a Professional International Dj located in Charlotte, NC. I DJ for all genres from Hip hop, r&b, soul, pop, dancehall and even to afrobeat and amapiano. I am also Charlotte natives, Roc Nation’s own Reuben Vincent’s official DJ. I have been deejaying since the age of 14 so 2024 will make it 10 years of being apart of this craft. I am also a brand owner of Jonny Kaine Fitted N’ Apparel established in 2021. I started JKFNA to provide the city of Charlotte as well as the Carolina’s as a whole, a brand that withholds a type of quality and standard while still providing a message that connects to consumer. 100% Organic Made is the brands slogan. This slogan promotes people to be themselves in every situation and room that you are in and do what you are here on this earth for. To be organic means to be true to self and do what’s here for you and following you path and not someone else’s because it might have worked for them. Being organic made is bigger than the food that we consume. It’s about the way you conduct yourself. From organic conversations, to organic creativity, to organic relationships that you build with others. Being organic made is a lifestyle and way of life. It’s about doing what feels right and letting that be your guide to what you desire.
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?
Patients: Everything takes time to come into fruition. Nothing good that is meant to last happens overnight. Play the long game instead of the short one because you are here to stay not for the time being. Rome was not built in a day!
Ls are not losses there are lessons:
Sometimes things that happen in life are supposed to happen to teach you something that you might need to know or have to experience to grow into your future self. Good or even bad experiences are all lessons because when you sit and analyze what happened, you know what and what not to do moving forward for the next time.
You can’t do everything yourself: Building a team is very vital to continue the growth of your brand. Finding individuals that desire the same things as you and want to play whatever role that is needed to succeed is important because as a owner, things are going to accumulate to the point were you just can’t do everything yourself. That’s when you need trustworthy people to help you with things that you lack or can’t accomplish because multiple heads and hands are always better than one! Especially when things are clear to everyone and everyone knows their role to help the team succeed.
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
Besides my immediate family, I would say my closest friends and my team behind JKFNA and Third World. My closest friends have known me for years and have seen me through so many different stages in my life to the point were they always keep me grounded and level headed. That’s from checking me when I do wrong, to being my number one fans when I’m doing right. They provide me with a balance and intentions that I know come from nothing but a pure place of love. Third World was built upon having similar backgrounds and struggles but letting those be our motivational factors to achieve whatever we want to in life while staying true to who we are.
Contact Info:
- Website: Jonnykainefna.com
- Instagram: @Jonnykainefna & @Jonny.Kaine
- Twitter: JonnyKaineFNA
- Other: Third world page: @Everythingthird
Image Credits
@its12vy @keilanphotos @nxgxl @Darion__O @nuuuke.jpg
